DABAS blog October 2019
FYI – Buying a used car? Something to think about before you sign the contract.
Hello readers, Melbourne’s weather is warming up slowly and the Victorian third-term school holidays, the Royal Melbourne show and the AFL grand final are all behind us for another year. The end of year, university break and Xmas are quickly approaching: 2019 is certainly motoring by. Melbourne’s winter 2019 ocean swimmers, after enduring a temperature low of 8 degrees in Port Phillip Bay this August, are now glad Melbourne’s daylight savings with its longer sunnier days and warmer weather is here, with the October Port Phillip Bay water temperature now a “seemingly balmy” 15 degrees. This is also the time of year a lot of people, after finishing the year’s studies, decide to purchase a small used car as their first car or to update their existing vehicle. Many car-buyers have a minimum budget generally from twelve to eighteen thousand dollars for a late model small- to mid-sized used car with a 5-star safety rating. What some buyers are not aware of is that presently, in LMCT showrooms, there are some amazing drive-away deals on brand-new MY19 vehicles within that budget range – at times slightly above – so in turn, they could have bought themselves an entry-level MY19 brand-new car with some of the latest MY19 safety technology, plus a five- to seven- year factory warranty: including the chosen brand’s capped-price dealer-servicing regime. Which in turn means no additional surprise vehicle expenses for the owner of an entry-level MY19 brand-new car over the next five to seven years, compared to a similarly priced used car within a five- to seven-year timeframe.
….. So, with that in mind – in this DABAS blog post let’s have a very brief look at some general comparison calculations between the realities of buying a late-model used car –
– or an entry-level brand-new small car for similar money,
Which may help in your search for a car; much more detailed research information, reviews and brochures – plus any special drive-away pricing offers that DABAS is currently aware of on a brand-new MY19 small– to mid-sized car – will be provided upon your transition to becoming a DABAS client.
As with any big decision, it’s best to do research before stepping a toe into an LMCT dealership; DABAS can assist by doing this for you, looking at factors such as fuel economy, safety, technology, servicing schedules and costs, plus added extras that may all help in your final purchase decision, as each vehicle’s variant in the model range is usually available with progressing arrays of added inclusions that may suit your personal needs to a tee. Comparing new cars solo by yourself can be very time-consuming, and at times confusing, but with DABAS’s assistance the modest service fee charged for our assistance will have been well worth it when you get behind the wheel of your ideal dream car, knowing the vehicle suits your lifestyle and hip pocket, both now and in the long run!
We hope you find this blog post on – Buying a used car? some things to think about before you sign the contract – an interesting read, whilst shining some light on information that may assist you selecting a suitable vehicle for your personal car-buying needs, providing some useful “very general-in-nature” information to help you on your vehicle selection journey.
If you would like DABAS’s assistance buying a vehicle, please click here.
To see twenty interesting things to consider when buying a car; please click here
To see three things to consider if moving on from your older car; please click here
For more information on a drive-away brand-new car under $17,000; please click here
To see a self-evaluating check list – is it time to update your car; please click here
For a step-by-step example of a DABAS car-buying journey; please click here
Here we go,
On this topic, to demonstrate as an example DABAS will briefly review a recent client’s experience.
Chris (not their real name) was assisting his inner-city-living son in buying a used car. Chris’s son was updating from his trusty 2001 series two AU Ford Falcon; he required a small- to mid-sized hatchback to handle the city parking bays and general metropolitan commuting, ideally being no more than six years old. Coincidently Bob had a neighbour selling a popular brand’s diesel-powered MY14 small- to mid-sized hatchback with no accident history and the air-bag re-call check completed. The car had been owned by Chris’s neighbour since brand new; the car now had 89,000 kilometres on the odometer. The sales price was $16,900 firm. The deal included an RWC and Victorian registration till late October 2019 plus the full service books/history. Chris’s son was keen on purchasing this car. Chris, not being a car fanatic, consulted with DABAS at a meeting for some thoughts on the potential deal. The car did present well, it was a good car …. BUT
Chris and son did not realise some of the costs involved in the very near future that would potentially take the car’s price to that of a brand-new MY19 small- to mid-sized petrol-powered hatchback with MY19 safety and technology.
