When a vehicle is brand new, life is sweet; it looks nice, performs well and it does its job day after day. But later on, maintenance issues start to kick in, and your car no longer looks and feels quite as new. Is it time to trade it in? Well, it’s a judgement call that varies from person to person. So, is it time for you to consider trading in your vehicle? Easthillschevrolet.com points out some things to consider:
The vehicle fitting your life– Do you now have family members you didn’t have five years ago; can all family members comfortably fit into the car? Have you gotten into racing and want a car that fits the hobby? Does your fuel tank hold enough to make it so you don’t have to fill up on a regular basis (ie if you travel an hour to your job every day now when you only used to commute ten miles)?
Maintenance issues – Throughout the ownership of a car, there will always be maintenance problems to attend to, and the costs can add up after a bit of time. These are things such as oil changes, new tires, timing belts, etc. It’s a necessary part of owning a car and is unavoidable. As a vehicle gets a few hundred thousand miles on it, though, “non-maintenance” items begin to fail. These are things such as steering racks, alternators, ball joints, etc. If/when these more expensive things start to fail it’s natural to wonder if it is time to trade in. Here’s one analysis: If your monthly repair bills are more than the cost of a month’s new-car payment, that is a hint to considering a trade-in. We also recommend spending no more than 8% of your monthly income on vehicle expenses.
Safer drives – Older cars lack a lot of the safety elements that new cars have. Structural things like more muscular body designs and better materials may be standard features now in a car. Electronic items like blind-spot monitoring, collision avoidance, and other new technological features will make a car safer also. If you are safety conscious (perhaps you have children?) then these features alone may influence your course of action.
Cool factors – In the past ten years, really cool features such as GPS, Bluetooth connectivity, heated and cooled seats, etc. —have become available for cars. These sort of creature comforts are just neat to have and this is a deciding feature for a lot of prospective owners.
Efficiency – There is a plethora of new technology now designed to make a vehicle go far on a gallon of fuel. Direct injection, variable valve control, cylinder deactivation, advanced transmissions, are just a few of technologies that are available to us now. Yes, gasoline doesn’t cost much now but that could be different in the future. If you have a nice new car that provides excellent MPG, you are future proofed for any changes. And lets not disregard how saving energy is good for the the earth as well. Ultimately the decision is yours as to what to do, but we hope this article has helped you out!
Article Courtesy of: East Hill Chevrolet
