At some point, you will be on the search for a new car. There are lots of different things to think about and consider when purchasing a new car. You need to think about who will be using the car, how many doors you need, auto or manual, what color you want and if you will get a petrol or hybrid one.
So let’s have a look at those important key options to think about before you make any decisions on which car to get.
New Or Used
Firstly you need to decide if you are going to purchase a new or used car. Both come with their own advantages and disadvantages so it is important to weigh up all your options.
New cars are obviously what everyone wants however, they can come with a hefty price tag attached to them. You can get a decent second-hand car for a fraction of the price of a new one. Another advantage of new cars is that they require less maintenance and there is less chance of them breaking down in the first three years. You always run the risk when purchasing a second-hand car of it breaking down on a regular basis depending on the car’s age.
New cars will more than likely be equipped with all the latest technology and will be much more wallet-friendly at the gas station. Old cars can often be referred to as gas guzzlers because that is exactly what they are, they take a lot of fuel when not covering a lot of mileage at all.
Another option to really think about is, how are you going to afford the car? Will you buy it outright or will you need finance options. Not a lot of second-hand car dealerships offer finance options as they are cheaper so the dealers assume customers will pay outright. New car sales offer payment plans to entice the buyers onto the forecourt. Before you commit to purchasing a new or used car on finance you have to be 100% sure you can afford all of the payments, usually between 3 and 5 years depending on how much you want to pay back each month. Be aware if you continuously miss payments then you will lose the car.
Safety
When you have a list of possible cars you wish to buy you should think about the safety features they offer. The good news is cars these days are the safest they have ever been with numerous airbags situated all through the car, in the front and in the back. New cars also have a brilliant crash prevention safety feature where it detects your speed and how close the nearest traffic is and if the car thinks you are going too fast it will alert you with a ping. This is to prevent you from crashing into a car in front or potentially a motorbike coming up the side of you.
It is always a good idea to check the safety rating of any car you think about buying. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) compiled a database of cars in their New Car Assessment Programme (NCAP) and rated them up to 5 stars. 1 star is the lowest and 5 stars is the highest. They get this information by performing crash tests with dummies of adults and children. They test impact from the front, impact from the side, and how well the car protects when it rolls in a crash.
Costs
Another aspect of owning a car you have to think long and hard about is the overall running and maintenance costs. How much will the fuel cost? Can you continue to afford it if the price rises?
Something that can push costs through the roof is insurance, the cost differs depending on your age, type of car, how many years of driving experience you have, whether you live in a high crime rate area, and where you keep the car when it is not in use.
To keep insurance costs low or if you are struggling to get a good rate that won’t cost you the earth then you should consider looking into an insurance company that uses a driver monitoring device. This is a little box that sits in your car and keeps track of different driving styles such as speed and braking. You can often view your driving score and improve where necessary. Remember to shop around when searching for insurance as different providers will have varying rates.
Something that a lot of car owners forget about is tires, they will need replacing throughout the car’s lifetime. This is a cost that is often overlooked as one that isn’t important. The cost of tires ranges massively as they go from basic tires all the way to top-of-the-range tires. Knowing when to change your tires is vital as driving on bare ones is unsafe and illegal once it gets to a certain tread depth. The legal minimum tread depth in most states is 2mm, this can be tested with a depth gauge or a coin.
Size
When thinking about a car, one of the first things that should come to mind is the size of car you need. There needs to be enough legroom for passengers and a big enough boot space for shopping. If you need a good quality, decent sized family car then take a look at some of these models, Dodge, Chrysler, Jeep, or Ram, or if you find that a bit of a mouthful you can shorten it to DCJR. Many dealers will have all of these cars in stock in showrooms or on the forecourt for you to go and have a look at. These make great family cars as they are very roomy and are made to keep all riders safe.
Test Drive
Finally, whichever car you decide to get it is vital that before you purchase it, you take it for a test drive. It is not recommended to buy a car online before taking it for a spin. This is so you can see how it handles the road, how it feels to drive, and how comfy it is. This is essential if you plan on making long journeys as nobody wants to get out of the car with a backache.
We hope this helps you on your journey to buying a new car and that you are one step closer to making those big important decisions.
