Cars are a symbol of power. Everyone has heard of the celebrities with massive collections of expensive cars, or custom built garages to accommodate their cars in the heart of an expensive city like New York. A better option could be cheap cars for some. It's doesn't have to be a clunker just because it doesn't cost a lot. Less expensive can still be functional, and even fun.
Buy a used car if you want to save some cash. Even luxury models are much less expensive when purchased second hand. These are a much less expensive top model cars, at least when compared to the new versions. A new term has emerged over the last decade, pre-owned ? to denote used cars that are of high quality. Some people who always bought new have crossed over into pre-owned. Think about luxury vehicles. A Mercedes or Lexus is so well built that even 10 year old cars can still be in excellent condition. Many people always buy late model used cars instead of new ones.This was immortalized in Driving Miss Daisy when the driver bought Miss Daisy's old cars.
Some new cars are pretty inexpensive. The Hyundai Elantra is a quality car under $12,000. A car like the Honda Civic weighs in at about $15,000 for one of the best engineered cars in the world. That's a good car that gets great mileage and lasts forever. These cars are also much cheaper to maintain than luxury cars that often require more expensive parts and even premium grades of gas.
Another area to look is cheaper, if not really cheap, luxury cars. Audi makes luxury cars that compete with Mercedes and Lexus, but generally at the lower end of the price spread for like models. Nobody beats Audi as far as engineering. A less expensive luxury sports car is the Audi TT.
Of course some people want cheap, cheaper, cheapest. They turn to the clunker, the hooptie, the ancient model car that was probably old when their parents first bought a car. Teens often buy this style of car. This type of car is good practice for a life of car care, and it gets the job done. But watch out, the age old adage ?You get what you pay for? applies to cheap cars too. It may not seem like such a deal when it won't start on a cold winter morning.
For a large part of my time in the motor trade my job was to buy cars at 'trade' prices, that we would then stick on the forecourt with sometimes as little as 1,000 on top of the price I paid, and occasionally as much as 10,000!
There isn't really a bad time to buy a car, you can always get a deal to some degree - but there is definitely a good time, In the last week of March, June, September and December manufacturers are under pressure to register cars to try to become the best seller in their sector, so they give extra discount to the dealers (often double their normal levels), who will pass it on to you!
You can also cash in on the salesman's ego to get a bargain. One of their 'perks' is a company car, which is often a higher spec than standard. Most salesmen wants the latest 'plate, but they have to sell their car first, so when the new plate is out, or the model changes, they'' often sell their own car for little or no profit just to change their own car.
Consider buying a pre-registered car. These are cars that have been registered in someone else's name, either a dealer or a leasing company, in order to get extra discount. You would appear as the second owner, but the car is brand new with delivery mileage, and you will have saved hundreds - maybe even more - into the bargain.
Using the dealers own finance company is also a way of saving money when you're buying a car. Most manufacturers have their own finance company that they either own outright or have a partnership with a bank. Their rates are priced to make a car look attractive to you, and they will almost always be cheaper than the bank - all you have to do is ask for their best rate.
Few people realise that dealers actually need your part exchange vehicle, because if everyone came in without a car - they wouldn't have any used cars to sell. Just before you take your car to a dealer, invest 10 in one of these hand car washes that will also hoover your car out and clean the dashboard. Stick an air freshener in too, and you'll be presenting you're car as 'ready to sell' and the price that you'll be offered will certainly be higher than normal. Few people ever think of cleaning their car before they ask for a price, but those that do always get top money!
Buying a late model, low mileage car can half the list price of many cars. Think about this; if a new Mondeo has a list price of 18,000, and you can get one that's six months old with 4,500 miles on the clock for half the price, would you buy it? Those cars are out there today, you just have to look. They have usually been owned by car rental companies who get huge discount from new, and then make their profit not by renting them out, but when they sell them on. They also know that they have to be well looked after to get the best price, so you can be sure that you're buying a bargain that will still have more than two years of manufacturers warranty left.
Both Jim Preston & Mark Stephens are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Jim Preston has sinced written about articles on various topics from The Internet, Used Car. Jim Preston has been a specialist on cheap cars for the last eight years. If you want plenty of cool updated informations about it, please visit: