How to get the best resale on your old SUV
It is something that everyone must have noticed. The price of new automobiles is increasing day by day (i.e. if you take Indian car manufacturers like Mahindra and Tata out of the equation). I am telling you this because we have a very common tendency to trade our cars in 3-4 years for another. We do this because we worry that the resale value will further depreciate as the car gets older. I have promised myself that I wouldn’t trade my Scorpio until the wheels fall of. Any visitor looking at my car will never be able to guess that the car is 3 years old. It is still in prime condition.
Here I will tell you tips that will help you maintain your SUV just like I do. I guarantee you if you follow these tips religiously, you will get a better deal when you sell your vehicle. Here are a few ideas to get you started. Some will cost you moolah while the others won’t.
The most important thing for a car is their external appearance as that forms the first impressions; please never neglect the finish of your car. Wash your vehicle regularly and don’t let bird poop or road tar stay on your vehicle. It may seem harmless but eventually it will corrode your paint. If you stay near the coast you would want to dry clean your vehicle often to remove the salt that settles on the surface which causes rusting. Most modern car accessory stores have variety of protectant. Use this to protect the finish of your car. My vote would go to a PTFE based product. PTFE is the same thing which is applied on Teflon frying pans. My advice is that you don’t want wax on your car. Wax is a no good product which can only be used for candles. It is used to melt under heat, I am sure I wouldn’t want that for my SUV especially in India where it is always hot.
When you are not driving, try parking in a garage or under some kind of shade. If none of that is available buy yourself water and heat repellant cover. I have witnessed so many vehicles getting ruined because it was left naked under the sun and the paint got oxidized. Dark colors are more susceptible, especially red.
One of the things that can be classified under common sense is “regular maintenance”. Changing oil, engine tune-ups and things like circuit check and fan belt replacement are things which will help you run the extra mile. Of course you know all of the things I said but the problem is that we don’t act upon it. Really go out there and do it continuously for 3 months to see the difference.
It’s easy to for a second buyer to tell if the vehicles owner actually cared about his car. Sometimes the buyer pays more than the value of the car if he feels that the car has been handled with extreme care. There are many more things you can do to take good care of your vehicle but let’s take things one at a time.
Here I will tell you tips that will help you maintain your SUV just like I do. I guarantee you if you follow these tips religiously, you will get a better deal when you sell your vehicle. Here are a few ideas to get you started. Some will cost you moolah while the others won’t.
The most important thing for a car is their external appearance as that forms the first impressions; please never neglect the finish of your car. Wash your vehicle regularly and don’t let bird poop or road tar stay on your vehicle. It may seem harmless but eventually it will corrode your paint. If you stay near the coast you would want to dry clean your vehicle often to remove the salt that settles on the surface which causes rusting. Most modern car accessory stores have variety of protectant. Use this to protect the finish of your car. My vote would go to a PTFE based product. PTFE is the same thing which is applied on Teflon frying pans. My advice is that you don’t want wax on your car. Wax is a no good product which can only be used for candles. It is used to melt under heat, I am sure I wouldn’t want that for my SUV especially in India where it is always hot.
When you are not driving, try parking in a garage or under some kind of shade. If none of that is available buy yourself water and heat repellant cover. I have witnessed so many vehicles getting ruined because it was left naked under the sun and the paint got oxidized. Dark colors are more susceptible, especially red.
One of the things that can be classified under common sense is “regular maintenance”. Changing oil, engine tune-ups and things like circuit check and fan belt replacement are things which will help you run the extra mile. Of course you know all of the things I said but the problem is that we don’t act upon it. Really go out there and do it continuously for 3 months to see the difference.
It’s easy to for a second buyer to tell if the vehicles owner actually cared about his car. Sometimes the buyer pays more than the value of the car if he feels that the car has been handled with extreme care. There are many more things you can do to take good care of your vehicle but let’s take things one at a time.