Hey Lemmy. I have a 2010 Toyota Camry with 150k miles. The front bumper's bottom segment (maybe 2 inches) has a crack and the grill is out of place. Also, there's a couple small scratches in the paint elsewhere. Would it be worth it to have the bumper repaired as well as the paint touched up before selling it? I was given a quote of $1500 for the bumper repair but haven't inquired about the scratches. Thanks in advance!
7 Comments
evasive_chimpanzee@lemmy.world · 12 pts · 2y
Personally, if I'm buying a car with 150,000 miles on it, I'd expect and be fine with some cosmetic damage. $1500 bucks just isn't worth it; you aren't going to get that return on investment from the sale price. The things that I think could boost sale price without too much cost from you is clearing up the headlights if they are cloudy, and a good deep clean of all the upholstery.
Joelk111@lemmy.world · 4 pts · 2y
Take good photos too, it helps more than you'd think.
PP_BOY_@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 2y
+1 on cleaning the headlights. A restore kit is like $30 and can earn you hundreds when it comes to resale.
PP_BOY_@lemmy.world · 4 pts · 2y
No reason you can't do those repairs yourself. $1500 is ridiculous, you'd be a fool to pay for that. Some bondo in the grill and touch up paint for the crack. Anyone buying used cars will expect some wear so I wouldn't worry about small scratches. Try buffing them out, but repainting scratches usually does more harm than good, cosmetically.
algorithmae@lemmy.sdf.org · 3 pts · 2y
If you're doing bondo, you'll have to paint the bumper and blend it with the fenders which is way beyond your average DIY
PP_BOY_@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 2y
I've spot patched dozens of cracked bumpers before without needing to do that. Maybe if you're repairing a car for personal use or show, you're right, but for prettying it up for market a spot of bondo and good spray job should be good enough. You can literally get rattle cans of Toyota OEM paint from Autozone
pslightlypsycho47@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 2y
Thanks I appreciate your insight. I'll do further research and see if it's within my scope. My technical experience with cars is limited to changing cabin/engine filters. Worst case scenario it sounds like selling the car as-is wouldn't be terrible.