How much sedan can I buy for R16 000 a month?

By Stuart Johnston

There has lots of talk in the media recently about “the sedan being dead”. That the traditional three-box format of cars that we have known for many decades is under threat by the ever-growing sales enjoyed in certain markets by SUVs.

But the fact remains that sedans for many people make good sense. They are lighter on fuel than SUVs, they are faster, more fuel-efficient, and in some respects, believe it or not, they are safer than SUVs. Sedans are designed to be lower to the ground than SUVs, and they are also lighter.

Sedans are more wieldy

This means that dynamically they are more wieldy than SUVs, which is a factor when a sudden lane-change is called for to avoid a collision. Their comparative lightness means they stop quicker too.

Plus, for an enthusiastic driver, they are simply more fun to drive, for many of the reasons detailed above. They react quickly to steering inputs and they can be cornered faster than SUVs. Plus, in many people’s eyes, they are just plain sexy, especially when the top premium-level models are under consideration.

Oh, and they are also a lot easier to park than a bulky SUV.

When it comes to premium-level sedans, the fact remains that in the South African market a monthly repayment figure of R16 000 a month, gives you a whole bunch of options. And this in itself indicates that there is plenty of life left in the sedan concept.

What is my purchase price ceiling on a R16 000 repayment budget?

 For comparative purposes, AutoTrader’s standard repayment template for this sort of purchasing advice article assumes a 10% deposit on the purchase price, a repayment period of 60 months, and an interest rate on the financed amount of 12%.

Customers with lengthy blemish-free credit records and a healthy income will be able to negotiate an interest rate  closer to the current prime interest rate of 10%  but for most buyers, a rate of 12% interest on the financed amount is a good working average.

The purchase price limit using  this method is R795 000

As usual, we employ WesBank’s repayment calculator (easily available on-line) to work out the ceiling purchase price for sedans at a repayment of R16 000 a month. Using our standard repayment parameters ( as detailed above), the ceiling price for a repayment of R16 000 a month is a list price of just over R795 000. The 10% deposit works out at R79 500. These calculations are made without factoring in any residual (balloon) payment at the end of the finance period.

You are into a rich vein of premium sedan quality at R16 000 a month

The car right on the limit of our R16 000 a month budget is the Volvo S60 T6 AWD Polestar model, which is a very quick car with 270 kW at its disposal, and a 0-100 km/h time claimed at 4,9 seconds! Stylish and built with extreme quality, it epitomises the type of car at your disposal at this budget limit.

All the major premium sedan players are pretty much represented in this segment of the market. Of course, you aren’t under an obligation to spend the full amount of your R16 000 monthly budget, and we have pegged the likely lower-end cut-off to our mini-survey at the R600 000 purchase price level. Also, keep in mind that any car bought under a finance scheme is required by law to be fully insured, and this can be costly at this price level.

Many manufacturers have two ranges in this price bracket

Volvo is also represented in this grouping by the more sophisticated and fresher S90 model, a car that has dramatic styling. The model that caught our eye, at R733 300 is the S90 D4 Momentum, the entry-level model in this range. This pretty much holds true throughout this price grouping, where you can choose a less-prestigious model line in a top spec version, or a more prestigious (and usually larger in size) sedan with a more modest trim level.

In this shop-around, we have also concentrated on automatic transmission models only. An automatic transmission is in keeping with this level of car, but bear In mind that in the sportier models, some of them are also offered in manual form, and usually at a marginally reduced retail price.

As it is we have models represented here by Subaru, BMW, Audi, Mercedes-Benz, Alfa Romeo, Jaguar and Lexus. That pretty much reads like a who’s-who in the prestige sedan field, as it rightly should for this kind of money.

Consider the used model option

Of course,  there is always the option of buying a used model with significant price benefits, and  this is where AutoTrader plays  such a huge role in South African mobility.  We suggest that once you have made your choice on a new model, you key in those model details on our used car search engine, where currently over 70 000 used vehicles are listed. And many of those are prestige sedans!

Even if you are buying new, it is worth checking up on the used-car market

Of course, if you are buying new, if you are a wise buyer you will also want to check up on the re-sale prices achieved by used examples of the cars on your short-list. You might also want to check up on the sales figures achieved by your chosen models by checking on the latest NAAMSA figures. The more popular your choice, the easier it will be to sell it on to a used buyer or dealer, when the time comes to trade it in.

These are your  premium-model sedan options at R16 000 a month or less

We have opted for a mix of sizes and trim levels within this budget, and stuck to the automatic models on offer. Keep in mind that we haven’t included coupes, convertibles or cramped sporty-type cars in this mix, as we don’t feel they fit the profile of what most people would consider a sedan, even though many of them are of what one would consider to be a three-box design.

Subaru Legacy 3.6 R-SES Premium                                                                                       R625 000

Audi S3 Sedan Quattro                                                                                                                R662 000

BMW 330i                                                                                                                                          R664 139

Alfa Romeo Giulia 2.0T Super                                                                                                 R672 900

Mercedes-Benz C300                                                                                                                    R695 849

Volvo S90 D4 Momentum                                                                                                        R733 300

BMW 330d                                                                                                                                         R737 039

Audi A6 2.0 TDI SE                                                                                                                          R743 000

Lexus IS 350 F-Sport                                                                                                                     R753 300

Jaguar XE 25t Portfolio                                                                                                               R753 736

BMW 520i                                                                                                                                          R772 557

Mercedes-Benz E220d                                                                                                                 R773 425

Jaguar XF 20d Prestige                                                                                                                R780 400

Volvo  S60 T6 AWD Polestar                                                                                                    R795 000