- The statistics say that new cars depreciate 30-40% in the first 3 years, so it does make sense to buy a nearly new vehicle of the age of 2 or 3 years, with low mileage and a valid warranty if you are concerned about the financial part when it comes to investing in a car. Beginning with the age of 3, your vehicle will reach a fair market value and will depreciate less year by year.
- Another reason for a low used car value is the colour. Two similar vehicles, having nearly the same features and milage, will be valued differently only because of the colour. Last 5 years, the UK new car dealers sold mostly grey, black, blue, and white units. It means that the British used car market will still be conservative when it is up to choose how the car will look like. Some vivid colours like orange, purple, light green, yellow are a “red flag” when it’s to sell a used car, it means the car of such colour will have less demand and further will be sold for a lower price. The bright colours are only valid for some vacation or sports cars, which people are buying for driving occasionally.
- But what about luxury cars?
Well, the luxury units are the most economically unjustified investments when it’s up to analyze the second-hand car market. Usually, a 10-12 years old Jaguar XJ with a high-capacity engine can cost the same as a Ford Focus of the same age. Huge saloons or SUVs are dedicated to those that assume to pay a lot of money for comfort and status and don’t care about how much will cost the vehicle after 5-8-10 years. Also, the cars having 3000cc engines and above are highly taxed and have overmuch maintenance costs, which is an important criteria when to price your car on the second-hand market.
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Advice to avoid depreciation
- Buy a car make that has liquidity on the used cars market. Don’t hurry up when choosing a car, wait for a good deal. A Ford, VW, Peugeot, Kia, BMW or Vauxhall compact, hatch or small SUV will keep a high buying interest after years; while brands like Alfa Romeo, SangYong, Chevrolet or Saab will be sought the most by enthusiasts.
- Buy a car that has the paperwork done since it was new. In your turn, make sure to record all the maintenance works at the time you own the car, so this will be a strength when you will you perform a used car valuation.
- A used vehicle that has some advanced features will be more actual in the future. When buying a used car, try to choose one that has features like: adaptive cruise control, adaptive headlights, sensor displays and multi-zone climate control; of course, depending on the class the car belongs to.
- Drive safe and try to avoid accidents. Besides the stress of being involved in such events, your used car price will drop anyway.