In your ‘humble’ opinion, your trusty vehicle may feel like it’s worth hundreds of thousands of rands (with a long history of reliability and many kilometres of memories). Unfortunately, this is not often the same conclusion that a valuator will arrive at. A multitude of factors play a role in determining your car’s resale value. Whether you’re considering selling your car or just curious about the vehicle’s current resale value, it is important to know the industry standards for car valuation before the time comes to sell or trade in your wheels.
Let’s outline the answers to some of your burning questions around car valuations:
What factors determine the value of your car?
There are a number of variables that influence your car’s valuation. Let’s unpack some of the main ones so you can get a clear idea of what to expect:
- Make & model – Certain brands and models fare better than others in the resale market due to their reputation, popularity and reliability. In South Africa, brands like Toyota and Volkswagen are bound to hold their value better than others.
- Historical performance – Models that have maintained a good resale value over many years are more likely to retain their worth than newer models still trying to establish themselves in the local market. For example, models like the Toyota Hilux or Volkswagen Polo have built a solid reputation through reliability and popularity over many years and will likely cash in with reasonable returns.
- Mileage – Probably the biggest player in the car valuation calculation, higher mileage generally equals lower resale value, while low mileage cars are perceived to have less wear and tear and can therefore fetch a higher price.
- Age – Depreciation and age go hand-in-hand, but this factor does vary across makes and models. The first few years of a car’s life see the highest depreciation rate while cars in the 8-12 year age range experience a slower decline.
- Physical condition – Scratches, dents, mechanical faults and interior wear and tear all influence used car prices. Cars will drop in value if they have a record of a serious accident or multiple fender benders. Comfort features such as entertainment, remote start, anti smash and grab, automatic vehicles, leather seats, electric windows and cruise control add to the resale value of the vehicle.
- Service and maintenance – A record of regular and appropriate services through a reputable and approved service provider go a long way to upping the value of your used vehicle. This shows the potential buyer that the car has been looked after and instils confidence in its future runnings.
- Supply and demand dynamics – Market demand directly influences vehicle value. If a particular make or model is wanted (for example, bakkies in South Africa), its value is likely to rise, while market saturation of similar cars may decrease the individual car sales prices.
- Emerging trends – Current trends in the automotive industry and society in general also play a part in determining vehicle value. For example, tech advancements such as hybrid or electric vehicles, changes in laws concerning carbon emissions, fuel prices and customer preferences influence a vehicle’s asking price.
- Location – While bakkies may sell better near farming communities, family vans and sedans may fetch higher prices in the suburbs.
- Add-ons – Personalisations and modifications – such as oversized wheels, rear spoilers and stereo speakers – may negatively impact your vehicle’s value over the long haul while more sought-after additions – such as alloy wheels – may contribute to an upturn in value.
- Colour – What may seem like an arbitrary factor actually plays a small role in determining value. Research shows that colours such as white, silver, metallic grey or blue are more highly sought after than adventurous colours such as pink, brown or yellow.
How can you receive an accurate car valuation?
The most precise and relevant way to determine your car’s value is by asking industry players to make a thorough assessment.
Option 1: Take it to a showroom or used car dealership
This may be the old-fashioned way of determining your vehicle’s future asking price, but it can be effective. Car dealers will be able to quote you on your car’s worth after conducting an inspection, taking a look at your records and jumping into the vehicle for a test drive.
While this may be a smart consideration if you’re looking to trade-in your vehicle, there is a quicker, more efficient and easier way to ascertain your vehicle’s valuation.
Option 2: Sell your car online
With a trusted platform like Weelee, you can simply upload your vehicle’s photos and details in 2 minutes and wait for the offers to begin streaming in from our number of pre-approved dealers. You can then get a good idea of what price your car could receive.
If the offers are really tempting and you decide to sell your vehicle, the winning bidder will come to you to do an onsite assessment of the vehicle. If both parties are happy, the buyer will do an instant EFT transfer of cash into your bank account. (The entire process is so user-friendly and hassle-free and your vehicle won’t accumulate excessive kilometres in the selling process).
Where can you sell your car for the best price?
Obviously, we’re slightly biased and want you to sell your car with us, but how can you know that Weelee will really give you top dollar (or rand, in this case)?
- Our 3 000 reviews on Hellopeter and Facebook can’t be wrong
- People have actually made the comparison between our major rival (We Buy Cars) and Weelee and seen Weelee come out on top
- Our online car-selling process uses an innovative and competitive bidding model with a number of dealers, ensuring that you sell your car for more by accepting the top offer.
