Whether selling it yourself or trading it in, it’s to your distinct advantage to spend a bit to maximize what you’ll end up getting out of your soon to be ex-ride. Here are the steps to go through.

Make sure obvious mechanical maladies are addressed, or that you know what the bill would be to fix them. An example would be a ‘check engine’ light. Any used car manager who sees one will assume the worst and discount the trade bid by a substantial amount—probably more than the actual repair cost. Yet if you’ve had it diagnosed, and have the receipt, he’s only likely to charge you that amount.

If the tires are about gone, plan on putting on either cheaper new ones (unless your car is some high performance car, tread depth is more important than the name on the sidewall), or call around to one of the big tire store chains and get a set of ‘take offs’ or used tires that have over 50% of their life left. Dealers love to knock trades for tires. Another money saver, if you have a matching, full size spare, is to use its tire for one of your replacements, and put the best worn one back in its place.

Next, make sure the brakes feel ok—have the rotors turned if they’re warped (the giveaway is the pulsing sensation you feel coming to a stop). Again: a used car manager will assume the worst, and lower the amount you’ll be offered almost certainly more than it will cost you to spruce up your stoppers yourself.

If you’re planning to sell it retail, the receipts will help you reassure your prospective buyer. Make sure you don’t spend any more than necessary to move the metal.

When trading, don’t worry overmuch about failed power windows and the like; the dealer will know the cost to fix it, and you’ll rarely come out ahead. If you’re retailing the car, this kind of thing will have to be weighed on a cost/benefit/hassle scale.

The next step is the car’s cosmetics; this is where most people miss out. A filthy, smelly car only arouses suspicions, and casts the worst light possible over your tenure as the vehicle’s owner.

First, have the dings and minor dents removed by a paintless dent repair person. This is a fairly minimal cost to you–$100-300 is a typical range—yet makes a world of difference at the negotiating table. Then, have a top detailer do an entire once-over. Many scratches will be gone forever, the paint will gleam again, and the upholstery and carpets will look fresh and clean.

A great way to find a good detailer is actually to go to a new car dealership and ask to talk to their top one directly. Make quiet inquires to the effect that you’d like your care done ‘on the side’. Most talented detailers are horribly underpaid, and will do an entire car inside and out for under $150.

As a side note, make sure they don’t use a high-pressure washer to clean the carpets—it soaks the under-padding, leaving a ‘wet dog’ smell—and don’t let them overdue it with silicone sprays.

If you’re a smoker, it’s essential to get rid of the residue. Have the detailer use a steam cleaner on the headliner and especially up around the visors where vapors linger. They can also remove bumper stickers and the like using a heat gun and products like ‘Goof Off’.

The final step is to contract with a paint touch-up specialist to touch in (via brush or spray gun) scratches and abrasions. You’ll find them advertising in all major markets, and dealers use their services on a routine basis to make old cars look like new.

These folk can even reshoot entire bumpers, dramatically improving the appearance of your tired old runner. And if you have had paintwork in the past, it is critical to have this person or the detailer—whichever one has more experience with this sort of thing—wet sand out ‘orange peel’ in the paintwork, and most critically, have them also get rid of the ‘tape lines’ in the door jams that give the game away to astute shoppers and dealership personnel.

Then—keep it clean! No matter how neat (or not) you normally are, put your detritus in a box, and then toss it in the trunk when the time comes to show.

If you decide to trade it in, get several bids from different dealers—new and used. Get them in writing, and ask if that’s what they would be willing to buy the car for wholesale. Dealers wholesale cars to each other every single day. And there’s no reason the dealer you buy your new vehicle from can’t make arrangements to sell it to the high bidder. It also puts you in a much stronger negotiating position.

If your selling it retail, weigh the costs of print versus digital advertising, and make sure you price yours competitively; wishful thinking will do you no good here. Take some good digital pictures, and be prepared to drop from your asking price $4-500: people love to make a deal. Along the same line, don’t list the price as ‘negotiable’ or ‘best offer’ as prospects will assume it anyway, and it whiffs of desperation. Finally, if you get no bites after a few weeks—in a decent market—assume your price is a bit high and drop it.

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