These days it's a bit difficult to settle on a car. In the past the norm was to stick to a brand that you trusted..., and your father trusted as well. But you can't really do that anymore. Prices are so competitive that you can't be loyal to any one manufacturer anymore. There's also the recent financial crisis that hit people all over the world and we are still feeling it even up to today, so price plays a very important part in making a decision.
Speaking of decisions, what are the factors that we should look for when buying a car? The are many to consider so we have to break it down into categories. Is the car going to be used as a family car? Do you like the thrill of a sports car? Are you looking for safety? Something easy to drive? Easy on the pocket? Do you enjoy a spacious interior or something more practical and compact? ... These considerations are just the tip of the iceberg when choosing a car for yourself.
Firstly you should consider what class of vehicle you are looking for i.e. hatch, compact hatch, sedan, SUV, station wagon, MPV etc. This is the first step in getting you closer to your decision. Once you have settled on a class of vehicle you should then choose a style.
Normally manufacturers tend to follow a 'fashion' trend when it comes to designing a vehicle and this can sometimes make your choice hard. But there will always be a manufacturer that will create something different, like the Citroen DS3 Sport or the Ford Fiesta. When these vehicle were launched their designs caught everyone's attention. But what usually happens, these designs become future trends for the other manufacturers. A good design influences the price quite a bit, the better looking the car is the more expensive it is, but the plus side of having a good looking car is it holds its price better than a not so good looking car, like the Nissan Tiida or Micra. So choose something that's good looking or sort of good looking.
Fuel economy is fast becoming the number one factor in purchasing a car. Fuel economy is relative to the technology in the engine. For example Toyota has something called Optimal Drive, this isn't just a single feature that they have come up with, it is a combination of a host of technology improvements, like a gearbox with lesser components, lighter engines, improved valve control on a multi valve engine and even incorporating a six speed gearbox on their smaller engines which not only improves economy, but also improves performance as well. This is one of the features that we should be looking out for as well.
Price is one of the ultimate deciding factors on buying a car. These days it's very difficult to get a decent discount on a new vehicle. Dealerships have sort of set margins for themselves when it comes to discounting the price. So how do you get the most for your money? I've found that dealerships tend to offer more or less the same discount, but they tend to differ when it comes to what extras they can offer you.
So what you have to do is play them against each other to see who can give you the most extras or the most valuable extra. I don't know why, but dealerships can pile on the extras but they won't give you the extra discount.
The other way of getting over the pricing issue is to wait for a special to run on a car. For example BMW and Mercedes often run a special where they discount the interest rate on the vehicle finance by +-5% less prime. There are other dealerships that do this as well.
And yet another way to get a good price is to go for a model that is being phased out. This is when you get the best deals, because a dealership does not want to sit with old stock and the bigger the overstock the bigger the discount.
Remember to get a service plan or maintenance plan with your deal. It's a small price to pay for peace of mind. In fact most times you can get the dealership to throw it in for free as an extra.
Like I said in the beginning, there are many factors that can influence your decision. These are just a few suggestions. But I hope that I have assisted you in getting closer to your decision.
Speaking of decisions, what are the factors that we should look for when buying a car? The are many to consider so we have to break it down into categories. Is the car going to be used as a family car? Do you like the thrill of a sports car? Are you looking for safety? Something easy to drive? Easy on the pocket? Do you enjoy a spacious interior or something more practical and compact? ... These considerations are just the tip of the iceberg when choosing a car for yourself.
Firstly you should consider what class of vehicle you are looking for i.e. hatch, compact hatch, sedan, SUV, station wagon, MPV etc. This is the first step in getting you closer to your decision. Once you have settled on a class of vehicle you should then choose a style.
Normally manufacturers tend to follow a 'fashion' trend when it comes to designing a vehicle and this can sometimes make your choice hard. But there will always be a manufacturer that will create something different, like the Citroen DS3 Sport or the Ford Fiesta. When these vehicle were launched their designs caught everyone's attention. But what usually happens, these designs become future trends for the other manufacturers. A good design influences the price quite a bit, the better looking the car is the more expensive it is, but the plus side of having a good looking car is it holds its price better than a not so good looking car, like the Nissan Tiida or Micra. So choose something that's good looking or sort of good looking.
Fuel economy is fast becoming the number one factor in purchasing a car. Fuel economy is relative to the technology in the engine. For example Toyota has something called Optimal Drive, this isn't just a single feature that they have come up with, it is a combination of a host of technology improvements, like a gearbox with lesser components, lighter engines, improved valve control on a multi valve engine and even incorporating a six speed gearbox on their smaller engines which not only improves economy, but also improves performance as well. This is one of the features that we should be looking out for as well.
Price is one of the ultimate deciding factors on buying a car. These days it's very difficult to get a decent discount on a new vehicle. Dealerships have sort of set margins for themselves when it comes to discounting the price. So how do you get the most for your money? I've found that dealerships tend to offer more or less the same discount, but they tend to differ when it comes to what extras they can offer you.
So what you have to do is play them against each other to see who can give you the most extras or the most valuable extra. I don't know why, but dealerships can pile on the extras but they won't give you the extra discount.
The other way of getting over the pricing issue is to wait for a special to run on a car. For example BMW and Mercedes often run a special where they discount the interest rate on the vehicle finance by +-5% less prime. There are other dealerships that do this as well.
And yet another way to get a good price is to go for a model that is being phased out. This is when you get the best deals, because a dealership does not want to sit with old stock and the bigger the overstock the bigger the discount.
Remember to get a service plan or maintenance plan with your deal. It's a small price to pay for peace of mind. In fact most times you can get the dealership to throw it in for free as an extra.
Like I said in the beginning, there are many factors that can influence your decision. These are just a few suggestions. But I hope that I have assisted you in getting closer to your decision.
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