Hello everyone, my name is Sonny Miller and I’ve been in the car business in SoCal for over 20 years. In this post I’m going to go through your options for selling your old vehicle, and which is your best bet for getting the most money versus taking a lower offer but having an easier and more convenient sale. That is your main trade-off.
Before we begin, I can certainly make you a good offer and would be happy to discuss it with a quick call or text chat today at (714) 900-3723. No pressure and no obligation. If it is not a win-win I’m happy to give you some free advice.
I think we all know that in order to get the most money you have to sell your car privately, but it’s a little complicated and the least convenient option. You’re going to have to deal with a lot of people through listing on platforms like Facebook, OfferUp, and Craigslist. And it depends on a lot of factors: what kind of car you have, how is it running, and that’s if you can even sell it to a private party. Due to smog regulations in California it makes it a little bit more difficult. So let’s go over some steps and get into the specifics about how to sell your car.
Watch: Selling Your Older Vehicle in Southern California
Sell Your Old Vehicle in Southern California: Clean It Really Well Inside and Out
First off, what you want to do is make sure to clean your car really well, inside and out. Wash it as best as you can, clean it, wax it, just do the most you can to get a really good photo. You’d be surprised what a little wash could do to your vehicle. It’s probably full of dust and then when you wash it you’re like wow, you might not even want to sell it after that.
Make sure your interior is clean as possible. People like to sometimes not clean the inside of their car when they sell it, it just makes it a lot more harder. It’s unappealing to somebody who wants to buy a vehicle if the car has a lot of stains in the seats and inside the crevices of the door panels. So when you wash the car or if you’re gonna pay somebody to wash the car inside, make sure they do a good job or you do a good job. Try to get as much stains out as possible.
Another good tip for you guys while you’re washing: 5 to 10 bucks for Armor All, Armor All the tires. It just says this car’s been washed well, someone took the extra steps just to Armor All the tires, and it makes it look good for photos too as well. To boost your sale, make the inside smell as good as possible. Use air fresheners, Febreze, or anything that makes the vehicle smell better.
Take Photos That Actually Sell Your Car
A lot of people do not take the right angle of photos when they’re trying to sell their vehicle online. When you take photos of your vehicle I highly suggest you take as many photos as possible, even 50 to 100 photos. Doesn’t mean you’re going to use all of them. It just gives you a better chance of actually getting the right angle and photo. You could go really close to the vehicle or far away a little bit, and you could even kneel down and get your phone centered, or camera if you’re using a camera, centered to the vehicle. So be creative when you’re taking your photos.
When taking your photos try to go to your local park. It’s all about aesthetics when you’re taking photos so keep that in mind. You might have a local park with parking not too far from you or a cool scene. You might be around the corner from like SoFi Stadium or Angel Stadium or a cool landmark in Westminster or in Riverside, so that’s a good thing to keep in mind too. I try to avoid taking photos at evening time. I think it’s better when you take photos when the sun is the brightest around noon time.
This is an example of a bad photo angle. 
This is an example of a good photo angle same vehicle different angle.
What Not to Do When Taking Photos
Also do not take photos right after you washed your car and it’s still wet with water on the vehicle. This hides clear coat damage and feels like you’re trying to hide something. Some people think it looks good, but to the trained eye, it just feels off.
Inside of the vehicle, I highly suggest you take photos of your mileage on the vehicle, especially if it’s low miles. People just trust it a lot more when they see the actual photo of the miles. Even if you have high miles on your vehicle, just show the miles in one of the photos. Look at the photos before you post them yourself. If they’re not eye-catching or pleasing to you, how are they going to be eye-catching or pleasing to the potential customer trying to buy your vehicle?
Take a Video of Your Vehicle
Also take a 60-second video of the vehicle. If the vehicle is running good, start the vehicle in the video. Don’t forget, you can describe the vehicle in your video.
Have Your Title, Carfax, and Smog Certificate Ready Before You Sell
Another good tip to have is Carfax. If you do a Carfax on your vehicle, the Carfax history report gives you all the details that your vehicle’s history has. Whether the miles were flipped back or if it’s been in any accidents. It’s 40 bucks and I highly suggest whoever is going to sell their car privately, you should get one, because it takes a lot of the guessing out for the customer that wants to purchase this vehicle you’re trying to sell. You could snapshot it on your phone or print it out and send pictures to customers. This helps with a lot of the questions they’re going to ask you.
Make sure you have your title with you when you’re trying to sell your vehicle. You gotta have a smog certificate ready. If you’re in Southern California or in California in general, have a smog certificate ready. This helps it sell a lot faster and smoother. There’s lots of laws and requirements to do this. Make sure your registration is up to date too as well, because there’s registration fees when you’re selling your car privately.
We are a local trusted cash buyer
If you don’t want to deal with the headache of titles, registration, and paperwork, we do a simple cash deal. I’m a local trusted cash buyer — call or text me personally at (714) 900-3723 and I’ll come pick it up.
Where to Post Your Vehicle for Sale in Southern California
You’re gonna want to use different platforms. Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist, OfferUp. Even putting a sign on the vehicle in your driveway or on a safe street helps a lot too.
| Platform | Cost | Phone Number? | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Facebook Marketplace | Free (boost optional) | No — Messenger only | Fast local sales |
| Craigslist | $5 per city | Yes — phone + email | Serious buyers |
| OfferUp | ~$5 per post | No | Younger buyers |
| For Sale Sign | $3 at the Dollar Store | Yes | Neighbors & drive-by traffic |
Facebook Marketplace is a very good place to sell your vehicle. They do not show your direct phone number, so you’ll need to download Messenger and connect it to your Facebook Marketplace account. When you post, you’ll be messaging people and they’ll be messaging you about the vehicle. If you’re trying to sell faster, you can boost the post — they charge you for each person who sees it. Facebook, you’re allowed to put 20 photos and 1 video.
