Maintenence before selling. Best return on investment?

[nogirlsatgt]

I have a 2003 Protege5 with about 140,000 miles. All stock, 5 speed, sunroof, good physical condition. We had planned on keeping it through the end of the year, but decided to lease a Nissan Leaf since the deals are essentially free here in GA right now. I was planning to trade the Mazda in, but it developed a loud ticking noise two days before we got the lease and I was worried the dealer would screw me (even worse) on the trade value. I've since diagnosed that noise to be failing water pump.

So I've got a decent car that needs some work to bring decent money in a private party sale. My question is how far to go fixing things before selling the car? It NEEDS a water pump. Am I better off just putting a new timing belt in as well, since the increase in parts cost is pretty low, and most of the labor overlaps? Do you think having a fresh water pump and timing belt is a good incentive to a buyer? I realize I might not recoup all the costs associated with the work below, but if it helps it sell faster that's still a win in my book. The sooner I can drop insurance and free up a parking space the better.

-Radiator has a pinhole leak. New radiator and hoses ~$100.
-Crack in windshield (can fix through insurance for $0).
-Replace PS, Front, DS motor and transmission mounts (the PS one has gotten really bad, the others are marginal)
-Replace cover gasket, tube seals
-Replace timing belt, water pump, etc

 

[TX Speed Demon]

If it were me I would only fix what needs fixing. Just make sure it drives fine without any weird noises or leaks.

And I'd do a professional detail job - wash, clay, polish with Felx polisher, seal and gloss on the paint and a full engine and interior detail too. It won't be cheap, $500-1000 but will make the car much more sellable. Seeing a car that looks brand new makes a buyer feel more comfortable that it was always taken care of. Reading a list of parts that were recently replaced often makes a buyer wonder what went wrong.

 

[Keno1542]

You will not get your money back on maintenence items, never. I agree with the full detail, shown to be the best roi when selling a car

 

[mp5la]

If it were me I would only fix what needs fixing. Just make sure it drives fine without any weird noises or leaks.

And I'd do a professional detail job - wash, clay, polish with Felx polisher, seal and gloss on the paint and a full engine and interior detail too. It won't be cheap, $500-1000 but will make the car much more sellable. Seeing a car that looks brand new makes a buyer feel more comfortable that it was always taken care of. Reading a list of parts that were recently replaced often makes a buyer wonder what went wrong.

Agreed. Although, if you can replace the timing belt and water pump yourself (or for not a huge amount at a shop) it would be worth doing. A car with that many miles is worth more if the timing belt has been verifiably changed recently.

Definitely detail the car, but do it yourself if you can. For a lot less than 500, you can do a really nice detail in your garage. You can even buy a buffer and pads and a full assortment of compounds and chemicals for that amount.

 

[nogirlsatgt]

Agreed. Although, if you can replace the timing belt and water pump yourself (or for not a huge amount at a shop) it would be worth doing. A car with that many miles is worth more if the timing belt has been verifiably changed recently.

Definitely detail the car, but do it yourself if you can. For a lot less than 500, you can do a really nice detail in your garage. You can even buy a buffer and pads and a full assortment of compounds and chemicals for that amount.

I was planning to do everything myself. Nothing on that list scares me a bit. I've already got a pretty decent selection of detailing products as well.

 

[pcb]

Agreed. Although, if you can replace the timing belt and water pump yourself (or for not a huge amount at a shop) it would be worth doing. A car with that many miles is worth more if the timing belt has been verifiably changed recently.

^^What he said^^

The T-Belt is only $20 and the T-Belt kit is only $100 at RockAuto. There is also a kit available through this forum (ProParts) that offers everything in a kit,... including valve cover gasket, water pump and gasket, cam and crank seals, etc.

I think you should at least do the T-Belt and order a couple of tensioner springs ($3 each) cause you're probably gonna stretch the s*** out one,...

You might want skip doing the bottom motor mount,... it's a royal PITA,... the other three will do a pretty good job of keeping everything steady,..



I think you can definitely make your money back if you do the work yourself,... some intelligent buyers actually care if major scheduled maintenance has been done.


PS,.. 100% of a T-Belt job is done in doing the water pump job,... You just re-install the new belt instead of the used one,...

 

[The_big_dill]

Definitely do a new timing belt and water pump, I just bought my P5 and it was promising to hear that the timing belt was changed X many miles ago.

Other than that, if it doesn't make noise and doesn't leak too much, sell it as is.

 

[Maroon]

You will not get your money back on maintenence items, never. I agree with the full detail, shown to be the best roi when selling a car

Maintenance items do not increase the value of a car, but neglected maintenance items severely decrease the value of a car. So in that sense, you will get some of your money back.

You can't honestly sell a car without disclosing these issues. And as soon as you tell someone that it needs a new water pump and radiator you will get low ball offers.

Fix all these issues yourself. Also, if you're interested in maximum money from your car, you wouldn't even consider trading it it. They will not give you the value of the car. Sell it yourself.