Before You Buy

Luxury Cars

The Dalai Lama says that if you have fame and money, you will have plenty of friends. However, he adds, your friends will be in love with your fame and money, and when these go, so will they. Therefore, if you’re going to try to impress people with your new luxury car, make sure you’re going to be able to keep up the payments. Otherwise, settle for a less glamorous form of transport.

Types of pickup truck

Depreciation in Australia

THE AVERAGE NEW CAR in Australia loses about 15–17% per year for the first three years. Then the depreciation eases off to a more manageable level of about 10% per annum, assuming you drive around 15,000 kilometres per year.
That’s why the smart car buyer will choose a car that’s already a year or two old: that way, the depreciation monster will have already taken its biggest bite, but there will still be some new-car guarantee left.

The Five Minute Car Check (PDF)

The 5 Minute Car Check

There’s no check like a pro check. The only way to really evaluate a car is to take it to a professional motor mechanic. It’s his or her profession, it took five or more years to learn, and you can’t possibly hope to do as thorough a job.

However, you can filter out the really bad vehicles long before you take the car to your mechanic. This way you can avoid paying for endless costly vehicle checks on a succession of cars that prove to be unsatisfactory. Checking out a car for yourself is also a great self-confidence booster.

European Cars

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