How to downgrade without killing myself

thestaggy

thestaggy

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Hey folks.

I only recently purchased a 2010 Opel Corsa 1.4 Essentia. It is a little more car than I need at the moment but I purchased it with the view that it was something I'd own for many, many years ahead. The thing is, I am going to start studying again. This was not my intention when I purchased the vehicle, nor in the months I was searching for a vehicle, but it is something that has come up over the past two months. Now, having run the numbers in terms of monthly expenses - car, insurance, petrol, rent and now future study fees - I am going to find my self in a tight spot. I'll cover my debts, but will have little left over.

My capital balance on the car is R85,000. I have seen that private sales of my vehicle are in the region of R90,000 - R100,000, but private sales in this price range are not easy to make. However, I know that if I approach a dealership for a trade they'll probably rip me off and roll in a few extra "administration fees" and the like, and this will possibly come in with the risk of me coming out ''upside down'', whereby they may give me R90,000 for my car, covering my outstanding cost on it but chew the rest on admin fees and putting me back in a - potentially - worse position.

Any advice on what my options may be?
 
Go private. I'm making roughly 20K more selling mine privately over what dealers wanted to give me. Gumtree is your friend.
 
Definitely go private. you can always make your asking price a bit higher and then lower it to your desired amount if the buyer requests a lil discount :)
 
If you want to get the price that you need for your car sell it on the net. Gumtree is a good place to start.

Dealers are running a business, so of course they are not going to pay you top dollar for your car. I am not aiming this next statement at you, but I wish people would get it out of their heads that every dealership is out there to rip you off. Economics 101 should explain to you that you buy low and try and make a profit when you sell. How do you think Woolworths or Checkers or Pick'nPay or Edgars buy? Dealers have to work within a specific margin in order to make the business viable. The days of the shady character trying to rip you off on every street corner are long gone.
 
Mike Hoxbig said:
How do you downgrade from a Corsa? :D
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Which way is your sarcasm going here? Pro Corsa or nay Corsa? Seriously though, I'll cry if & when I downgrade. The car is amazing and seems to dislike petrol stations.
 
Fazda said:
If you want to get the price that you need for your car sell it on the net. Gumtree is a good place to start.

Dealers are running a business, so of course they are not going to pay you top dollar for your car. I am not aiming this next statement at you, but I wish people would get it out of their heads that every dealership is out there to rip you off. Economics 101 should explain to you that you buy low and try and make a profit when you sell. How do you think Woolworths or Checkers or Pick'nPay or Edgars buy? Dealers have to work within a specific margin in order to make the business viable. The days of the shady character trying to rip you off on every street corner are long gone.
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I know that. It's the reason why I sold my high mileage 2000 Corsa GSi privately to fund my purchase. I got 10k more than what the dealer was willing to offer. My only concern is that once you leave the 60-70k bracket, it gets that bit harder to make private sales.
 
Don't forget that Wesbank will do private sales, if you find someone who needs finance.
 
nakedpeanut said:
cherry :p
Although i'm also thinking that, what do you plan to get? a citi or something?
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Nah, a CitiGolf is downgrading into the dark ages in my opinion. Technology is too old and they are not exactly cheap insurance wise. Depending on what I come out with from my sale, I'd like to look at one of the little Korean (Kia, Hyundai) offerings. Maybe even a Corsa C (2002 - 2007). My folks just came back from a weeks vacation and they used a Kia Picanto rent-a-car, driving it all over Natal, and my dad was impressed. Fuel economy is also a factor and why I went from a 1600 down to a 1400 anyway. 80% of my driving is peak hour, stop-start stuff, so I do not need a hot hatch or big engine.
 
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Mike Hoxbig said:
How do you downgrade from a Corsa? :D
Click to expand...

The Corsa Essentia is ahead of most rivals in its class, like the Polo to name but one. So it is a very good car with excellent value for money.

If I had to downgrade it would be to an i10 - it is a brilliant little car with high levels of quality and the ride it offers is fun, something I value highly. If you still need to go cheaper then a Kia Picanto is a solid deal.
 
How many KM's on the car, where is it located, colour, year model?

I'm looking to buy a car, if yours is in good condition maybe we can do a deal (I pay cash so no risk to you really). How much are you looking for tho?
 
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