Which used cars are the best value for money?

By Chad Lückhoff

Value. It's a strange proposition that differs from person to person. What I deem value may not translate into value for someone else, reminding me of the old adage, “One man's trash is another man's treasure.”. As such, it's hard to know what you would deem valuable and what constitutes good value in your books. While one person may find good value in a 4-door sedan, this could prove less than valuable to the person who really needs a double-cab bakkie, or an SUV.

Being able to determine value when it comes to a used car isn't all that hard. There are a few factors to consider and with a little internet research, you should be able to deduce what is good and what is bad value.

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The brand most certainly plays a large part in the perceived value of a vehicle. Some manufacturers have better cars than others, as any reliability study will show. This is usually measured in faults per 100 vehicles. With that said, not all models in a manufacturers range may be as reliable as the rest.

Dealer Network

An important factor to consider that is related to the first point, is the extent of the dealer network. Is there a dealership in your town that can service and supply parts for the car you are considering? There's not much worse than finding out that the part you need to get the car back on the road is impossible to find because that one dealer closed down 20 years ago. This is also tied into the next point.

Popularity

Popularity is a double edged sword. While it may mean that the market is flooded with that hatchback you have your eye on and the prices will all be competitive, the demand for that model may make it a theft or hijack risk. How will that affect the value in your eyes? How high to you regard safety?

On the plus side, a popular model will usually mean that spares are readily available and that service items won't cost the earth come service time. This adds to the long-term value of a vehicle. 

Age

As soon as a vehicle is older than 8 years, acquiring finance for that vehicle becomes harder and that means that the market value of the car will drop. You may be forced into a cash purchase if the vehicle is older than 10 years old.

Mileage

The distance a car has covered will often give you some indication of how hard it has lived. The average South African car covers 30 000km in a year, so do the math: A 4-year old car with 80 000km on the odometer represents below-average usage, where the average for that age would most likely be 120 000km. The inverse applies; a 4-year old car with 200 000km may be going cheap, but that's a lot of mileage for its age.

Condition 

The mileage is more often than not linked to the condition of the vehicle with the car showing signs of its mileage and usage. Should the car be in a surprisingly good condition for the apparent high mileage, you will need to ask yourself a few questions. Has this car been worked on and refurbished? Is it a rebuild? Or is it just a long distance car with minimal stop-start driving (which adds to the wear and tear)?

This can often be gauged by looking at the service records. Frequent servicing or more than one service in a year may indicate that the car has done a lot of mileage in a short time. While the first owner may have used it on weekends, the second owner may have done long distances on a regular basis. This should set off some alarm bells.

Conclusion

The best value for your money will be the car that is cost effective to run, reliable and in a good condition. Should you be able to pick it up for less than most other, similar models of that year, mileage and condition, then you have a car that is good value for money.

Here are some of our favourites to look for:

Renault Sandero

Toyota Etios

Volkswagen Polo Vivo

Volkswagen Polo

Toyota Auris

Hyundai Accent

Mazda 3

Mazda CX-3

Mazda CX-5

Nissan Qashqai

Honda CRV

Toyota Fortuner

BMW 3 Series

Honda Accord