Buying Used Cars – Making Smarter and Sustainable Choices in 2021 (AD)

As we humans begin to understand the need to switch to more sustainable levels of consumption when it comes to the earth’s natural resources, we are beginning to make better choices. One of those, that anyone who needs to buy a car this year can do, is to opt to consider buying used cars instead of new ones. Apart from being better for the planet – new cars require a host of destructive and nonrenewable processes to take place, from mining the metals and minerals from which the vehicle is made to introducing harmful chemicals into the air from paint, solvents and fuels, amongst other things – this offers you some advantages that you might not have considered yet.

No Instant Depreciation

It is widely said that your brand new car instantly plummets in value – to about fifty percent of the retail price – the second you drive it off the sales lot. While the truth is not quite that dramatic, it is true that a brand new car will cost you much more than the identical model that has been driven for a short time, even if it is still in perfect condition!

It is estimated that the best models will lose about ten percent in value in the first year, while the average is fifteen to twenty percent per year. The ‘worst’ models will lose as much as forty percent in value in that first year, making them a foolhardy investment on paper (in practise, you still have the vehicle and it will perform just as well after one year as after a few weeks!) But on the other hand, your used car will maintain its value better, having cost you less in the first place!

For example, let us say you buy one of the above-mentioned vehicles for just under half the retail value, and drive it for one year. At the end of that time, you will probably be able to get your money back – with a small margin of leeway – having enjoyed a whole year of driving, more or less for free!

More for Your Money

Leading on from the previous point, you will get better value for your money, being able to choose a more high-end model or a luxury make for the same that you would have paid for a more basic but new vehicle. If you have saved enough for a low to mid-range new car, but open yourself up to good condition vehicles of up to ten years old, you will be able to afford a high-end or even luxury model – that will be in nearly perfect condition having been built to higher specifications! Considered from that point of view alone, buying used cars becomes more tempting, even without the reassurance of knowing you are being more sustainable.

In the Variety

Opting for a second-hand car automatically gives you access to a much wider variety of vehicles to choose from. New cars are necessarily limited to that year’s models, and perhaps a few from the year before – but the second-hand market can range from compact used Nissan cars to classic muscle cars to niche but highly popular vehicles from previous years and even decades.

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Less Taxing

Choosing to buy a used car will save you more than the purchase price. You will also pay a reduced rate of road tax, and if your vehicle is economical on fuel (or perhaps a hybrid) and low on emissions, you will pay less tax again. When buying a new car, you will not only have road tax to pay, you will have to pay a hefty twenty percent in VAT too – an eye-watering amount, when you think of the saving you could make by opting for used vehicles instead!

If you are concerned about the horror stories that sometimes pop up in the media, about people being tricked out of their money or robbed of their freshly bought car, you can choose to buy from a reputable car dealer who offers pre-inspected vehicles with warranties, and easy payment plans, and excellent after sales service – all of these ensure that your vehicle can legally be sold, is in good condition and offers you recourse in the event that you need it. One such credible car dealer that we recommend is KAP Motors. You can buy pre-inspected Nissan used cars with 100% warranty from them. In case you choose to opt for buying used cars, do check them out. They have branches in Brighton & Folkestone. We assure you that you won’t regret it.

A final reason to opt for buying used cars in 2021 is brought home by the reality of the recent coronavirus pandemic that entirely decimated some industries – airlines and travel companies will take years to recover, in some cases – leaving people out of work and living on ever dwindling savings while trying to find work in an oversaturated workplace. For many, the crisis has been a salutary lesson in financial management, proving that even the best paying, most secure seeming job is subject to the vagaries of nature.

Becoming more thrifty and making savings on daily expenses is only sensible, and opting for a second-hand car can help you with that – reducing insurance policies, the various taxes, as mentioned above, and your general running costs (everything from new tyres to spare parts tends to be cheaper for older models than for new ones). In what other areas of your life can you make similar changes in order to live more sustainably and economically? And, given the chance, will you? Why not give it a try and see how you go?

Disclosure – This is a sponsored guest post.