New Car Vs. Used Cars - Pros and Cons

When buying a car, you usually have two choices: a used car or a new car. Since buying a vehicle is one of the most important investments you would make in your life, it is necessary that you consider everything carefully before making a decision. Nevertheless, not all of you have an insight into what is good and what is not so good about a used car and a new car and have difficulty in deciding which one to buy. This article is going to provide you with some advantages and disadvantages of both used and new automobiles. Read on to discover.

Purchasing a new car

Pros

1. The feeling of the first owner

Needless to say, when you buy a new car, you will feel that you are its first owner. With the new car smell, you feel really happy when seeing the car good condition without faults and repairs, wear and tear.

2. Cutting-edge technologies

Today, technologies are becoming more and more advanced every day. What was new today may be old tomorrow. New cars are always equipped with new gadgets and you will never have to be afraid of having problems with outdated equipment.

A new car will offer you the most advanced technologies 

3. Less maintenance expense

The maintenance costs may vary, depending upon the manufacturer, but for new vehicles, you will have to pay almost no costs for their maintenance. Most car brands now provide their customers with warranties up to three years or even more in case there is any problem with your car. Meanwhile, a used car requires maintenance right after you have bought it. Roughly calculating, the monthly average maintenance cost for a used hatchback can be between Rs 2,500 and Rs 5,000. For a used mid-sized sedan, the figure can be from Rs 4, 500 to Rs 8,500.

4. Safety

In India, safety is always a problem that causes headaches to not only the carmakers but also the customers.  To resolve this problem, auto manufacturers are also making every endeavor to make their products safer. With the new safety regulations which will take effect from 2019, features like dual front airbags and ABS with EBD are being made standard. A new car which conforms to the new rules and has all the well-functioning equipment will leave you with no worry about safety.

5. Better fuel efficiency

With the advent of new technologies and the development of R&D era, new cars offer better fuel efficiency. For instance, an all-new petrol hatchback can deliver a mileage of as much as 20kmpl and a diesel one can return up to 25kmpl. Several years ago, a petrol-powered hatchback can only deliver 13 – 15kmpl and a diesel one only records a mileage of 15-18kmpl. Not to mention the lower CO2 emissions from new cars.

Thanks to the latest technologies, now, cars have better mileage than before

6. Financing

It is usually easier for you to borrow money from banks and other finance companies at good rates when you buy new cars, thanks to their greater value and fewer worries about depreciation.

Cons

1. Higher Cost

It is one of the most major worries of people who are considering buying a new car. You have to pay through the nose if you want to buy a new car with full payments.

2. Depreciation

Regardless of your car is old or new the time you bought it, the moment you start driving it on the road, it begins losing in value. Therefore, after a few years, if your car is still in good conditions, it will worth only roughly 40% of its original value. To make the matters worse, a car usually loses the most of its value in the first two or three years.

Purchasing a used car

Pros

1. Lower Cost

This is the clearest thing that sets buying a new car and a used car apart.  For the same car, of the same model and the same variant, buying a used car would help you save a large amount of money in comparison with a new car. Likewise, with the money you have to pay for a new car, you can get a used car in a higher segment. For example, now, you will have to pay from Rs 5.2 lakh to Rs 8 lakh for a Hyundai i20 petrol, which is enough to own 2007 Honda Civic, a 2008 Mahindra Xylo, or 2009 Volkswagen Jetta.

2. Less Depreciation

This pro only appears when you have decided to sell your car. A used car usually has lower depreciation in value than a new car since the depreciation usually transpires in the first two or three years of the car’s lifecycle.

Cons

1. Old Feeling

Despite all the benefits you can derive from a used car, after all, the car is still a second-hand vehicle. It has been used by some other people before, which results in the fact that the design, the technologies will also be outdated. You can never enjoy the feeling of the first owner with a used car.

2. High maintenance expenses

At first, the introductory price of a used car may be much lower than a new one. However, a used car has experienced has experienced wear and tear during years of usage, which means that you will have to invest more time and money to take care of it than a new one.

A used car usually has a higher maintenance cost than a new car

By now, have you determined which one is the best option for yourself? If the answer is not, don’t worry since our advice right from the beginning of the article is that you should consider everything carefully before making the final decision. Regardless of what your decision might be, you should be able to completely pay for your car in three years; otherwise, you run the risk of never managing to afford it. You should also research in advance to make sure that the car you choose receive positive reviews. If you are a novice in the automobile world, you should have a mechanic check the car for you, especially if it is a second-hand model.

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