Depreciation

[Miseryguts]

Nov 2013 I had my car stolen from my garage (thieves broke into my home and stole keys).

Trying to buy a car "without a car" is not easy (costs a fortune in hire cars) plus I am sole carer for my wife who has dementia.

I finally chose a Auris Icon which was 3 months old with 40 miles on the clock which I paid £15000 cash.

It was bought "on the rush" because I needed a car and wanted not new but pre reg.

Its a nice car but it has one major problem (for me).

I am 6ft 1" with a arthritic spine and neck and the Auris is very low (the older model was taller) and this is proving a problem for me.

I decided to "get rid" and get a Suzuki s cross,which is nice and tall (couldn't get one when my car was stolen as they were not for sale at that time).

The S Cross I want is £20,000,so I called a Suzuki dealer for a price on my Icon (which has only done 3000 miles).

He came back to me with £8000 !!!!!

What are your feelings/comments on this.

[smudge-1991]

Sounds like a rip off to me ... What I normally do get a rough price is get on the internet and shop around for a car as similar as possible so similar miles similar kit level and trim level in a similar area and you will get a rough idea I know that when you chop in your car for a new one they try and but it as cheap as possible to sell for the most amount of profit ... But £8000 is a bit cheeky to be honest

[FROSTYBALLS]

Why not do a paid for valuation from someone like CAP or Glass's, which will give a reasonably realistic idea of what your car is worth.

Admittedly the worst depreciation is in the first year, and the car may have lost a slight amount through being a two owner car.

I'd be inclined to widen my choices further, rather than just look at the Suzuki. How about the Hyundai ix35, Kia Soul, Kia Sportage, (the car that began the crossover sector) Nissan Qashqai, Mitsubishi ASX, Skoda Yeti, or the VW Tiguan?

I suspect the Suzuki dealer wasn't interested in the Auris as a part-ex, and priced it accordingly.

Your car being stolen and not recovered would have an example of where GAP Insurance would have helped you financially in getting a replacement. Outside of dealerships, GAP back to invoice insurance is available for around £200 or less for a four year policy.

[Miseryguts]

Funny you should mention GAP.

When I bought the Auris I said to the dealer, whats the deal if I pay cash?

Reply,nothing,they would not drop the price for cash,all he would do is knock a bit off the GAP insurance,a snip at £350 (after discount).

Thanks for the list of possible alternatives,the problem is that I have to keep to dealers that are not too far away as I cannot leave my wife for huge amounts of time while I galavant about looking at cars:-)

[FROSTYBALLS]

I wouldn't buy GAP from a dealer, as their policies are too expensive. The one company - ALA - offer TOC members a discount - http://www.toyotaownersclub.com/forums/topic/150128-discount-on-gap-insurance/

For example we have their GAPinsurance on both cars, and for a 4 year policy it cost us £178 for each car.

One member, think sometime last year, had their Rav4 stolen from his garage and claimed on his ALA GAP insurance - settled without any problem.

My one brother-in-law is currently going through various tests, etc for dementia and, from my sister's experience, finding time to do things can be really difficult.

As regards cars, the Honest John reviews can help narrow choices down, as they're a bit more realistic than magazine reviews - http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/carbycar/

One car I had meant to mention and may be worth looking at, is the new Citroen C4 Cactus - http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/carbycar/citroen/c4-cactus-2014/

[ToyotaAuris]

Mate, that 8k that they offered you is rubbish. That car will end up going to auction (where i brought my Auris from) and being sold for 13k or more! If I was you, use Auto trader and sell it there according to all the other prices. For a car which is above 10k, id put my price £200-£300 cheaper than main dealers selling cars on that webiste. DO NOT SELL TO SUZUKI.

[ToyotaAuris]

* estimate for your car is about £10,000 LOW £10,650 AVG AND £10,980 CLEAN. I dont know your engine size but if its a diesel expect slightly more, into 11k. This is according to what I think, Dealears have prices starting at about 11.4k on same cars but if you match their prices nobody will buy yours. You brought your car new and therefore it will depreciate but dont sell to Suzuki, they're trying to mug ya.

[FROSTYBALLS]

Assuming it is a 1.6 petrol, I've done a free valuation on Glass's - according to them the part exchange price will vary from £8520 to £10,950. Obviously this has not been adjusted for mileage or condition.

