Apr
5
One of the fundamental first questions that a potential purchaser of a new car needs to ask themselves is, ‘does this car need to be brand new’? The answer really should be probably not. A new car is a great thing to buy and if one can afford to buy a brand new car then great however for many other people the need to have a brand new car is probably not a necessity.
The main thing with buying a new car which puts a lot of people off going down this route is instant depreciation. This means the very moment that the car is driven off the ramp and on to the road, that car depreciates in value instantly and normally by quite a large percentage. This is even true when buying a car that is a year old, there still will be some pretty hefty losses to incur from depreciation alone. This truly is the single biggest cost to running a car. So it is safe to say that while a new car is a good idea in theory and probably a nice thing to say to friends and family, but in reality probably is not the sensible financial way to go. From a business perspective, it would not be a wise move to buy anything that instantly depreciates over night, so this thinking should be brought over to a car purchase as well.
A good idea is to always have a good look around to see what’s on the market. This includes the papers, the auto trader and of course the internet. Make sure that a lot of care is taken when buying a car and remember the key safety element when buying a second hand car off some one is to always be wary of deals that look to good to be true. These great deals generally are and the last thing anyone wants is to spend their savings on is a stolen car which could end up being seized.
Another good point if a person is set on buying a new car is to make sure they negotiate very hard as the car industry is going through a tough time at present. The dealers are much more willing to come down on the price to get the sale which in turn will greatly help offset the depreciation for the buyer that will come with the new car.
Also check the cars certificates and check that it does not have any faults and make sure that it starts correctly and a person should always make sure that they have test drove the car so that there are no issues with the important parts of the car such as the starter motor, alternator, steering, and brakes.
The main benefit of buying a new car is that it will come with the full manufacturer’s warranty which gives the driver complete piece of mind for the first twelve months which is a great position to be in. To sum up the driver needs to ask the question whether they need a new car and if so they then need to do their research and get ready to haggle hard.
By: Martyn D Bleasdale