5 Things You Need To Know Before You Buy Your First Car

For many of us, buying your first car is your first big step into being independent. It makes you dream of late-night maccas runs, road trips and not having to beg your ‘rents for a lift all the time. But before you drive off with a potential lemon, let’s pump the brakes for a second and go through some of the things you should keep in mind on the hunt for your new ride:

Buying the car is half the battle

Sure, you might be able to afford buying the car, but can you afford actually keeping the car? When you own a car, there are quite a few expenses that can come back and bite you if you’re not careful. Some of these will be recurring expenses that you can expect to cop pretty regularly.

Stuff like rego, petrol, and tolls are expenses that you’ll want to fold into your weekly or monthly budget so you don’t get caught out at the servo on a bad day and an empty tank.

Apart from that, you also have your one-off expenses. If you’re buying a new car you might be entitled to a service, check-up or a warranty period - but after then you’ll be paying out of pocket for any trips to the mechanic. If you’ve got an older or used car, you might have to pay for things like part replacements or major services more frequently than if you buy new. This is definitely where our next tip comes into play.

Do your research

One of the benefits (or drawbacks) of buying a used car is that you can find out if the car model and make you want tends to stand the test of time. Now’s a great time to put those Googling skills to work and look up reviews and forum posts about cars you’re after.
Take a look out for things like when people seem to be posting about major repairs or maintenance - things like transmissions, brake trouble.

This could clue you in that that cheap car you saw listed could be on its way to some very expensive repairs.
Looking on car sales guides will also help you get an idea of how much people are asking for - if you see a car listed for something way above or way below the rest of the market, that might be a good time to ask some follow up questions.

You can shop around for car financing and loans

If you’re buying a new or used car from a dealership, you can get the option to take out a loan or use a payment plan through the dealership. Some dealerships might offer some attractive deals such as interest-free periods or inclusions that could work for you, but don’t feel like that’s the only option.

For instance, you might be able to get a personal loan with your bank with a lower interest rate than the dealers’, saving you hundreds or even thousands of dollars.

Of course, remember that it’s most likely going to be cheaper overall if you can buy a car outright - so it’s worth asking yourself if you can save up a little longer instead of having to pay interest on top of the value of the car.

Bigger isn’t always better

This one is all about practising a little self-honesty when it comes to choosing the best car model for you. It’s easy to get a little carried away with dreams of chucking your surfboards in the back of your station wagon or taking on rivers in your snorkelled 4WD, and forget to think that most of the time you’re trying to find a park at uni, or getting punished by petrol prices.

Make sure you take a beat and think about what you’ll be mainly using the car for. Chances are if you’re only doing the occasional camping trip, you could take the money you’d be spending on petrol by driving a bigger car and put it towards some roof racks or bribe a mate to let you borrow their bigger car for the weekend.

Get your car looked at by a professional

This one is absolutely vital if you’re buying a used car on the private market. At the end of the day it’s your money - and once you drive away with your car, it’s your problem if something goes wrong.

Find a local mechanic that your mates or family trust and ask if you can bring the car over for a look-over. They’ll be able to let you know if there are any issues with the car that could need a repair down the track, which might help you negotiate a lower price.
If you can, try to find someone other than the owner’s recommended mechanic. There’s always a small chance that they might not do their best inspection work in return for a favour or two.

Now that you've got these tips on deck, you're ready to head out there and find your dream ride!

This information is general in nature and has been prepared without taking your objectives, needs and overall financial situation into account. For this reason, you should consider the appropriateness of the information to your own circumstances and, if necessary, seek appropriate professional advice.