briefly some of those estimated costs:
VicRoads stamp duties -$16,900 purchase price, +$39.70 transfer fee & (16,900 divided by 200 = 84 – rounded-up – then timed by 8.4) = approximately $705 in duties (+$39.70c) = est. $744.70c additional
The registration/CTP/TAC fee that is coming due in late October = est. $880 for another year’s registration
Four tyres to be replaced in the next twelve months = est. 4x$150 = est. $600
Replacement brake pads and rotors and brake fluid flush/renew/bleed = est. $1200
The 100,000km factory service = est. $1,000 (even more if the diesel particulate filter needs work)
The ongoing factory book service schedule on a car with climbing kilometres on the odometer = $? how long is a piece of string, and at some time over the next 5 years the servicing of the dual-clutch transmission, including clutches, which can cost up to and over est. $4000.
So – in this blog post – without even going too deep into the ongoing potential maintenance, upkeep and servicing of this used-car example above, you can easily see the figure of $25,324 – not including ongoing schedule servicing – is now surpassing the price of an brand-new drive-away no-more-to-pay entry-level MY19 small car, which includes a five- to seven-year factory-backed warranty, plus – for added peace of mind – a capped-price service regime.
And, to be fair, we all have been told or read reports that a brand-new car depreciates the moment it drives out of the caryard, Yes, this is true, “but you have just bought it”! – with hopefully no plans to sell it for some time.
Research suggests most privately funded new-car buyers keep their car within the family until it at least it runs out of new-car factory-backed warranty, which is in most cases between five and seven years and by which time the odometer-kilometre reading and overall condition of the vehicle will decide its dollar-market value as you update.
PS: When people mention brand-new car depreciation, the elephant in the room – and not-often-mentioned fact – can sometimes be that a LMCT used-car example depreciates in value at an even more dramatic rate.
At DABAS we know that buying a car to suit your needs can be one of the biggest purchases in your life. We hope this intended to be “general-in-nature advice and information” blog page has provided some helpful assistance for you in deciding the path of your car-buying journey. Please note any examples, options, pricing and information mentioned in this blog post are to be considered as a very general-in-nature summary; all specifications, information and advice mentioned in this blog page may be outdated or superseded by the time of your reading of this blog page; information in all DABAS blog pages will be confirmed at the time of you updating into your next vehicle, along with your chosen vehicle’s sales representative in their LMCT showroom at the time you transition to becoming a client of DABAS. We look forward to having a chat when the need arises for you to update your car; to assess your personal car-safety requirements and buying needs to suit your lifestyle. And importantly your set specified budget!
Whatever roads your life journey takes you on, DABAS can help you find a car to travel those roads.
When it comes time to update your car DABAS is aware of some things to consider within the many featured model range variants inclusions, plus more of the opposition comparisons, and also things to keep in mind – including when you are trading in your old car at a LMCT used-car yard – and the special trade-in incentives offered on drive-away-no-more-to-pay deals obtainable – at times – within leading brands’ Melbourne LMCT new-car dealerships.
These will be discussed upon your transition to becoming a client of DABAS.
To contact DABAS to discuss your car-buying needs; please click here
To see a past DABAS blog post on a brand-new medium-sized car under $21,000; please click here
For comparing 10 most popular vehicles for “private buyers” in early 2019; please click here
To see a past DABAS blog post on popular used cars as a first car under $15,000; please click here
To see a past DABAS blog post on popular used SUVs under $15,000; please click here
To see a past DABAS blog post on what safety technology for the price; please click here
For comparing other popular recent and MY19 brand-new vehicles; please click here
For information on Hybrid and environmentally minded cars; please click here
If you would like to go to the car auctions as an alternative car-buying option; please click here
For “many more” DABAS past blog topics (including towing and tyre safety tips); see our archived index here
Thanks for visiting DABAS’s website and blog; Have a great day, Cheers, Tim.
–Please note; information mentioned on this page is to be considered as a general-in-nature summary; all information and advice mentioned may be outdated or superseded by the time of your reading of this page; all information will be confirmed at the time of your transition to becoming a client of DABAS.