Tips To Retain Your Car’s Resale Value

The harsh reality of car buying can be described in one word — depreciation. Depreciation is a scary word used to describe your car losing its value over time due to wear and tear. German Precision has compiled some tips to retain your car’s resale value.

We have been in the automotive industry since 1984, ranging from apprentice to master technician, workshop foreman, controller, service advisor and service manager, in numerous premium vehicle businesses. We have built a level of loyalty that in the 21st Century is vital. After all, customer service and care is a point of difference.

We hope we are able to help you out with your needs. Our business is also known as Prepurchase Check.

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Cars are the opposite of wine; they almost always lose value as they age. No matter what, your new car begins its long and gradual descent into depreciation from the moment it leaves the factory. From the moment you first turn the key in the ignition, you will lose your car resale value.

Choose The Right Make And Model

If you want your car to maintain its value as much as possible, it’s crucial to choose a popular make and model. If a dealer knows they won’t have any trouble selling your car to another buyer, they’ll be happy to offer you a better price when you trade it in.

This means you should try to select a vehicle that has good fuel economy, low running costs and a reputation for reliability. For example, brands that regularly top reliability surveys, such as Toyota, will tend to have higher resale values than others that can’t boast the same track record for quality.

It’s also worth remembering that if the model you want to buy is about to be replaced in the manufacturer’s line-up, this can drive its resale value down substantially.

Service History

By far the most important, stay up to date with your regular services and log each one. A complete service history gives potential buyers more confidence in the car they are buying and shows it has been properly cared for.

Research Resale Values

Want to know how much your car will be worth in three or five years’ time? Start researching resale values through a car valuation service such as RedBook, which offers a “Future Valuation” option to help you work out how much your vehicle will be worth in one, two, three, four and five years.

Many motoring organisations around Australia, such as the NRMA, include depreciation in their car operating costs or car running costs surveys. Use this data to find the makes and models most likely to hold their value in the future.

Don’t Smoke In Your Car

Not only does cigarette smoke give the interior of a car the smell of an impacted ashtray, but it can also cause interior surfaces to dull and even turn yellowish-brown. Since only 22% of the adult population smokes cigarettes, you can be certain that the cigarette smell in your car will be offensive to at least 78% of the population that doesn’t smoke. That will cut the potential market for your car substantially – as well as the value.

Choose Carefully Where To Park The Car

Door dings, bumper scratches and fading plastics are like wrinkles on the skin — they’re going to happen regardless, and they’re going to diminish your car’s value. But you can minimize these blemishes by parking away from other cars, choosing empty spots in the far reaches of parking lots as often as possible (despite the protests from teenage passengers).

Also, choose spots that leave your car less vulnerable to passing or turning vehicles. Choose a parallel spot at the end of a row if there are no empty side-by-side stalls. Keeping the car in a garage, if possible, away from the harsh effects of wind and sun, also helps.

Check The Age And Mileage

Mileage has a greater effect on depreciation than age does. Cars are often driven anywhere between 10,000 and 15,000 km a year on average. The more you drive and put miles on the car, the more likely your car will depreciate quickly in value.

Think about how much wear and tear your car goes through by putting six-figure mileage on it. If you hold on to a top-brand car for years and don’t put major miles on the odometer, you could expect your car to be labelled as being in “outstanding condition,” which will give you a higher resale or trade-in value if you decide to part ways with your car.

Wax Your Car A Few Times A Year

You should plan to wax your car a few times per year. This will not only protect the surface but will also help to maintain the colour of your vehicle longer.

Though it’s completely superficial, the quality of the paint job on your car is the first thing that a buyer will notice about the vehicle. If the paint is dull and worn, a prospective buyer may not look any farther, even if the car is in perfect shape mechanically.

Get An Extra Set Of Tyres

Sure, an extra set of tyres for winter will cost you upfront, but it saves over the long haul. It reduces the likelihood of an accident in winter because you’ve got better traction. It also cuts the amount of use both sets of tyres get over the year, thereby prolonging their tread, their use, and value.

Besides the extra life, those shiny aluminium rims will still look great years from now. Especially if they’ve been stored over winter and haven’t been exposed to the bad weather.

Get Comprehensive Car Insurance

If you choose wisely, you can get comprehensive car insurance that’s pocket-friendly. It will make repairs or accident-related costs considerably lower. This means you have more to spend on keeping your car in top shape all the time.

Then if you decide to sell your car today, tomorrow, next week or next month, you can get the best resale value.

Hire A Professional Car Technician In Melbourne

We have engaged with many clients for independent, personal car purchase advice. Whilst we are not a CAR BROKER, we have assisted clients with discussions on MAKE/MODEL/YEAR/VERSION of vehicle best suited to their needs, and with low ‘grief’ factors. In some cases, clients, especially repeat clients (and we have many), have asked us to either source a car for them, or assist in the negotiations.

As much as some of us think we’re backyard mechanics, you can’t go past actually getting a used car checked out by a professional to determine whether it is mechanically sound. There’s nothing worse than driving away with your new purchase, only to find that it has an issue that is going to cost you dearly.

And if you want to buy a secondhand car, have a professional inspector like German Precision do a thorough pre-purchase car inspection in Melbourne to ensure that your dream car is operating properly and not a scam.

If you are looking for the best pre-purchase car inspector in Melbourne, do not hesitate to contact German Precision or Prepurchase Check today!