How do you decide if it is time to sell?

Ok, maybe a stupid topic, but I've asked stupid questions before... Some people seem to turn cars over often and try a lot of new rides, sometimes regretting letting go of some of their past "loves". Others, and I seem to fall in this group seem to keep their cars forever. Lately however I have been contemplating what a few years ago was unthinkable...selling my Merak SS and looking for an Alfa Gulia Super. I've had the Merak for over 12 years and still love it. I've got it well sorted and looking good, yet I find I am driving less. I used to drive it a lot,(5,000+ miles a year..I'm in the North east so no winter driving)but the past few years I find I am only taking it out maybe 10-12 times each year instead of my usual drive it all as often as possible. partially because it's just not an around town type of car and I work close to home now. It's very low so not good on bad roads. It is more of a nice long drive on highways, country roads, parkway type of car. It feels very at home doing 80 all day long or runnin' a bit extra the speed limit on twisty roads... but then you catch up to typical family cars and your just idling along...not so much fun. I keep thinking a Gulia's 'sweet spot can be had at more reasonable speeds, is more "tweakable" as there are a lot of upgrades one can do, is a bit easier to work on myself, has better visibility out in this sea of SUV's and Pick up trucks, and would have more usable fun. So, do I sell my mid engine exotic, (which I probably could never buy back) for a sporty sedan, (which I could probably use more)? or do I beg, borrow, steal and find a way to get a Gulia and still keep the Merak?

If you are thinking of selling the Maser, that may be the first sign. Have you driven the Alfa? Or a similar vintage old vert? That is the next step in seeing if the alfa is for you. Keep them both if you can. If I were in your shoes and unsure, maybe pick up something cheaper like a fiat 2000 spider and live with for a while before you sell the merak. My personal philosophy is a bit of both. I plan to keep and restore my MR2 for mid-engine fun as it is easy on my budget and own a number of other cars briefly to try different things.

I believe when the thought of selling it crosses your mind that's your indication it's time for it to go. I have rationalized why I should keep a car in multiple ways but ultimately your conscience is telling you what is right. There are too many wonderful flavors out there to sample to limit yourself to just one. Since we can't all be Jay Leno turnover must happen.

I've sold a few vehicles that I look at wistfully in photos now but none of them I actually 'regret' selling. I've always had a full life with them and replaced them with something equally or more fun or better suited to my kind of use. When I sold my '65 F100 I was very sad; I loved the looks of the truck, and we had been together for twelve years. But the driving experience was becoming irritating and not pleasurable. The '93 Lightning that replaced it was more a case of 'the right tool for the task' but now that I've had it for a few months I've come to really enjoy it. I also don't worry about making 'mistake' purchases as I try to buy things that have a market and not oddball weird cars only six people on the GRM board will like. Makes selling a 'whoops' purchase easier.

This topic is near and dear to my heart as it pertains to my MGB GT that I have had since 1978. Needs nothing but I doubt I hit 50 miles on it this year. Between emotional attachment and nothing but low-ball offers in MGs, hard to justify selling OR keeping.

Viking funeral perhaps!

I have quite a few cars that I regret selling, most of them Italian. Having said that, I agree with ddavidv. There comes a time when you know you need to move on. My longest tenure with a car was a Fiat 600 at 10 years, with a '73 Alfa GTV closely following. Ironically, it's these two cars that I would most like to have back. Unfortunately in the case of the Alfa, they've appreciated so much that I do not think I want to spend what it would cost to replicate it.

Of course I moved on to many other wonderful cars, and without selling those, they may not have happened. I've been fortunate enough to have many of the cars I dreamed about as a kid, so in my mind, its a natural life cycle in my automotive world, much to the dismay of my wife. I've had many, many cars, she's had a total of 3.

I'm actually going through this now with one of my cars too. I hate to sell it, but I've only put a couple of thousand miles on it in the past 1.5 years. Mainly it sits in the garage. I like looking at it, but when it comes time to go for a drive, it usually stays put. I know the answer, but that doesn't make it easier.

Yeah, hard decision. if I were to sell mine, I could probably never get it back. I drove it this weekend a few hundred miles and fell in love again. So I either have to find away to drive it more or cash in and move on. I figure I have the winter to think it over.

I find that when I sideline a car for awhile (I can't drive all of them every year) and then go back to them later to recommission them and start using them, if I feel anticipation, eager to use it, the car is still a keeper. If I feel that I am embarking on a big chore I'd rather not do, then I consider parting with it and let someone else have some fun with it.

I've parted with 3 cars in the last couple of years and have only mild feelings of regret.

PS - you should sell everything and buy a Ghibli (still regretting that I missed out on a 4.9 for only $25K some years ago.....)

Yeah, I know about a Ghibli lost.. A few years after I bought my Merak the seller, had a silver ghibli for sale for 29k my dad and I talked about going in on it but didn't. We still kick ourselves tot his day. even back then I could've picked up a 3500Gt or Sebring for reasonable $$'s....sigh

I was once tempted by a 3500GT except the guy had cut the roof off because he wanted a convertible - and he threw away the roof....arghhhh!!!!

@wspohn this may be felling bad. But this depend on the user"How they want to modify their vehicle" But, when we sell our vehicle then we must required to find the value of our vehicle before selling.

My buddy just sold both his 65 911 and 94 911 RSA. He never really wanted to sell them but was offered a lot more than he paid for them. He feels the market is very close to its peek and decided to cash out.

Semi-recently sold my two Porsche 356s; a '55 and a '65. A five year cut-off date is a good rule to adhere to.

If you haven't touched a car in five years, time to sell, no exceptions.

If it doesn't make you happy, sell it.

Regrets are part of life. Don't get hung up on it.

I like the option of "Turn it into a barn find for a future generation". Stick the car in a barn and close the door. Let some future generation discover it.