Selling A Recalled Car

The 2007 BMW 335i suffered a terrible fate when it had multiple recalls occur on its high-pressure fuel pump. This could be a reason the value of a 2007 335i is as low as $6,000. Recalls happen to a lot of cars because parts fail at the fault of the manufacturer. It’s a normal occurrence at this stage of car development, but some cars have more than others. Ford, for instance, has had the most recalls since 2004, according to YourMechanic.

How To Know If Your Car Has Recalls

Before you get ready to sell be sure to check if your car is recalled by going to NHTSA’s website. After you repair the recalled parts, get the correct value of the car. KBB adjusts car values after recalls, so that’s a good resource.

Get The Recalls Fixed

Recalls can usually be fixed free of charge if you bring it back to the manufacturer, so there’s no real excuse for not getting them fixed. All you need to do is take the car to a dealership and have them fix it. The flip side of that is, if your car hasn’t had them done, its new owner can take itback to the manufacturer as well, and it’ll still be free. One thing to be mindful of is the statute of limitations on recalls, where the repair must be done within 10 years of the original sale date of the car.

Keep The Service Records for All Your Fixes

So what do you do if you have, say, a Ford with a dozen recalls and you want to sell it? The best you can do is hand the potential buyer the VIN and they can see for themselves if you’ve gotten the recalls done. Or, you can save them some time and provide all the related service records.