Follow our top tips to ensure you achieve the best sale price for your car....
Whether you're buying a used or a new car, there's one thing you can pretty much guarantee - it's going to fall in value. New cars are particularly bad, given the minute they are driven out of the showroom, they start to depreciate.
Unfortunately, there's no way of stopping this. But if you're ultimately aiming to sell on your car, don't despair because there are ways to boost its value - so you won't lose out by as much as you think you might. All you need to do is to follow these top 10 tips.
1) Choose the right colour
Believe it or not, having a more desirable car colour could add £200 to £500* onto the value of your car.
Unusual colours such as yellow, orange, or pink are generally regarded as less desirable in comparison to colours such as silver, black or grey. So when you're buying a car, make sure you choose the colour wisely.
2) Choose the right brand
Similarly, certain brands of car will lose their value more quickly than others. So if you want to know which car brands are the best at maintaining their value, according to our recent poll, make sure you check out my video: The best value cars.
3) Sort out those alloy wheels
Badly scratched or tarnished alloys wheels can take £50 to £100 per alloy off the car's value. So make sure you look after them - it may be worth getting them cleaned up if you're planning to sell your car in the near future.
4) Get your tyres checked
Balding tyres, or those near the minimum tread limit, are also likely to impact the value of the car - possibly by as much as £100 to £150 per tyre. So make sure you regularly check the tread. The legal minimum tread is 1.6mm, although the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents recommends that worn tyres are replaced well before this level is reached - ideally when they reach 3mm.
It's also a good idea to check the tyre pressure once a week. Look in the vehicle handbook, or consult your garage or tyre dealer to find out the recommended tyre pressure. And don't forget to make sure your car has a spare tyre.
5) Check your windscreen
By simply ensuring there are no cracks or chips in your car windscreen, you could boost the value of the car by as much as £300! If the windscreen wipers are looking a little worn, it could also be worth replacing them. Plus, when you come to sell your car, it wouldn't hurt to give the windscreen a good clean!
6) Check for dents
Again, by ensuring there are no bad dents or scratches in your car, you could boost the value by as much as £200 to £300 per bumper or panel. Of course, it may work out more expensive to get them removed, but depending on how damaged your car is, it could work to your advantage. Removing any dents or scratches is also likely to increase buyer interest.
7) Check the upholstery
The inside of the car is just as important as the outside. Poorly maintained trims and upholstery are not only likely to deter buyers, but they are also likely to lower the value of your car - in fact you could lose out on as much as £500.
You may also want to take this into consideration when you're buying your car in the first place - a leather trimmed Audi, BMW or Mercedes could be worth as much as £1,000 more than the same model with cloth trim, according to Carsite.
8) Clean up!
Similarly, make sure you keep your car clean inside. You're more likely to achieve a better offer for your car at trade-in if it's clean - in fact, you could get an extra £300 to £400 if you simply clean out any litter, grime and dust.
Also be careful if you're going to have pets or children in the car - if they damage the interior, this could wipe hundreds off the resale price.
Finally, it might sound obvious, but it's well worth giving your car a good wash on the outside before you go to sell it.
9) Get it serviced
Having an up-to-date service book and vehicle history is important if you want to get your car accepted by a retailer. Ensuring your car has been regularly serviced correctly could boost the value by around £300 to £400. Always follow your car's servicing schedule and make sure you get your service book stamped.
If you're getting your car serviced at a local independent garage, make sure it's VAT-registered and that the parts used are genuine manufacturer products. You should get receipts and part serial numbers to prove this.
10) Sort out the MOT
Finally, ensuring you have a long MOT certificate before you sell your car is likely to increase its value by around £200-300. So avoid selling your car when there's only a few weeks left on the MOT.
Good luck!
Get help from lovemoney.com
If you'd like advice on how to keep your car costs down, lovemoney.com can help.
First, adopt this goal: Cut your car costs
Next, watch this video: Cut your car insurance costs
Finally, why not have a wander over to Q&A and ask other lovemoney.com members for hints and tips about what worked best for them?
Thanks to Carsite.co.uk and WhatCar for help with these tips.
**Figures are based on a 3-year old/30,000 mile family-sized car from a mainstream manufacturer, according to Carsite.co.uk