Selling / scrapping / otherwise disposing of a car

I recently scrapped my 20 year old Volvo C70. There was probably nothing wrong with it that couldn't be fixed, but it would have become a money pit.

Redcorn offered £270 scrap value, including collecting it from my driveway. But, here's the twist. The headlamp units on the C70 sell on ebay for about £200 each, and they are very easy to remove. I asked Redcorn how much they would offer me for the car if I removed the headlights. Answer: £270.

Anyway, I removed the headlights and some other bits, and Redcorn have paid me the £270. So, now all I have to do is some ebay-ing.

There's a few on the market, which gives you an idea of retail prices:

See what some of the web buyers of any car would give you, a private buyer should be slightly more, if local.

Many thanks for the speedy answers; much appreciated.

I sold my 26 year old 221,000 miles Volvo V40 early last year to a scrap merchant for £200. I emptied the fuel tank - so efficiently that it had to be towed up onto the recovery truck. I did consider salvaging some parts for resale, but in the end it seemed too much hassle for little reward. Nearly everything was wearing out, but it had been very reliable until recently when various hoses and plastic parts started to deteriorate. John

In message <11cvgeo$2a2d1$ snipped-for-privacy@dont-email.me, at 16:23:52 on Tue, 10 Nov

Ask Webuyanycar for a quote, then find a different online broker who will probably give you much the same, but without knocking off many pounds for each scratch and dent.

Not a personal experience, but a friend needed to sell his wife's car after she died, he tried Webuyanycar, hated their propensity to take a discount for any tiny thing, then contacted Motorway, and was totally happy with them.

I've heard Motorway recommended too. WBAC have a reputation for offering something and then heavily marking it down for 'things they find'.

For the OP's car, it sounds like regular everyday transport. Mileage is low enough that dealers may be interested, and there's nothing there that couldn't be fixed. A dealer might sell that for say £2k, properly repaired and with fresh MOT and warranty. It's a kind of bread and butter car that lower end dealers handle all day long. I'd guess the price you'd get selling on to the dealer would be more like £500-1000. However it's not worth their while travelling very far for as there isn't a massive profit in it.

What I'd recommend to the OP is: a) give it a good clean, as far as you are able b) take some good pictures of it, including any damage and underneath

- ideally park it somewhere nice to do that, not on your drive c) email some dealers with the pictures and a description, including faults. Look for dealers who sell similar standards of cars - the Ferrari dealership won't be interested. Likely to be the smaller independents who deal in cheaper cars. d) if they are happy, you'll get a better price if you can deliver it

You can email as far and wide as you like, assuming you are willing to drive it there.

Someone like Motorway or WBAC is effectively a middleman in this process: if you find someone yourself you may get better prices than using the middlemen.

The other option is a private sale. For lower end cars Facebook Marketplace seems to be the place, although it's a massive pain to use (and you have to use Facebook). Another option would be to keep it local - eg circulate the word around the village/etc, park it on the road with a price in the window, etc. It's nothing 'notable' so your target audience is people who want 'a car', eg new learners, pizza delivery drivers, etc. I doubt anyone is going to travel very far to buy it. However the trouble with private sales is you have to handle viewings which is extra work, especially the timewasters - although I doubt you're going to get too many people viewing it for thrills.

It's also worth calling your local scrappie to see what they're paying. You may decide it's not worth the hassle of the extra work of selling it compared with scrapping it, although it could still be worth emailing a few dealers before you scrap it.

Theo

In article snipped-for-privacy@perry.uk, Roland Perry snipped-for-privacy@perry.co.uk> scribeth thus

Do not, repeat not, expect anything like what they offer you on line..

Facebook market place is good for older cars!..

On 10 Nov 2026 18:10:06 +0000 (GMT), Theo <theom+ snipped-for-privacy@chiark.greenend.org.uk> wrote: [snip]

My car:

Nissan Micra: First registered March 2008 Manual Mileage 107,210 miles Bodywork has some minor surface scratches and one minor dent Air conditioning functional MOT expires April 2027 Advisories from previous MOT: Suspension arm ball joint has sliight play Offside Front Lower Shock absorbers has slight external damage to the casing Nearside Front Shock absorbers has slight external damage to the casing Offside Front (now repaired)

I could be in a similar position to OP. I believe that many - if not most - older vehicles go to auction. I am wondering about taking the vehicle to the auction myself. I would be happy to drive there, stand beside the car and answer questions (with suitable disclaimers, of course). I could even pose provocatively in swimwear on the bonnet if this would help :-)

Are there any downsides or issues I should be aware of? I believe there is a seller's fee and a buyer's fee but would this be higher for a private individual than for a trader? I assume I could set a reserve.

Car auctions are mostly trade auctions. Most auction houses don't allow private buyers or heavily disincentivise them with fees. Trade is just buying stock. For this level of vehicle they're just rolling the dice on repairs, and won't pay more than a few hundred in case it costs them big later - on a car which is going to about £2k retail. They want about £1500 gross margin to cover overheads which means the cost of acquistion needs to be very low. (source: High Peak Autos and CarUK on Youtube)

If you're going to put the effort in, cut out the middlemen and sell privately.

Theo

If so,

Depends on what car it is. sub £1000 anyway

Alternatively, would a dealer be

Dealer would not be intersted in reslling it,m and you cab send it to auction yourself

Find some gippos and sell it for cash.