In the present economic climate there’s no doubt that a number of vehicle owners will be looking at their travel options and how they can save money. Some may decide to downsize tehir current vehicle or even make do with one car as opposed to two. If the decision is to sell the car then it is obviously important to be aware of how the marketplace is behaving, especially if you haven’t sold a car for quite some time.
Some owners will have their own ideas of what they imagine their car is worth until they go online to value a car and might get a pleasant surprise, or otherwise! There are numerous factors involved at any given time when selling a car for cash and the last three to four years of the UK dipping in and out of recession has also affected the used car marketplace.
According to a recent CAP Motor Research survey, “ the average age of a used vehicle has increased by eight months since 2009 to 67 months old in 2011 … most notably, convertibles, 4x4s and executive sector cars, which are now on average one year older than in 2009”. However, city cars tend to now be six months younger than they were three years ago.
So probably good news for owners of a Lexus, Mercedes S-Class, BMW 3 Series or Audio A4, for example, who are thinking of parting with their trusty upmarket wheels but with better standards of build and longer service intervals, longer lifespans may be expected. As ever, individual models /condition /driving /service histories are still to be taken into account.
Interestingly, industry reports suggest that average used car prices have risen by just above four per cent, mainly because of a drop in new car sales, leading to fewer used cars returning to the market and longer retention of company fleets.
The ‘takeaway’ message for car owners is that you might not necessarily lose out if your car is a few months older than 5 years, and there may be a general shortage of good quality used cars, which may place a higher value on your particular make and model, depending on your location.
Either way, it only takes a few moments to check the value of a car online to get a good idea of what to expect pricewise rather than face the confusion of the traditional ad marketplace.