My BringaTrailer.com Experience

The hardest part was deciding to sell. As many know, one can form an emotional attachment to a Porsche. You don’t just think of it as a machine, a tool. But I wasn’t driving it much anymore. It was initially purchased as an autocross car to run with my daughter, Katie, when she moved home from college. But life moves on. Katie met a young man, fell in love, got married, and moved away to have kids and build a life of her own. Once she left, my priorities changed as well.

With two 911s, it eventually became apparent that two were too many. It took time, but I ultimately concluded it was time for somebody else to enjoy the 1979 911SC. The second obstacle was overcoming inertia and finding the energy to make it happen. I’d put race seats in the car. I needed to swap them out with the factory seats. Same with the race rims. Where was the owner’s manual? And the factory tool kit? One was hidden away, somewhere in my home office, the other in the garage. I needed to dig them up. The space-saver spare came with an air compressor that was somewhere, too. Nothing was kept in the car to make life easier at an autocross. And all the service records had to be organized. It was very easy to put it off, to delay getting started. What do I do with the spare parts? The factory suspension pieces, long swapped out? Months went by.

Swapping the seats is an embarrassing story in itself. The race seats were installed at a friend’s, in Paul Young’s garage, but I tackled the removal in my garage. I started with the passenger seat and spent two hours fighting with bolts using my trusty Allen wrench. The space was so tight that I could barely get the wrench in and out, and each stroke of the handle turned it only one notch at a time. It was very slow going, having to remove and reinsert the wrench constantly.

Finally, when the factory passenger seat was solidly in place again, I turned to the driver’s seat only to discover the working space was even smaller, and there was no way I could get my wrench into the bolt heads. After much despair and consternation over how we ever got the seats installed (How the hell did we do this?), it finally occurred to me that Paul has ball-end Allen wrenches. These can attack the bolts at an angle, allowing you access in smaller spaces. A trip to the hardware store and then the driver’s seat was soon swapped in a fraction of the time. How I wish I had started with the driver’s seat!

Along with this came a question: How does one sell a car in 2024? With an older, niche audience car like a 911SC? When I bought it, I found the SC on the bulletin board at Black Forest. Was that the way to sell it? My most recent sale (the old BMW) was in 2011, using Autotrader. In the intervening years, the internet had grown wildly, and I knew of BringaTrailer.com and PCarMarket.com. BringATrailer.com was recommended to me as the best place to start. But how does that work? A little research was in order.

First of all, they curate what they allow on their site. That doesn’t mean it has to be the perfect car. I’ve seen parts cars and project cars for sale there, but they review the car’s details before admitting you to the process. They also limit the number of vehicles of any type, so there isn’t too much competition at any one time. Ultimately, the process isn’t too complex, just a little time-consuming. They want car pictures, including the ownership information (title or bank loan), VIN plate, and option code plate. If you have the window sticker, that would also be great to submit. Beyond that, they want you to write a complete description, including all the options, everything good about the car, its history, and everything wrong with it. With this, they will evaluate and let you know what they think. The description should be as accurate as possible because it forms the basis of the ad text they create. They use a specific format and want all the ads to read the same. This means they will leave information out, but you will have the opportunity during the auction to inform the potential bidders of additional items. Also, it may be best to hold some information back until you can fully explain it.

This led me to a testing session. Driving it infrequently, there were so many things that I never used. Did the wipers work? How about the washers, all the dash lights, the high beams, backup lights, the horn, power windows, the fan, the heater, etc. The A/C was dead, that I knew. Same with the original factory radio. I never did test the sunroof, as I was advised not to. If it got stuck open, it could be expensive to fix. (In the end, my description included that the status of the sunroof was “unknown.”) Mercifully, the car could always be smogged! (Just in case there was a California buyer out there.)

Once they create the ad copy, you can proofread what they write and offer suggestions. By the way, this back-and-forth editing process does slow things down. How fast the process goes depends on how much you submit up front and how complete it is in photos and the write-up.

BaT, understandably, wants you to be completely transparent about the car’s condition by providing lots of information. Of course, the better the car looks, the more confidence you will give the buyers and, therefore, the higher the bids will go when the auction is underway. This translates into cleaning the car, fixing what should be fixed, and providing photos of every little thing. Looking at active auctions, you typically see 400 or 500 pictures. If you are not a skilled photographer, I highly recommend hiring one.

Additionally, you are requested to provide videos, usually of a cold start and a short drive, so the potential buyers can hear the motor and see how the car shifts and accelerates through the power band. This doesn’t mean thrashing the car; it’s just confirming that it drives and running it through the gears.

I didn’t want to pay for this until I knew the auction was accepted, so I initially only submitted a handful of old photos. As you may know, digital images often have the date embedded in them, and apparently, BaT checks them as part of their procedure. My customer rep quickly got back to me, questioning why the photos were 5 years old. What was I hiding? Luckily, they were satisfied when I stated that more pictures would be taken once they accepted the car for auction.

