Thursday, June 14, 2012

Tips for Maximizing Your Car Resale Value

I believe everyone would agree that it's important to get as much money as you can when you sell your car. There are various ways you can improve the resale value of your automobile and one of these methods is to follow certain rules to keep the car in tip top shape.
Drive It Like You Are Selling It
This first tip may be difficult to swallow for some drivers but it's a good idea to drive your car with a mindset of selling it at some point in the future.
What do I mean by this?
Well if you drive your car to the limits, accelerating as much as possible, braking like a mad man and generally over doing things then this will wear down almost every part in your vehicle. All this will usually reduce the value when you sell it. So driving like you're selling it mean driving sensibly, keeping in mind that the better you drive it, the more money you'll make later on.
Become a Rust Buster
Become super vigilant when it comes to rust as when rust takes a foothold in your car it can do a lot of costly damage, as well as reduce the resale value. Even if you spot a tiny bit of surface rust, get a fine wire brush to clear away the rust, apply some anti-rust liquid then re-paint. Never put this off 'until next time' because many people will just keep putting off the repair job until it gets so bad that their vehicle won't pass a routine car safety checkup. If you own an expensive car or an old sports car for example, you might be better off sending it to a professional when you find rust problems, as doing it yourself may not have desirable results.
Invest in a Garage
This tip might be difficult for some people to use but try to keep your car in a garage or at least under some other form of cover. Even if your house doesn't have a garage, you might be surprised to find a number of garage rentals near where you live. Keeping it under cover will help keep the elements off the car, extending the life and therefore improve the sell value. This is especially true in very cold or hot climates. For cold and wet climates storing the vehicle outside can lead to rust and other problems. For hot and sunny climates it can cause the interior, such as the seats, to fade in color.

1 comment: