What to fix before selling your car, and what to leave

Fix anything that is unsafe or would fail a certificate you need, anything someone else will pay for, and anything a repairer can make invisible for clearly less than a buyer would take off. Most other marks, such as small dents, scratches, worn but legal tyres and kerbed wheels, are usually better disclosed with a photo and priced into the offer.

Cleaning and paperwork are covered in our guide to preparing your car for sale. This one covers the repairs that cost real money, and how to tell whether each will pay for itself.

How do you know if a repair will pay for itself?

You can find out before you spend. Ask three questions.

1. Is it unsafe, or will it stop the sale? If a certificate you need would fail, or the car isn’t safe to drive, fix it. You’re still driving the car until it’s sold.
2. Will someone else pay? A fault covered by the manufacturer’s warranty, an open recall or an insurance claim may cost you little. Weigh any excess and your no-claim bonus first.
3. Is the quote clearly less than the buyer’s deduction? Get a written quote, then ask the buyer what they’d take off for the fault as it is. If the quote is clearly lower and the repair won’t show, do it. If the numbers are close, leave it.

That “won’t show” matters. The NSW Government’s used-car checklist tells buyers to look for colour variation, overspray, dents and ripples. It says overspray on door rubbers and plastic trim could mean the car has been repaired. A disclosed dent usually worries a buyer less than a cheap repair they find themselves.

Will a worn tyre or blown globe stop a private sale in your state?

Only in some states. Victoria and Queensland need a roadworthy or safety certificate for a private sale, so safety items have to pass first. Elsewhere, a late-model car can usually change hands without one, although buyers still check the same things.

Selling to a licensed dealer changes this in some states. Queensland’s transport department says vehicles traded to licensed motor dealers don’t need a safety certificate, and VicRoads doesn’t require a roadworthy on a private-to-dealer transfer. When you sell to us, usually no roadworthy or safety certificate is needed. Rules differ by state, so we confirm what applies to your car on the call.

Which safety items should you fix before anything else?

Lights, brakes and unsafe tyres. They’re on every roadworthy checklist, and they matter while you’re still driving the car.

• Lights. Walk around the car with someone on the brake pedal and indicators. A blown globe is usually a small job. A cracked lens may mean a whole headlight unit, so check before you decide.
• Brakes. Grinding, a pulsing pedal or a pull to one side gets noticed on any test drive. Have it checked, so that even if you don’t repair it, you know exactly what you’re disclosing.
• Unsafe tyres. A tyre worn to its wear indicators, or with a cut, bulge or damaged sidewall, is a safety problem rather than a cosmetic one.
• Safety warning lights. An airbag, ABS or brake light that stays on needs attention. Our guide to selling a car with a warning light on explains why to get the code read rather than cleared.

Should you replace your tyres before selling?

Usually only if they’re unsafe or would fail a certificate you need. Worn but legal tyres are a cost the buyer prices in either way. The NSW checklist tells used-car buyers to look for at least 5 mm of tread, spare included, so expect anything below that to come up.

• Replace a damaged tyre, one at its wear limit, or one that won’t pass a Victorian or Queensland certificate. Fit the size, load rating and speed rating on the tyre placard, usually inside the driver’s door.
• Rotate only as normal maintenance. It doesn’t add tread to the set.
• Leave legal tyres that are getting low, and tell the valuer roughly how much tread is left.

Mixed brands aren’t automatically a fault, but some buyers read them as tyres replaced one at a time. Volkswagen Financial Services’ fair wear and tear guide expects every tyre, spare included, to comply with the manufacturer’s recommended type, size and speed rating.

On utes and 4WDs, all-terrain tyres are a common upgrade, and a quality set in a standard size is easy to explain. Tyres bigger than any size on the placard are a modification, and whether they need approval depends on the size of the change and your state’s rules. If you kept the original wheels and tyres, say so. Our guide to accessories and modifications covers lifts, wheels and other changes.

Should you fix a windscreen chip or crack first?

Check your insurance before you pay for glass. Your policy may cover the windscreen, but excesses and no-claim bonus rules vary. Moneysmart notes that insurers may treat windscreen damage as an at-fault claim, which generally reduces or removes your bonus.

Then look at where the damage is:

• A small chip away from the driver’s view can often be repaired with resin before it spreads. Volkswagen’s guide accepts minor chipping around the edge of the screen as fair wear and tear.
• A crack in the driver’s line of sight needs a new windscreen under the same guide, and the windscreen is on Queensland’s safety certificate list.

If your car has a driver-assist camera behind the windscreen, ask the glass company whether a replacement includes recalibrating it. On a dealer sale, you can also disclose the damage and compare the buyer’s deduction with your excess.

Is it worth fixing dents and scratches?