As yours has done only 3000 miles it must be towards the top end of the scale.

[ToyotaAuris]

8k is not possible and 9k is also not. 10k is lowest u will get, 10.8k is highest from my point

[FROSTYBALLS]

As I said previously, your best method of getting a realistic valuation is to go for a detailed valuation from someone like CAP or Glass's - cost around £3.50:

http://www.cap.co.uk/

http://www.glass.co.uk/?_$ja=kw:glasses+guide|cgn:Glass+Brand+-+Exact+Match|cgid:10803394571|tsid:52694|cn:Brand+New|cid:156000491|lid:107468649|mt:Exact|nw:search|crid:37023298811|dvc:t|adp:1t1|bku:1

[Miseryguts]

Thanks for all the help/advice,much appreciated.

Why is is that when I leave a car dealers showroom I always have a warm glow,like someone has just p****d up my back !!!!

The search continues.

[Bemused2]

Firstly, I am really sorry that you are having all this stress on top of your domestic and health problems.

Have you thought of sticking with Toyota and looking at the Verso. It is higher and might fulfill your needs. Also Toyota may give you a decent price for your Auris as they seem to concentrate on selling used Toyotas.

I recently part exchanged my four year old Auris 1.33 TR for a new Yaris and got £5800, with discounts on the new car in the region of £800 and interest free P.C.P. Might be that you may get a good deal on a Verso. Just a thought.

I know what you mean about dealers. I walked out and had them chasing after me before I got a decent deal.

Best wishes.

[StevieH888]

Is it the head room or the car as a whole is too low?

When would suzuki come under bonus pressure to sell more cars? You could perhaps wait til then or ring around the country, different suzuki dealers who will give you a better deal and deliver the car to you?

[TomdeGuerre]

Quite agree about the lowered roofline on the Mk2 Auris, backward step in my opinion. I don't suffer from any degenerative spinal condition - I just found it a lot more comfortable to have plenty of headroom. On the plus side, however, I find the seats are better.

I've been paying cash for my cars for years now and it certainly doesn't have the same bite as it used to. Flip side is that you're saving money on the finance charges.

A few months ago I went into the BCA auction site near Preston, I was looking for another Jeep Grand Cherokee for my leisure vehicle and managed to get a trade copy of the catalogue which gives CAP and Glass's prices for New, Retail, Clean, Average and Below conditions. They didn't have any Grand Cherokees but I noticed some of the stock going through was making close to retail and when you factor in auction fees etc they were paying over the odds. Auctioneers were up to their usual tricks of taking bids off the wall etc but some of the punters seemed to have no idea.

[Miseryguts]

StevieH888 The headroom is fine its the height of the car thats too low,combined with the rake of the screen.

Funny thing is that before I bought the Auris I tested the Yaris which is a much higher car,I wasn't keen on the Yaris (I like the new one better).

When we got back from the test drive I noticed the Auris in the showroom.

As I was getting in the salesman said "mind your head" CRACK I nearly brained myself !!

He said the new Auris is a lot lower than the Yaris.

You don't say !!

I should have walked away,what do they say about a fool and his money !!

[ToyotaAuris]

Quite agree about the lowered roofline on the Mk2 Auris, backward step in my opinion. I don't suffer from any degenerative spinal condition - I just found it a lot more comfortable to have plenty of headroom. On the plus side, however, I find the seats are better.

I've been paying cash for my cars for years now and it certainly doesn't have the same bite as it used to. Flip side is that you're saving money on the finance charges.

A few months ago I went into the BCA auction site near Preston, I was looking for another Jeep Grand Cherokee for my leisure vehicle and managed to get a trade copy of the catalogue which gives CAP and Glass's prices for New, Retail, Clean, Average and Below conditions. They didn't have any Grand Cherokees but I noticed some of the stock going through was making close to retail and when you factor in auction fees etc they were paying over the odds. Auctioneers were up to their usual tricks of taking bids off the wall etc but some of the punters seemed to have no idea.

Yup, I brought my Auris from BCA. That sheet that you got which had the CAP, AVG and BLW prices are. I always buy a car which has prices between BELOW and AVG. I never go for CAP, although most of the cars do sell for CAP prices which are same as retail. Theres always a bargin to be found!