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Six guidelines for buying a car

Getting a friend’s opinion when buying a car will help you come to a fair conclusion. However, you do not need to be stingy when buying a car because at times, cheap turns out to be expensive. PHOTO by Eddie Chicco
What you need to know:
People buy cars for different reasons. For some, it is to prove that they have money. For others, it is to make their dreams come true while for others, it is just to own a car. However, Mustafa Ziraba explains if these should be the reasons why you should buy a car.
Many times people have come to me asking whether or not they should buy a particular car. Fortunately or unfortunately, I have always done the usual rundown of factors they should consider including their primary use of the car, budget and resale value among others. However, through all this I have realised the one thing that is always evident albeit taking the back seat in this kind of conversation, the X factor or call it emotion.
We all have various reasons why we buy cars. For some it is simply for the practical reasons to move the family around. For others, a car is indeed a status symbol. Just like when you meet the top brass in any corporate company wearing that Omega watch or arriving in a top of the line Mercedes, image counts and does say a lot, well, not so much if it is an old car.
Nevertheless, many people buy cars without any preconceived logical thought process as to why they have arrived at that car but simply because they just like the car aesthetics or simply the brand regardless. Sometimes it is just a hot deal or the car’s availability is waning. I will tell you, various car brands have different emotional links, for instance, some brands are perceived to be practical, others are perceived to be upmarket, others are perceived to be luxurious and unfortunately, some garner the wrong perceptions like the so called “Japanese Benz”, the Toyota Progres, the list goes on and on. But for what it is, the Progres is a Japanese Domestic Market car and was never made with the aim of going for the Mercedes particularly the C class.
Besides, even someone who does not care one bit about cars will still have some very firm likes and dislikes. For example, they may prefer a Nissan to Toyota or a bright coloured car to a neutral or regular coloured. And some people shall undoubtedly and out-rightly question other people’s car choices.
Fact is, before you even walk into a bond or search online or even ask a friend, you have already got some opinions and preferences. Those preferences will be linked to a reasonable degree on how you will look and feel in your future car. That is all linked to emotions regardless of the commonsensical understanding that practicality, reliability, maintenance cost and resale value should be on top of your list.
1 Homework
Thing is when spending millions of shillings on a car, emotion should not rule the day. Becoming infatuated with a single model can blind you to alternative cars that may be better for your needs or make you skimp on thoroughly researching a car reliability, cost of maintenance, safety and resale value. You should focus on doing your homework, comparing different models and assessing your real wants and needs. There will be plenty of time for emotion after you have bought the car.
2 and 3 Family size and planning
People tend to stick with choices that do not question them emotionally.
For example, if you decide to trade in the large family friendly Noah for a high performance two door Mercedes CLK.
Then you have to live with the negative emotion that you are in some way risking your family’s practical conveyance to satisfy your own perhaps selfish urge for speed and youthful looks.
So the next time you are in the market for a car and are drooling over the sweet prices on different car websites, beware that a lot of the time it is your heart rather than your head that is making the choices for you.
And that the car you drive is making an outwardly visible sign to other people about your own personality anyway.
You need to plan
I cannot fault anyone for buying a particular car because of a specific and most often a personal reason.
Emotion gets the best of all us from time to time, but with a little planning it is possible to make emotions work for you instead of against you.
4 Get help
First and foremost, it is easy to get carried away in the moment of car buying passion so an extra pair of eyes always helps. Sometimes if you cannot convince your friend it is the right car, perhaps it is just not. See cars invoke different emotions with different people.
When it is you buying the car, your logic is fairly distorted with pre-conceived desires and wants that might not follow the rational expectations and practical uses of the car at that particular point in time. This is where your car friend comes in. This individual shall almost always see the car for what it really is, why it might or might not be a good choice for you.
5 Do not be stingy when buying
Spend enough money. People who get into trouble usually are those who are parallel with the saying that there is nothing more expensive than a cheap used luxury car. Someone parting with a cool BMW isn’t doing it out of charity you know. Here is what I am going for, do not cheap out of a low mileage Range Rover for one approaching 150,000 kilometres simply because it is cheaper.
