Selling an older car in San Bernardino.

Three ways to sell in San Bernardino, and who each one suits

The gap between wholesale and private is widest exactly where San Bernardino has the most cars: older, higher-mileage, still-running vehicles. Wholesale channels price those on auction math. A local private buyer prices them on "does it start every morning and can I afford it." That difference is frequently the largest single dollar decision in the whole sale.

• Trade it in: fastest, least work, and it reduces the California sales tax you pay on the replacement car. Best when you're buying anyway.
• Instant cash offer: a real number in minutes, priced for average condition and a company that must resell it. On older cars the number can be very low. Use it as a floor, not an answer.
• Private sale: usually the most money by a wide margin on an affordable, running car in this market, because demand for dependable cheap transportation here is genuinely strong. It costs you time, a smog certificate on most cars, and the paperwork.

What to fix before you sell, and what to leave alone

The instinct is to repair everything so the car shows well. On an older car that's usually a way to donate money. Big mechanical repairs rarely return their cost at sale, because the buyer discounts an older car regardless. What does return its cost is anything that affects the first sixty seconds: a clean interior, working A/C, a windshield without a crack in the driver's line of sight, tires that don't look bald, and no check engine light.

The check engine light is the sharpest example. It costs a diagnosis to know why it's on, but an illuminated light lets every buyer assume the worst and price accordingly. Knowing the reason — even if you don't fix it — lets you say exactly what it is and defend your number.

• Fix cheap and visible: interior detail, working A/C, bulbs, wipers, a clean engine bay.
• Diagnose the check engine light even if you don't repair it, and disclose honestly.
• Don't do a major repair to sell unless we've run the math with you — most don't come back.
• Gather what you have: title, current registration, service records, and a smog certificate if the sale requires one.
• Price against real local listings of the same year and mileage, not a national estimate.