All Questions Answered on Downsizing Your Vehicle

Whether it’s better to sell your current car privately or trade it in ultimately depends on what you’re looking for. Trading in might guarantee a faster selling process, but the trade-in price will be lower than the retail value. Meanwhile, private selling gives you far more control, but finding a buyer can delay the process. It also leaves you more vulnerable to chance-takers.

Yes, smaller cars are cheaper to maintain in the long run. They usually don’t use as much petrol as bigger cars, which is often one of the main reasons for downsizing. Smaller cars are also typically more affordable overall, with cheaper parts and maintenance costs.

You calculate the total cost of ownership (TCO) for a smaller car by taking the price of the car and adding standard, regular expenses, like fuel, maintenance, insurance, price depreciation, etc.

Whether you need to downsize your package or not depends on what your package looked like and what security features you’re expecting. With Cartrack, tracking and dashcam packages can be chosen, and you might not need all the same bells and whistles when you downsize. You have the chance to review your current solution, but it’s ultimately your decision.

The most fuel-efficient cars you can downsize to are small, lightweight, urban-friendly cars that use less fuel per 100 km than bigger models. These are usually cars that have smaller engines and are better equipped for everyday trips, not frequent, lengthy trips with heavy loads. Hybrid cars are a great option for fuel efficiency, too.

You should consider selling your car towards the end of the year, somewhere between October and December. Many reasons determine the best time for you personally, but the spring-to-summer months are a time when people typically receive their bonuses. This makes potential buyers more likely to make bigger purchases.

If you sell your old car with its existing tracking device, then yes, you’ll need a new tracking device for your new car. Some sellers opt to just let the buyer take over the subscription of the existing tracking package. If you’d rather not go this route, you can have your existing tracker reinstalled onto your new car.

No, Cartrack won’t move your device for free. If your Cartrack contract is older than 30 months, there’s only a replacement fee; the labour fee isn’t required. Otherwise, de-installation and re-installation do come at a cost. There’s also an additional replacement charge if your tracker can’t be found from the previous car, and a new tracker needs to be installed.

Yes, your car loan repayments can be reduced if you trade in your car for a cheaper one, although it depends on many things. For one, it depends on how much you owe at the time you're considering trading, and whether it's more or less than what your car is worth. Also, check dealership fees and consider hidden costs.

No, smaller cars aren’t necessarily more likely to be stolen. The car types that are most targeted in South Africa are bakkies, hatchbacks, and sedans. These aren’t small cars, and are typically stolen for their parts or resale value.

Yes, having a smaller car usually means lower maintenance costs. Smaller cars are usually simpler with smaller engines and straightforward internal systems. Car parts for smaller cars are also usually a lot more affordable.

Before downsizing, consider hidden costs such as:

• potential transfer costs, if you decide to sell through a dealership
• maintenance matters, especially if you fix some parts of the car before handing it over to the new owner, and
• insurance, which could actually increase depending on how high-risk your new car is.