Choosing the right colours & options
Making the right colour and option choices can be as important as choosing the right car itself - get it wrong and it could hit you where it hurts... in your wallet!
Here are a few 'golden rules' to help you make those difficult choices:
Getting the exterior colour right
The exterior colour that you choose now will not only affect how desirable your car is to its next prospective owner, but also determine how much someone is prepared to pay for it. We�ve seen part-exchange bids vary by as much as �500 to �1000 on near-identical cars just because of the colour.
We�re not saying you shouldn�t have whatever you want, but maybe give a second thought to ordering that dream car in shocking Pink! Our top tips are:
- If you can afford it always go for a Metallic or Pearlescent colour. Not only will it hold it�s value better, but metallic colours tend to be easier to maintain and hide light scratches better
- If you can�t afford Metallic Paint, then try to avoid White � this is rarely a popular choice amongst second-hand buyers. Red or Black are the best colours if your restricted to a non-Metallic
- Metallic Blacks, Dark Blues, Silvers and Greys are usually a safe choice, especially on larger family or executive cars. They may seem a little conservative but they�re the colours that second-hand buyers tend to look for
- Be wary of ordering cars in unusual colours. Some cars do look fantastic in colours like Acid Green Pearl; just be prepared for it not to be to everybody�s liking � and if you�re likely to want to sell it in 2 or 3 years time it could affect the value
- Small hatchbacks and city cars are less adversely affected by brighter, fun colours
Picking an interior colour to match
Some manufacturers will only let you have certain interior colours with certain exterior colours, while others give you an entirely free choice. For the most part, picking a complimentary interior colour is down to common sense. Our advice is:
- Dark interiors tend to be more popular as they show less dirt and are more user-friendly to families
- Lighter colours make the interior feel larger whereas darker interiors can create a more enclosed, sportier feel
- Blacks, Charcoals and Greys work well with the majority of colours and are the safest choice
- Beige is commonly used to good effect by prestige manufacturers such Jaguar where it is often used with Black, Navy Blue, Dark / British Racing Greens and Dark Red exterior colours. It doesn�t work so well with lighter colours such as Silver
- When choosing Blue or Beige interiors be careful to check how it impacts the colours used on interior plastics such as the dash board. Large expanses of blue or beige plastics can spoil an interior
- More individual interior colours such as Reds and Blues usually work better in more specialist or sporty cars
Choosing the best combination of options
As a general rule people tend to spend about 10% of the cost of their car on options. This can increase to nearer 20% on higher value executive and prestige vehicles. Some options will not only ensure you enjoy your car more, but will increase it�s desirability when you come to sell it.
- A CD Player is an almost essential option. On those cars that still only come with a tape it�s worth investing on upgrading to a single CD or multi-disk CD Changer
- Most of us expect our cars to have Air Conditioning or Climate Control and it�s a useful option in the UK especially with our unpredictable climate. Not having it could make trying to sell your car more difficult than it need be.
- The increase in the number of vehicles with Air Conditioning has led to a decline in the demand for cars with a Sunroof. It�s purely down to personal choice, but bear in mind that if you want a car quickly, ordering a sunroof significantly reduces the chance of finding a car from stock.
- Leather upholstery is no longer a luxury only fitted to prestige upmarket cars and is now an option featured on the majority of price lists. Although it remains a personal choice, our view is that is a worthwhile investment as it can enhance the appeal of a car and helps protect its residual value. As a general rule we would almost certainly recommend that leather is a worthwhile addition on most vehicles priced above �15,000 while if you�re spending over �20,000 you should have leather upholstery.
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Satellite Navigation used to be viewed as an expensive toy that would never enhance the value of your car when you came to sell it. However it�s becoming an essential option on larger family cars and executive cars and as prices start to fall it will become more commonplace, even on smaller vehicles. In 2-3 years most people will be buying their cars with Satellite Navigation.
The type of Satellite Navigation that you order can be important � many manufacturers offer budget systems with only monochrome screens or voice commands instead of a screen altogether. We recommend that if your going to have Satellite Navigation go for the more upmarket systems with colour screens and that run on DVDs rather than CD-ROMs � as well as being far more functional, these will invariably have more appeal over the life of the car and will not become out of date as quickly.
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