We Pay More for your Car
As absurd as it may sound, there’s research which suggest that certain car colours can bring more car resale value back to an owner upon trading in a car.
Even more strangely, in a seemingly unconscious move against the supply and demand formula, these are the colours that often get neglected by buyers and dealership owners.
Looking for a higher price ?
At your inspection, you can choose “Option 1” to receive instant cash in hands; or if you’re looking for a greater price, select “Option 2” to advertise your car to dealers nationwide for 48-hours and get the best price directly from the market.
Yellow is the new black
We agree that yellow is not the best colour to get caught in on the road, perhaps because of its semiotic association with the taxi industry. However, it leads the pack in terms of car trade in value. According to iSeeCars.com car listings, on average, a yellow car with a purchase price of R260 000 can be expected to retain almost R20 000 more of its trade in car value after 5-years, than the same model in black.
Surprisingly following hot on the heels of yellow, other colours said to bring in a great amount of used car value at car trade ins is orange, teal and green.
“While a popular car colour like black and silver may get more interest and sell faster, our analysis indicates it may not get as high a value as a car, say, in yellow,” says co-founder of iSeeCars.com, Phong Ly. “Scarcity may account for the difference – only 1.1% of all cars are yellow and orange; the dearth of supply of such colours may drive prices up.”
Trading-in neutral-colours
Statistics show that white-coloured cars are currently revving up 21% of the used car value trade-in market. Other neutral colours such as black, grey and silver, followed closely with 19%, 17% and 15% of the secondhand club share, respectively.
Depreciation of the automotive ‘rainbow nation’
Just as depreciation has a great impact of the resale value of a car as soon as it touches the road, a major factor involved in the depreciation of a used car trade in value is, of course, it’s colour! iSeeCars.com statistics illustrate how the valuation of cars in various colours are affected by an average car depreciation rate after five years of ownership:
Non-neutral car colours
- Yellow: 26.2%
- Orange: 27.6%
- Green: 31.3%
- Teal: 31.4%
- Red: 31.7%
- Beige, brown, gold: 33.3%
- Average: 33.6%
- Blue: 33.6%
Neutral car colours
- White: 33.7%
- Silver: 34.0%
- Grey: 34.2%
- Black: 34.4%
These numbers seem to be typically as low as they are due to the methodology used: these statistics are based on listings as opposed to transaction prices. Furthermore, the study has shown that these statistics tend to remain consistent throughout all car categories. However, it must be noted that one is more likely to find a sports car offered in a more eye-catching colour like orange and yellow to begin with, versus a family sedan or station wagon for example, where neutral colours tend to be more popular.
So, what should I do?
But what do these numbers ultimately mean? Should you be looking into buying a yellow car in order to get a better car trade in deal? Perhaps it’s simply a case for used car buyers.
In the end, when trading in a car, you’ll use the car trade in value to buy a much more expensive car and the your vehicle assessor makes a good profit off this. In order to entice you to buy the new car from him, he’ll probably reduce the profit on the new car and allocate this “discount” to the amount he will offer for your car trade in – creating the impression that you are getting a higher price for the car you are selling.
Sell secondhand car online to CarZar
Our advice? Well, perhaps it’s simply a case for professional used car buyers. If you sell secondhand car online, you get cash for cars! Simply get a vehicle online valuation free and book an obligation-free inspection. If you’re happy with your final offer, we’ll make an instant payment and take care of all the paperwork for you.
Avoid trade-in haggle and hassles. With CarZar.co.za, you’re guaranteed:
- Our car buying services are 100% obligation-free.
- We offer an independent third-party car inspection with DEKRA or Kwikfit.
- Final cash offer at the end of your inspection.
- If unhappy with the offer, we’ll advertise your vehicle to our nationwide network of dealers across South Africa, to allow you to receive the best price the market is willing to pay.