Buying a car is always going to be a big decision as they are often one of the most expensive purchases you will make after a mortgage and alongside home improvements such as kitchen renovations. There are many things you should be thinking about when thinking about buying your next car so we have put together a short list of some of the important things that you be considering.
Your Needs
One of the most important things that you should be thinking about is what your requirements are. There’s no point in looking at 3 doors, convertibles if you have three kids, a pushchair and a dog to fit in the car. Try making a list of your needs for a car for example if you need the ideal family car you would include, 5 doors, Isofix anchor points, a large boot, economically friendly and many others. Once you have done this it will narrow your search massively. It’s definitely worth considering aspects and features such as the need for roof bars, tows bars, navigation systems and handsfree as these can be quite costly to install to a vehicle at a later date.
Running Costs
How much is your new car going to cost you to run? If your budget focussed then this is definitely something that you should be considering when looking for your new car. If you want something to potter around in or are going to completing long journeys on a regular basis you don’t really want a sports car that’s going to guzzle petrol, cost a fortune in tax and have a high insurance rate.
You are able to use tools online to research how much a vehicle is expected to cost you for things such as vehicle tax, miles to the gallon and how economically friendly it is and for your insurance you are able to use comparison sites to find a rough estimate on how much it will cost you to ensure the vehicle, you don’t need to of purchase to check this. If you’re going to be completing a regular journey such as a trip to work it may be a good idea to look at a route planner where you can input your trip and miles per gallon to gather a rough estimate of costs.
What’s Included
When purchasing a new vehicle you often have certain things included with the vehicle to help with the maintenance or ensuring that you have coverage if something unexpected were to happen but it’s not always the case. When you buy a brand new car you will normally get a decent warranty package and on occasion get service included for free but if you are buying a second-hand vehicle this isn’t the case at all. It can range from having absolutely nothing to dealers offering you their own warranty service. This is definitely something to consider and if you should look into getting yourself some sort of cover to be safe, try having a look at CARS protection Plus.
Do you have any other things you should be considering when buying a new car? Please share them in the comments section below.
