Advert Advice

[MattyB]

So I've had the Exige up for sale for a while now - and other than some a couple of non-serious enquiries on SELOC, I've had absolutely zero interest. Nothing. Not a single contact through PH. Considering S1 Exiges have pretty much sold like hot cakes for the last two years, and I've not seen one sell for less than £22k (advertised) for a long time (aside from very high milers, and a Cat D) I don't think the price is massively off target, and it is negotiable.

 

Which only leaves an aspect of the car which is offputting to prospective viewers. So I thought I'd ask the Lotus fraternity: if you were in the market, is there anything in the advert which you would find particularly unfavourable? I wont be offended! I'd rather sort it and increase the appeal...

 

http://www.pistonheads.co.uk/sales/2859979.htm

 

My only thought is the silver wheels - it has a big visual impact (positively, in 95% of SELOC'ers polled shortly after I bought it) but I'm wondered if some people look at it and it rings alarm bells, especially as these cars are fairly sensitive to being kept as close as standard as possible?

 

Any advice is appriciated. I'm not desperate to sell, but I've got my eye on a replacement which is pretty rare and I'd like to be in a position to pounce when it becomes available!

 

Ta

 

(Apologies if this goes against forum rules, I'm sure most of you know the advert without me linking it!)

[Steve J]

I can't see anything wrong. Perhaps you've priced it too low and people are thinking there must be something wrong being so cheap

 

I'd love a VHPD Exige again but don't have the funds anymore.

 

I wouldn't worry about it not selling for a couple of months unless you really need it gone. The market for everything is dead right now, so it's more due to that than your car.

[John FISH Curtis]

Iam in the market for an Elise, unfortunatley not in your budget.

 

 

I have read your advert and two things i would remove -

(1) coment about the A/C having a mind of its own - perhaps tell prospective owner on a test drive.

(2) five previous ownes - you dont need to comment this - its on the log book and potential new owners responcibility.

 

 

VERY nice mota

[PeterField]

Hmmm, tricky one Matt.

 

I can see where you're coming from and it's hard to see why you've not had more interest in it.

 

Can't see anything wrong with the ad, all the things anybody might want to know are there and you're honest about stuff like stone chips. Maybe to some people it would look 'better' or 'more original' with black wheels but it's not excatly difficult for any buyer to sort that out after purchase!

 

As far as i know quite a few have been exported of late so you may be putting some off by stating you don't have the necessary paperwork.....not that i know what that is!

 

I'd stick with the ad as is for now and see what happens, the market's not exactly crowded with ones for sale so i'd be confident somebody will show up soon you'll get close to asking price. Good luck

[Martin R]

Matt, i would get the wheels redone in the OE colours. I would also remove the bad points bit and reword it. Something along the lines of minor stone chipping in the normal places as you would expect at this milage. I would also put the clam edgings on and remove it from the advert.

 

I presume for these to go abroad you need a C of C ? If so it might be worth the money to get one from Lotus and mention it ( £50 ish ? )

[Elise+Imp]

i think the silver wheels look better, if i was looking for an exige then yours would be on my list for sure, sadly other money constraints mean it's not a reality for me.

 

i think the financial meltdown is still hitting people hard, possibly even more so than last year, but i'm sure you'll find an interested party, perhaps get along to some events with it and put a sign in the window, not everyone is on the 'tinterweb

[jimbo07g41]

The only other thing I would mention that has not already been said, is maybe look again at your photos. Location of pictures and lighting. Consider driving to a nearby castle or race track to take pictures.

 

 

The angle of the light on the rear clam makes it look brighter than the rest of the car. This could of course be my eyes, but might put some people off.

[lummo]

I can't really see anything especially wrong with the advert. Certainly some tweaks as suggested by others may help a bit, but I think any serious & experienced Lotus owner would understand your comments (e.g the air-con & the stone chips), and I wouldn't think an inexperienced Lotus owner would be looking at this sort of car.

 

I agree with Martin that fixing the edgings & getting a CofC would probably be worth the effort, and remove a couple of negatives, but otherwise I suspect it's just the market as it is at the moment.

 

Depressed market makes a good buying opportunity though - drop it to £12k & I'll take it off your hands

[chris_h]

i'd remove the negativity about the aircon (as all the cars are the same) and probably remove the 5 owners bit aswell.

 

Also look at the cost of getting the C of C. You could change the text to say this will be provided for export.

 

 

 

I think a few people might also be put off that the servicing was done DIY.

[MattyB]

Cheers all. Being forced to keep an Exige...its a real nightmare

 

Adverts are due to expire soon so I might take it down for a while - popping in to see what it would cost to repaint the wheels, and will ammend as suggested then put it back up again.

 

The other Exige on there for a similar price as mine has sold (or rather, he P/X'd it for an S1 Elise) but he said he had very little interest either, so its good to hear it wasn't just mine!

[TraceyAnne]

Just a thought... You mentioned you've advertised on SELOC and Pistonheads, but have you tried putting it on Ebay? We got very few bites on our Porsche on PH & the Porsche Club website, so we listed it on Ebay (classified, not auction) and sold it within two weeks with heaps of enquiries. I'd recommend putting a classified on Ebay and see how you get on. Good luck!

[fentuz]

Do you want me to put it on French site?

 

A lot of them goes there...