Sabtu, 10 Juni 2017

New Zealand Used Cars Buyer Guide

There’s no need to throw your money away when buying a used car. If you perform certain checks and are informed on all your available options you should be able to get a good deal when buying a used car.

Find the Real Current Price

The first thing you need to do is to get a realistic idea of what your chosen make and model is currently selling for in New Zealand.

This way you’re going into the car dealership or other seller knowing what the car should be sold for. This can vary obviously on its condition as well as the car having various upgrades but it will give you a good understanding to help you know you’re not getting ripped off.

There are various companies which can do these reports so have a look online and you should find one easily.

Build a List of Used Cars

Your next step is to build a list of vehicles that you want to view. Like most countries, New Zealanders have lots of options regarding this.

One of the most popular options is TradeMe Motors which has a huge number of cars for sale all over the country.

Another option is to surf the net for various dealerships that sell used cars such as AutoCo that display their stock on their website.

Using TradeMe and checking directly with dealerships are only two examples and I recommend you spend a lot of time surfing the net to build a list cars which you want to view.

Because you know roughly what a car should sell for, you should be able to filter out the more expensive companies, leaving you with a list of cars which are being sold for reasonable dollars.

Make a list of all the cars on paper or your computer noting down extra information such as if a particular seller offers vehicle checks or other freebies.

Of course the main criterion for deciding whether a particular vehicle should stay in your list is the price but there are other factors as well. For example some dealerships may offer discounts on parts when you buy a car from them or they may offer discounted warranties. So keep this in mind when filtering down your list of cars.

Do Background Checks on the Company

So the car looks great on paper or online and the website of dealership looks great and their extras are fantastic. So everything is perfect, right? Maybe it is but maybe not.

It’s also important to do some background checks on the company that you’re thinking about buying from.

You may think all this sounds like too much work but it really isn’t. You can often find out a lot just by browsing the Internet for an hour. Isn’t an hour of your time worth it if it can possibly help you ensure you buy from a reputable company?

So spend an hour or two searching for reviews or people talking about the particular company online.

Spend Time Checking the Car

When you visit a dealer or private seller, don’t skimp on the time you spend checking it out. I know some people feel uncomfortable asking lots of questions when they are looking at someone’s car but you have to remember that you will potentially be spending a lot of money on this car, so it is vital that you make sure it’s the right vehicle for you.

Make a list of questions that you want to ask the seller or dealer before you visit them. Spend a lot time checking the outside and interior. Look underneath the car and look for rust spots and dodgy repair jobs.

When you test drive the vehicle make sure you test it in different driving conditions such as motorways, town traffic and if it’s a 4 wheel drive then you can even take it off road. Of course if you take it off road, make sure you don’t damage it!

Get a Vehicle History Report

Once you’ve driven some of these cars and reduced your list of cars down to a few top contenders, you’ll also need to get a report on the car’s history.

The reason why this is important is because a lot of things can happen to a car which isn’t usually obviously when you view it.

A car may drive perfectly when you test drive it and look fine when you inspect it but it may be hiding a nasty history.

Example of things which a history report can show you include;
  • Previous owners having trouble with finance payments. This is important because in some situations the finance company can actually go after the new owner to get lost payments.
  • It can also show you which accidents the car was involved in. Small prangs are usually not a problem but if it was in a major accident then it may have cause major structural damage that could have been hidden with a dodgy repair job.
Have a look online and you should find lots of sites that offer this in NZ.

Get a Professional to Check the Car

Another layer of protection you can use is to get a professional to check out the car before you purchase it.

They can perform a number of tests on the vehicle to find various problems which you may have missed when you checked the car yourself.

These usually cost some money but it’s relatively small and I believe well worth the fee.

There are many companies that offer these types of checks; too many to list here, so spend some time finding a company in your area which offers these checkups.

They should send someone to run these tests then provide a report on the vehicle. You can use the report to make your final decision on whether to buy the car or not.

After Buying Your Car

Once you’ve purchased your car it’s a good idea to keep it (and yourself!) in one piece by driving safely on the road because the last thing you want to do after buying your dream car is to get into an accident.
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