Top Benefits of Getting Last Year's Car Model

When many people think of their next vehicle, they think that the latest is the greatest. While this might be true in some cases, there is something to be said for getting a car model that's already spent some time sitting on the lot. 

If you're willing to buy last year's car model, you could realize multiple benefits that will make it more advantageous than buying a vehicle from the current model year. To see if this is the right choice for you, here are a few of the benefits you can expect to receive.

No Unexpected Issues

When a new vehicle is released on the market, it has already been thoroughly tested to try and work out any possible issues. However, once that vehicle is driven by thousands of people, unexpected issues inevitably make themselves known and can be corrected through recalls and updates to the model design. 

If you buy last year's car model, though, most of those issues will have already been corrected, ensuring that your ownership experience is relatively trouble-free.

Lower Price

The sticker shock that accompanies a new vehicle can be significant. This is especially true when you realize that many car models will lose a substantial portion of their value after the first year. 



However, pre-owned cars and year-old new car models will already be largely depreciated, meaning you can potentially save thousands of dollars. Plus, since the value of the vehicle is lower, the associated property taxes will be lower, as well.

Easier to Locate Parts

Some parts, such as brake pads, should never be purchased used. However, other parts are perfectly fine to buy used in order to perform your own repairs. By purchasing last year's car model, you give time for the used part market to develop as other vehicles from the same model year end up in junkyards after accidents. 

Plus, there will be more do-it-yourself guides for replacing the parts yourself if you wait a year before purchasing a new car.

Lower Insurance Rates

One cost that can be exceptionally high when you purchase a new car is the cost of insurance. Since new vehicles tend to be more expensive to repair than older cars, the cost of insuring them is higher, as well. Also, since the actuaries at the insurance companies have had a longer time to calculate the risk associated with a particular vehicle, your insurance rates are less likely to fluctuate in the years ahead.

Another great benefit of buying a year-old car model is that there are still plenty of options to choose from. Though the selection will be more limited than it would be for the current model year, there are still lots of different colors, accessories, and body styles to consider. This gives you a new-car shopping experience while providing the benefits listed above.

6 Things You Must Check When Buying a Used Car

Even though there is something oddly satisfying in knowing that you are the car’s first owner, in most cases, this is simply not worth the price. As soon as you take the car out of the salon, it can no longer be branded as new, which makes its price deteriorate drastically. 

Just a few years later (3-6) the car will be worth only half of its original price, while by the time it is 10 years old it will cost only 20 percent of this amount. Sure, a decade is not a short time-span, but a high-quality car can be equally as functional even 15 years after it was made. 

Nonetheless, there are some things you simply must check before buying a used car and here are six of them.

1. Consult Your Budget

Every once in a while, you will encounter an offer you simply won’t be able to say no to. Imagine a scenario where you get an insanely low offer for a car you always dreamed of having. 

On one hand, you can’t put a price tag on a dream, but at the same time, the amount may still be too much for your budget. Sure, sometimes undergoing a bit of austerity is worth it if it means getting what you always wanted, but sometimes it will still be too much for your budget in the long-run.

2. Run the Report History

The first thing you want to do before closing a purchase is check vehicle’s history report. This is a fairly easy thing to do and it reveals to you whether or not the car has been in any accidents or if it was subjected to things like flood damage. 

In order to do this, however, you will have to find its identification number. Another thing you can learn this way is if the odometer has been rolled back in order to boost the price.

3. Check It out in Person

With the right angle, lens, light and a bit of work on a Photoshop, any car can look amazing. In person, it is much harder to hide some of the vehicle’s obvious flaws. 

Even as a layman you will be able to clearly see rust and tear marks, but it is usually much more efficient to bring a mechanic from a trusted auto service to do an inspection. 

No camouflage methods will be able to trick a professional and although they work for a fee, it is a small price to pay when compared to buying a faulty car.

4. Talk to the Owner

Another thing you want to do when buying a used car is speak to the owner in person. Sure, fabricating certain facts and concealing truths is easy to do on paper (or on the internet), but something much harder to pull off in person. 

You need to start with some basic questions like were they the first owner of the vehicle and why are they selling it in the first place. While this may seem as something too basic to actually be effective, you would be surprised with the amount of honesty you may encounter.

5. Going for a test drive

Probably the most important step of them all is taking a car for a test drive. The car may look great on paper, but the way it behaves you are driving it is what really matters. 

While driving, make sure to drive as unorthodox as possible (of course, without putting yourself or others in danger while doing so). You need to try breaking, turning sharply and even drifting a bit. 

For safety reasons, it would be best to go someplace remote, without a lot of traffic.

6. Transferable Warranty Can Be a Deal-Breaker

Last, but in no way least important, in some situations, the vehicle you are intending to buy is still covered by a warranty. 

If that is the case, you will probably have the option of transferring it to yourself. In this way, you will be able to save a small fortune on future repairs.

In Conclusion

The best thing about the above mentioned six tips is that they can be all performed in a matter of minutes and hours, rather than days. 

Seeing how there are not many expenses greater than vehicle purchase, any effort invested in protecting your finances is always more than worth it.

Author bio: Steven Clarke is a business consultant/web entrepreneur, also passionate about cars. In his spare time he likes to write about his ideas and share them with the world. Steven is a regular contributor to several websites.