Small ones, often not. Larger ones, sometimes, if the repair won’t show.

Volkswagen’s guide is a useful yardstick, because it shows what a manufacturer’s finance arm accepts on a returned car with under 100,000 km. It treats these as normal wear:

• Dents up to 20 mm across, if the paint isn’t broken.
• Light scratches up to 25 mm long that haven’t reached bare metal.
• Small areas of stone chipping and door-edge chips.

It doesn’t accept more than one dent on a panel, however small, or longer abrasions. It also rejects colour mismatch between panels, which is the risk with a rushed repair.

• Paintless dent repair pushes a dent out from behind without repainting, so there’s no colour to match. It suits small dents where the paint hasn’t cracked.
• Touch-up paint seals a stone chip against rust but rarely disappears. It’s fine for chips and poor for long scratches.
• Panel and paint work needs the most thought. Ask how the repairer will match and blend the colour, and keep the invoice.

What about kerbed alloy wheels on a prestige car?

Large wheels on low-profile tyres, common on European and prestige models, are easy to kerb, and the marks show in every photo. Sort the damage into two kinds.

• Cosmetic kerb rash on the outer lip can usually be refinished by a wheel repairer. On an otherwise tidy prestige car, it’s one of the cosmetic repairs most worth a quote. Machined two-tone faces need a specialist to match, so ask first.
• Structural damage, such as a bent or cracked rim or a scuffed, bulging sidewall, is a safety issue. Volkswagen’s guide rejects rim damage and sidewall damage from kerbing.

If you bought tyre and rim insurance with the car, read it before paying for a repair. Moneysmart says these policies cover limited damage such as blowouts, punctures and road hazards like potholes, not general wear and tear.

The heater, air-con or a window doesn’t work: fix it or sell as is?

Comfort faults rarely stop a sale, but buyers check them. The NSW checklist tells buyers to test the air-conditioning, fan, electric windows, sound system, horn and wipers, and a private buyer tends to assume the expensive version of any fault they find.

1. Check the warranty. If the car is still within the manufacturer’s warranty period, it may be a warranty repair. Ask a dealer for your brand.
2. Get a diagnosis. It turns “the air-con doesn’t work” into a named part and a quote, which a buyer can actually price.
3. Apply the quote test. Fix it if the quote is clearly below what the buyer would take off. Otherwise disclose it, diagnosis included.

Does paying for a detail get you a better price?

In a private sale, presentation counts, because buyers judge your photos first. For a trade buyer, a detail changes how the car looks more than what it is: the inspector is assessing paint, panels, wheels, tyres and interior wear.

A professional clean earns its cost when it removes something that would otherwise read as damage. Volkswagen’s guide accepts soiling from normal use, but not burns, tears or permanent stains. A stain that comes out, or a smoke or pet odour that’s gone, changes the condition. A polish over the same scratches doesn’t.

Wash and vacuum it yourself. Pay a professional only for a specific stain or smell, and ask the buyer first whether it would change their number.

Which repairs are worth doing? A quick guide

What should you tell the valuer instead of fixing?

Everything you’ve decided not to fix, before you accept. We price most cars from the make, model, year, kilometres and a few photos, so send:

• Each wheel close up, kerb marks included.
• Every dent or scratch, shot along the panel in angled light.
• Any windscreen chip or crack, with a coin beside it for scale.
• The tyre tread, with a coin or gauge in the groove.
• The dash with the ignition on, showing any warning light.

On the call, mention anything that doesn’t work and any diagnosis or quote you’ve had. Keep the logbook and repair invoices together too: our guide to service history and car value explains why they count.

The inspection happens after you accept, before the balance is paid, at a time and place that suits you. Describing the car accurately up front means the offer you accept is made on the car as it really is. Our guide to what an inspector checks walks through the day.

Fix it, or sell it as it is?

If you’re selling privately in Victoria or Queensland, start with the safety items, because the certificate has to pass. Otherwise, fix what’s unsafe, claim what someone else will pay for, get a quote before anything cosmetic, and disclose the rest.

If you’d rather not spend anything first, describe the car to us as it is, faults included. Sell Your Car Australia is run by Autohaus Australia Pty Ltd, a NSW licensed motor dealer (MD 077404), and we make a genuine offer by phone, not an online estimate. Once you accept, a deposit is often paid the same day and the inspection is arranged to suit you. The balance goes into your bank account, and the car is collected, anywhere in Australia, only after you confirm the funds have cleared.

We buy cars, utes, SUVs and 4WDs that are 2021 or newer with 100,000 km or less. If yours is older or has more kilometres, send it through anyway and we’ll tell you straight away if we can help. Start with a free, no-obligation valuation or call 1800 73 55 73.