But first, I had to get the car to the mechanic. My testing revealed that either the oil gauge or the oil level sensor was malfunctioning, and I didn’t want such a visible flaw in the videos. While it usually can take a month or more to get in and see him, Steve Grosekemper (at Black Forest) was gracious enough to get this fixed (and do an oil change) within a couple of days. While it was in, I also asked for a compression and leak-down test, which I expected would be necessary information given that it was an original, 45-year-old, 200K-mile motor.

Meanwhile, where to take the car? It needed thorough detailing and a professional photo shoot. The car’s appearance can significantly impact desirability and, therefore, the final price when the hammer falls. In short, you need to spend money to make money. I soon learned that we have an official BaT partner in San Diego, Compass Collective (they advertise here in the Witness). While you don’t need to use an “official partner,” it can help because they know the process and what works and what doesn’t work when selling a car. Their services include detailing and photography, and, if you want, they can completely manage the auction. The latter bit was unnecessary for me, as I had the time to monitor the auction and answer questions myself.

This saved me a bit of money, which was a good thing because, as always is the case with Porsches, something unexpected came up. It seems that old air-cooled 911s leak oil! Who knew? (Back before water-cooled 911s, the running joke was that if it wasn’t leaking oil, it wasn’t a Porsche.) So, what does this mean for a 45-year-old car? An engine and transmission covered with baked-on grease, grime, and grit. So much so that soap and a scrub brush wouldn’t do the trick. Not to mention that all that water and scrubbing risked electrical or other damage to the engine. Powerwashing was not an option. What to do? Dry-ice blasting, of course!

Something I’d never heard of but was glad to learn about. It works just like sandblasting. Instead of sand particles, it uses granules of dry ice. The beauty of it is that there is no residue. With sandblasting, sand residue would be in every nook and cranny, but dry ice sublimates, wafting away in the wind and leaving nothing behind. There was a significant bump in the cleaning bill, but Porsche owners expect the unexpected, right? Such is life; you must spend money to make money (or so I kept telling myself).

The car was sparkling, and the photos were spectacular. The car was probably the cleanest it had ever been under my ownership (the undercarriage certainly was). It also showed superbly in the videos (such a nice driving car). In the interest of complete transparency for the bidders, including all of the service records on the auction site is also very common. The crew at Compass Collective photographed all of these, as well as the car’s accessories, as part of the package deal.

While all this was happening (it took a bit more than a week), I was getting regular emails asking me for the photos. BaT expects you to be 100% ready when you initially contact them, so I had to reassure them daily that the pictures were coming. I took advantage of this delay for several rounds of back-and-forth editing of the description. Additionally, there was the matter of the reserve. They don’t like reserves and would prefer you didn’t have one. They want cars to sell; that is how they make their money. With a reserve, the danger is that it won’t be met, and the car won’t sell. They deal with this in two ways. First, you only get one shot at this. If your car doesn’t sell or the reserve is unmet, they will consider it undesirable and not list it again, or at least not anytime soon. Second, they must approve any reserve, meaning you must do your homework, research the market, and know a reasonable amount to expect.

In other words, if they think your ask is unreasonable, it will be rejected. (Oh, I also recall they will only accept reserves of at least $30K. Less than that, and they won’t be bothered with one.) By this point, I had been carefully watching every SC auction for about 3 months, so I was prepared. One final comment on this topic: if the reserve is not met, BaT will put the seller in contact with the highest bidder to allow them to work out a deal, if possible.

Another tidbit for you. They don’t want you to run any ads elsewhere and ask you to take them down if you are. No diluting the bidding! OK, all the photos of the car, the service records, and the accessories are posted, the description is complete, the reserve is set, and the ad is ready.

What’s next? My customer rep informed me that another department handled scheduling, and he would notify them that we were prepared. They would then work with me to mutually agree upon a date. A mild concern set in as my wife Susan and I were going on a big vacation in about three weeks (this process had already taken longer than I had hoped). I quickly apprised him that we needed to work around this trip. The next day, it was announced that the auction would be live on Monday! So much for a mutually agreed-upon date, but at least it was soon.

My auction was Monday through Monday, 8 days. I think this is a typical duration. The big day came, and the auction was live! While monitoring other auctions, I learned that it was common for the seller to immediately post more information about the car, details that didn’t make it into the description, and any history, making it personal. It’s an opportunity to connect with potential bidders. You can expect to spend the next eight days glued to the website, waiting for questions and comments. As the questions come in, in addition to posting answers, you may also post additional photos and videos if the need arises. The website is excellent and very easy to use. Susan was very impressed with the site and the entire process, which is saying something.

