General Training Writing Task 1 · informal · giving information

Letter to a friend offering to sell car

You have a friend who has always liked the car you currently drive. Now you have decided to sell the car. You think your friend might be interested in buying it.

Write a letter to this friend. In your letter:

say why you want to sell your car
describe the condition of the car
invite the friend to come and see the car himself/herself someday

Write at least 150 words. You do not need to write any addresses. Begin your letter: Dear ...,

Band 8 sample letter

Dear Marcus,

I hope you are doing well and enjoying the start of the summer. I am getting in touch because I have finally decided to sell my silver hatchback, and I immediately thought of you since you have always admired it.

I have decided to part with the car because my commute has changed significantly since I started working from home. It seems unnecessary to keep a vehicle parked in the driveway most of the week when I am hardly using it anymore. I would much rather see it go to someone who will appreciate it as much as I have.

As for the condition, the car is in excellent shape. It has just under 40,000 miles on the clock and has been serviced annually by the local garage. I have kept the interior spotless, and it has never been involved in any accidents. It is truly a reliable runner that has never let me down.

If you are still interested, why don’t you pop over this weekend to have a look for yourself? We can take it for a quick spin, and you can inspect the engine. Let me know if that works for you.

Best wishes,

Sam

200 words. Names and details are invented; write your own.

Why this scores well

A Band 8 response fully covers all three bullet points with a natural, consistent tone and cohesive paragraph structure. The most common mistake for Band 6 is failing to provide specific, realistic details about the car's condition, leading to an underdeveloped response.

Write to a friend or relative by first name and close with Best wishes, Love or See you soon.
Contractions, phrasal verbs and a warm opening line are expected; a stiff formal tone loses marks here.
Still cover every bullet in its own paragraph; friendly does not mean unstructured.

Useful phrases from the letter

part with: To give something away or sell something
on the clock: The total distance a vehicle has travelled
serviced: Undergone routine maintenance to ensure it functions
spotless: Extremely clean and free from any dirt
reliable runner: A vehicle that performs well and consistently
pop over: To visit someone informally for a short time

Write your own and get a band

Answer this prompt in a timed General Training writing test and get a band for task achievement, coherence, vocabulary and grammar, with the sentences to fix.

Practise IELTS General writing

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Frequently asked questions

Is this letter formal or informal?

Informal. Write to a friend or relative by first name and close with Best wishes, Love or See you soon.

How long should an IELTS General Training letter be?

At least 150 words, and 160 to 200 is the comfortable range. Spend about 20 minutes on it and leave 40 for Task 2, which carries twice the marks.