While instinctively we are all inclined to saving some shillings in the used car market, it is always better to pay a little more for a car that will not become a repair nightmare a few months later. However, know your budget; just do not spend too much on any car whose primary purpose is to move you from point A to B, ultimately.
Make a list of potential cars within your set budget and focus on those while researching the usual stuff like reliability and resale value ,among others.
6 Durability of the car
Always think about the life span. A car purchase based largely on emotion goes way of a fad that fades away within a short time and you start dealing with the reality, a fact proven through Matovu Edrisa of Kampala Modernity who is an importer and transporter of luxury cars or if I may say, cars of desire.
Matovu says many of his clients when not prepared get shocked at just how a relatively low priced car becomes tenfold expensing during ownership.
Thing is if you are the kind who replaces their car every six months then by all means, you are feeling at that point rule, but if you are in for the long haul, other reasons beyond just what you feel make lots of sense. Last but not least, be willing to walk away from a deal in whatever form.
Prepare ahead of time and do not let your emotions get over your head.
Your emotions around things like price where you are asked to pay instant cash for a car or availability of the car among others.
Again, I cannot criticise somebody for buying a particular car for any reason, personal or practical, whatever it might be.
We all have various wants in a car, for instance I personally would not want a car that has a small engine under the hood.
I would like to drive a car with unlimited power on demand across all the gear ranges.
Now the kind of car with such specs shall have no less than six cylinders and a minimum of 2.5 Litre engine, specs that might just not go well with the ever fuel conscious driving population.
So what is my reason, well, for the typical journeys I make, savings from smaller engines are mundane and shrink in comparison to the benefits of a large engine.
People buy cars for all kinds of reasons, and whatever reason, it is okay as long as one totally understands what they are getting into and can live with it.
Common mistakes when buying cars
• Not doing your homework. The Internet has democratized the car-buying process. Now, anyone can get access to facts and figures about vehicles, features, pricing and financing. There’s no reason to step foot in a dealership without having first researched vehicles and their competitors.
• Choosing the wrong car for your needs. With all of the choices available on the dealer’s lot, you have to have a very good idea of how you need to use your car so that you can find a car that suits your needs. How often will you really carry seven passengers in that big SUV? Don’t saddle yourself with a car that only suits occasional needs -- you’ll do better matching your general needs, and renting a vehicle for the special occasions, like family road trips.
• Skipping on the test drive. Many car buyers fail to spend enough time behind the wheel to really get familiar with a vehicle’s performance and features. A thorough test drive should include a wide range of conditions, including bumpy back streets and smooth highways. The time to discover that your car is noisy and harsh at 65 miles per hour is not after you’ve already taken delivery.
• Buying new when used would do. Every potential new car buyer should consider used vehicles before buying. Certified Pre-owned programs by many of the manufacturers have raised the bar for used cars. Most include a detailed vehicle inspection and refreshing, along with an extension of the new car powertrain warranty that might run up to 7 years/100,000 miles. Used car financing is cheaper than ever before – in many cases competitive with new car financing.
• Rushing to buy. Cars are commodities, and there will always be another one coming down the road. This much is certain. So don’t rush into the purchasing decision. Take your time, even if it means that you have to rent a car for a few weeks in order to bridge the gap between your old car and your new one. Car dealers love buyers who are in a hurry -- it shifts the negotiating leverage toward the dealer because the buyer is much less likely to walk away without making a deal.
• Blowing the budget. You have done your research. You’ve arranged for financing. You’ve assessed your needs. Then, you go to the dealership and get talked into a car that costs way more than you’ve budgeted for. Stick to your budget, make sure that you can afford the car that you’re buying, and avoid buyer’s remorse.
• Trading in your old car. This is a big mistake that will always cost you money. Even if you owe money on your old car, you’ll do better selling it on your own, or even selling it to a dealer, if you don’t get involved in the trade-in process. Trading in your old car gives the dealer one more opportunity to profit on your convenience, and a chance to muddy the waters on the details of your new car purchase.
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