Immediately, I noticed five other 911SC auctions were running at about the same time. What’s going on here? I’d only seen four at a time for several months now. Now, for my auction, there are six. What’s with this extra competition? There’s nothing you can do; that is all up to BaT. While it is cause for concern, making you worry, every car is naturally slightly different. When it was over, I did not see a single bidder in common among the simultaneous auctions. You will find a few different types of people in the auction’s audience. Some treat the auction site as social media. They enjoy looking at the photos and videos and posting comments about the car just for fun. There’s no intention of buying; it’s just a place to hang out and talk with car enthusiasts. Some bid early, maybe once, maybe twice, usually very low ( A typical first bid is $911), and then you never hear from them again. Next are the people who place a somewhat reasonable bid early in the game but disappear by the end. As anybody familiar with auctions will tell you, the last five minutes are all that matter. Any bids before that are just setting the stage.

On a somewhat humorous note, on Thursday, I received a message that a potential bidder would like to do a PPI. For an auction that ended on Monday! I responded, sure, go for it; if you can schedule a PPI somewhere in San Diego for TOMORROW, I’d be happy to take it in. I had no problems saying yes; I knew it usually took a month to schedule a shop visit, so I had zero expectations that I would have to follow through. I was right; I never heard from him again, and he never placed any bids either.

Reflecting on this, I think the increasing prevalence of car auctions may be killing off the traditional PPI. Pre-purchase inspections have always been highly recommended in the past, but there isn’t enough time for them with the auction format. In its place, you need to carefully look at the auction ad to see how much care and attention went into prepping the car and conveying the details of its condition. Look at everything the seller has posted and what the seller says about the vehicle so that you can get a feel for who they are and how thorough they are. In my case, my mechanic (Steve Grosekemper) meticulously notes my “to-do” list on each receipt, which is a nice way of saying that it was a list of everything wrong with the car that I’d been ignoring. Because I posted all of my service records on the auction site, all of this was available to the bidders who looked. I’ve heard opinions that a well-prepared auction site will give you more information about the car than a PPI would, rendering them unnecessary today. Back to my auction, I was pleasantly surprised at how few questions I received during the week. I attribute that posting a complete and accurate representation of the car from the start.

Another potential bidder asked to see the car (they were local). I quickly responded, “Sorry, I’m unavailable this week.” I had acclimatized rapidly to selling it on an auction site, and I wanted all the advantages of that. If I wanted to deal with showing the car and giving test drives, I’d have put it on Autotrader. This bidder also disappeared, never to be heard from again. (I once had a buyer look at a car four times, each time walking away without committing. Only for him to be super-bummed when he called to schedule a fifth viewing, and I told him somebody else had purchased the car.)

Another piece of advice I’d received (and observed in other auctions) was that I should post a few pics about an hour before the end. The system sends notices to everybody following the auction when new pics or videos are posted, which can serve as a reminder that the auction is wrapping up soon. A “Bid now, or forever hold your peace” message. At long last, the clock is ticking towards the end, where all the real action occurs. It was interesting to note that the people commenting, asking questions, or placing early bids do not correlate to who or how many actual bidders there will be when it truly matters. It is also worth knowing that there is no hard stop; near the end the clock resets to two minutes with each bid, so the auction will continue as long as people have money to spend. What an adrenaline rush of excitement and anxiety it is each time a bidder raises the price just before time runs out; it’s like watching the wheels spin on a slot machine or the lottery numbers being drawn one by one. Eventually, the wheels stop spinning, the last number is drawn, and the clock ticks to zero. It’s a letdown, really, when the competition finally gives up. Watching the numbers climb and climb and climb is exhilarating. You hate to see it stop. But it’s also a relief. The reserve was met, the car has sold, and the numbers looked really good! All that is left is the paperwork, right? This is where BaT shines. The buyer sends the money to BaT; BaT sends you a deposit, and then you send BaT the title; upon receipt, BaT wires the balance to your account. It took less than a week, hassle and worry-free.

Now, what about the car? BaT offers an optional delivery service. It makes for convenient one-stop shopping, which my buyer chooses to use. Which is handled, of course, by a different department. So I’m shuttled off to talk to them, where I learn that scheduling a pick-up can take up to 2 to 3 weeks! By now, we were leaving on our trip in less than a week, so that wouldn’t do. (One more thing that I wish they had told me upfront.) It’s time to beg. It’s time for the buyer to beg. Fortunately, begging worked, and they came for the car the Friday before our Monday departure. I made sure everything was in the car that needed to go, took a few photos as it was loaded on the trailer, and then the truck drove off into the distance, and it was all over.

In summary, BaT is easy to use. Other than a few delays and the associated concerns, things went smoothly and efficiently. It’s a well-oiled machine, purpose-built, and very good at achieving its intended goal. A little more communication would be an improvement. (To be fair, where I was surprised, I also had not asked relevant questions in advance.) Now that I’ve done it once, I know what to expect. I would absolutely use BaT to sell a car again. It’s a terrific addition to the toolbox of available options for buying and selling cars. Before I end this, I must thank Steve Grosekemper at Black Forest for all his help over the years and give a big shout-out to Karl Thomson at Compass Collective. He did a great job with the car, the photos, and the videos and gave me tips on how to best get through the process. I can certainly recommend their services wholeheartedly.