You should also follow Facebook groups. If you search up on groups, you’ll find places that specifically only people who are on these groups are selling vehicles. Once you follow these groups, you post to these groups as well. Post your description with the year, the make, the model.
Craigslist and OfferUp
Craigslist charges you $5. You’re allowed to put your phone number on Craigslist and your email. Craigslist, you could do up to 24 photos. You could try to expand the cities, but you’re gonna be charged $5 each different post, even if it’s the same vehicle, same description. For example, if you say Los Angeles, it will be like Los Angeles County and a certain radius, and let’s say you want to post a little further away, like in Riverside County or in Orange County, that’s going to be $5 each. But it does help to sell because you’re getting more eyeballs on your vehicle to sell it.
OfferUp charges about $5 per post, but it’s more like a subscription service now. You’re not allowed to put your phone number on there. It’s a good platform, but it’s hit or miss.
Prepare for Questions, Scammers, and Theft
You gotta navigate your way through the online marketplaces. You’re gonna be bombarded with questions and scammers. I’m not trying to discourage you — that’s just the reality. Try to have all your answers ready:
- What size is the engine?
- How old are the tires?
- Are there any accidents?
- Are you the first owner?
- How many owners have there been?
- Any recent maintenance paperwork?
- Do you have all the maintenance records?
Be ready to answer a lot of questions. Sometimes it takes a day, sometimes hours, sometimes minutes. But it’s not always like that. It depends on the market and your vehicle. Be aware of scammers too. They’re on these platforms trying to target people who are trying to sell anything. One of their schemes is the VIN number scheme. They’ll ask you for your VIN number and then they’ll send you a link and it looks like a totally legit site and there you put your credit card information in, but it’s just a scam.
When posting your vehicle on the street, be very cautious because there’s a lot of catalytic converter theft in California, especially in Southern California. I know plenty of people this has happened to. They will literally steal your catalytic converter. So just make sure it’s not too far from your house, that way you could pass by it a lot.
Have Realistic Expectations on Price
Have a realistic expectation of what you’re going to get. Just because dealerships list the same car for $7,000 with financing doesn’t mean you’ll get that. You’re probably doing pretty good if you get $4,500 or $5,000. So keep your expectations in reality. If you price it too high, no one’s going to buy it.
Be Transparent and Complete the Sale the Right Way
Be fully transparent when you are trying to sell your vehicle. If your vehicle has problems, be fully transparent about it because it’s just the right thing to do. And you’d be surprised too, if you tell the truth, you’ll still get a customer to buy it. People really appreciate honesty. There’s no reason to be dishonest.
I’d highly suggest you go to the DMV with the customer and/or to AAA or to a registration service and make sure the vehicle is completely out of your name. If you just sign the title and they drive off, you could face severe legal consequences if they get in an accident before registering it. Make sure it’s out of your name completely.
Selling an Older Vehicle? Dealerships and Scrapyards Won’t Help
If you got an older vehicle, let’s say it’s from the ’80s or ’90s or early 2000s, even early 2010s, and you want to try to sell it to a dealer — selling to a dealership is not really too ideal because they’re really just trying to find people who want to do trade-ins. They’re not gonna give you anywhere near what the vehicle is worth. Then you got other platforms claiming to buy older vehicles, but really their goal is just to get you into payments for a new vehicle or used vehicle. As long as you’re into payments, that’s their goal.
Then let’s talk about the scrap market. LKQ Pick Your Part and other junkyards — they’re really not gonna give you the value of your car if it’s a nice decently running car. They offer scrap value — just the weight of the steel and iron — even if your car is running perfectly. I just had a customer call me today and they offered her $420 for a Jeep. That is what they offer. Steel prices — doesn’t matter if the car is running, driving, in perfect condition.
Why Sell Your Vehicle to goCarBuyer Instead
But with us at goCarBuyer, we see the value in older vehicles. It’s pretty much hard to find a company that actually wants to buy older cars without the headache of selling privately. I haven’t seen anybody really dedicated to buying older vehicles like us. The process is simple — come to you, often within hours, and there’s no ton of questions. If your car has the value and fits what we’re looking for, then a deal gets made. If the vehicle isn’t a fit, you’ll know right away and your time won’t be wasted.
Here at GoCarBuyer, getting you into payments is not what this is about. There’s no runaround. The offer is fair — cash or check. Even if you lost the title, all the paperwork is handled on our end. If you’re tired of parking tickets, street sweeping, struggling to find parking in Long Beach or Los Angeles, paying insurance and registration on a car you don’t even use anymore — that’s exactly the situation we’re here for. One of our specialties is older vehicles that still have a lot of life left in them.
Frequently Asked Questions About Selling Your Vehicle in Southern California
The Bottom Line on Selling Your Vehicle in Southern California
Selling your car privately, that’s how you get the most money. I’ll always tell you guys that. But it’s a little complicated, and it depends on a lot of factors. If you have any questions, even if you just need help figuring out your car’s value, I’m here to help. Feel free to call me at any time for any questions regarding the sale of your vehicle or anything like this. I’m here and I answer personally. I’m not a corporate robot. We buy cars, trucks, SUVs, and vans across all of Southern California — from Los Angeles County to Orange County, Riverside County, and beyond.
goCarBuyer.com — We see the value in your vehicle.
Cypress Office: 10601 Walker St Suite 102, Cypress, CA 90630
Van Nuys Office: 6360 Van Nuys Blvd #16, Van Nuys, CA 91401
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