BUYING A NEW CAR.

Auckland Star, Volume LX, Issue 106, 7 May 1929, Page 17

BUYING A NEW CAR.

I KNOW WHAT YOU WANT. J j THEN SEE THAT YOU GET IT, ■ (By AUTOSCRIBE.) i Although the purchase of a new car involves the outlay of a considerable amount of money, buyers seldom find tliat their first choice really satisfies them. That is one of the reasons why so many cars are traded in after from six to twelve months' use. The annual resale is a very expensive one involving ■ a definite loss of from £50 to £100 and sometimes more. The only advantage accruing from it is to the buyer of the second-hand car who really gets more value for his money than the original buyer. There, is. no such thing as a really bad car to-day for the simple reason j that competition in the motor world is j so fierce that the maker of a poor car would never last more than a season. In both America and England motor car manufacturers must keep up with the latest ideas in order to live. Readers j have probably heard of Henry Ford's

! iiiuscum attached to his works in whicl there is a car of practically every knowi ; make. Th.is is by no means unique iand every car manufacturer secure: I models of cars that are in competitioi with him for purposes of comparison. I The whole question of purchase car 1 really be summarised as knowing exactly what you want and seeing thai you get it. You are going to buy z new car. during the next few months Do you really know what you want or will you be • persuaded by the first agent that you see, only to find later on that you eoi;il have done better elsewhere? For obvious reasons the names of no cars will be mentioned in this article, but by careful consideration of some of the points made, readers will be able to decide for themselves which car ..offers them most for their money. Four Essentials. At least four points are essential for satisfactory service from any car. These jmay be briefly specified as being perI formance, lasting power, appearance and resale value, and we will briefly run over a few points relating to these. Performance is necessarily an expression of the power of the engine in relation to the body weight, and it is only when perfect balance is maintained that perfect performance is secured. This is true, of course, whether the car be a light four cylinder, a six cylinder or one of the heavier eight cylinder models. The "baby" car, which has now become so popular in England, and which is rapidly assuming similar popularity here, has certain very great advantages and other obvious disadvantages. Assuming that the engine of any small car is thoroughly reliable, and to-day practically every car engine on the market is reliable, it has the direct advantage of a low running cost. For two people and luggage, or for two people with one or two children it represents the ideal in so far as economy is concerned, and the lowest available transport cost per mile. The disadvantage, of course, comes from its smallness and therefore makes it unsuitable for the buyer with a large family or one who desires to carry more than two or three people at a time. The four cylinder car. can still be regarded as the universal car and is available within a wide range of prices and in cars of both the tourer and closed-in type. These cars are thoroughly reliable and represent splendid value, especially in the lower price field. The latest development is the production of "sixes," which naturally possess more power and flexibility in 1 exactly the same way as an S-cylinder car is still nearer the'idea of perfection. The cost of operation, of course, conies into play with a β-eylinder car, but with the efficient engine with which these are now befng , ' produced the cost of operation is very often considerably less than the cost of running a ''four" a few years ago. The S-cylinder car is as yet entirelv a luxury car and is available only in the higher-priced class. Naturally it is a wonderful car to drive, being especi-' ally good in hill work. In this connec-. tion it is # well to remember that the ability to' climb hiUs "on top" can bo • • ivi'ii only by a reserve of power, sin , ! 1 I' • ' . ' •■ ' '■• ;!>" Ijiiii!'.v-;irii-eil 4-c." ' . ..•-!" ••- !.«.and 8-cvluuler cur-.

How Long Will it Last? A common practice of buyers of light cheap cars a few years ago was to trade these in after using them about 12 to IS months and take out the latest model. ! This was an expensive proposition, costing on an average at least 40 per cent of the original price. There is a lesser tendency to-day as regards this, principally because it is unnecessary. Any modern car should last for at least five years when properly looked after, and it is even then of small resale value. In America, which is the home of the trading-in idea., manufacturers are now discouraging the practice, probably because of the difficulty of dealing with second-hand car sales. It was found in America that there were more secondhand cars on the road than new cars; that to sell a new car involved the trad-ing-in of a second-hand car. and to sell this second-hand ear very often involved the trading-in of a still older model. This meant the sale of two used cars before completion of the new car sale. Prom the point of view of the used car buyer, it was a pretty good proposition. At the end of a year the car had at least 80 per cent of 'its life left in it and was available for not more than 60 ! per cent of its original cost. The position, therefore ,arose that it was a better proposition to buy a second-hand car than to purchase a new one. It is a fairly simple matter to show that it is more profitable in New Zealand to keep a car for some years than to trade it in after the first 18 months, especially where it is used largely for pleasure. Take as an example the' ji 400

THE BIG PROBLEM OF NIGHT MOTORING.—A test of anti-dazzle devices. About 159 inventors demonstrated anti-dazzle and automatic car signalling - devices to an interested crowd in Richmond Park, Surrey, on March 8, under the auspices of the Royal Automobile Club, and at the request of the Minister for Transport. There has been considerable development in the design and use of such indicators lately, due to the popularity of the closed car. The lack of uniformity in these signals has been the subject of consideration by the Ministry for Transport, who are considering, from the point of view of public safety, whether it may be desirable to lay down that such devices should give signals complying with certain specific requirements. Photo shows interested spectators gazing at the anti-dazzle demonstration by Carl Zeiss (London), Ltd.

car. Traded iii at the end of 18 months, it would bring approximately £215, and at the end of five years might reasonably be expected to bring, say, £SO. The cost , ]ier month when traded in at 18 months I for depreciation only, be it noted, is £10 o/G. The cost in depreciation per month I after five years works out at only £5 6/8. and even if the car at five years is regarded as a complete loss, the cost in depreciation has been less than if it were i traded in at 18 months. That is rather a startling fact which is not realised by many motorists. It may be stated that these values are arbitrary, but the writer has had sufficient experience to know that they are approximately correct under ordinary conditions. Where you have sufficient money, and where cost is really no consideration, thr lasting power does not gre'atly matter. You \ can trade in regularly and always have ■ a car bright and new in appearance. Appearance. Up to a, few years ago the - writer did; not think that appearance counted very! greatly, but &s'< things f :are in the motor] world to-day, there is, no doiibt that I appearance is •a , very important factor.' Car sales are very largely influenced by the likes and dislikes of women, all of whom like a smart car. Many men probably imagine that they * don't care greatly about appearance, but actually, after they have bought the. car, they -will magnify any. defects it possesses in this direction. A good appearance is, therefore, a definite advantage. In appear-1 ance, of course, would be included the painting scheme and the style of the f hood or coach work, radiator, etc., \ The re-sale value of well-known and! popular cars is considerably greater than j that of lesser known models. Thero is j always a demand for reliable used cars j of certain makes, and although when the j initial purchase is being, made this may ; not seem to matter greatly it is in!. reality an important point. Sooner or j! later you will want to sell, and then you j may be sorry that at the start you made i an unwise choice. , .-..'{ Tourer or Sedan? ' j While there are many people who prefer the open-air freedom of the tourer, it has to be admitted that the' hoods are rery seldom taken down, in which case :he car approximates to a closed car with, ill the windows down. The tendency to-, lay is for the closed car to become more md more popular, and it possesses a lefinitely greater re-sale value than the ;ourer. In England to-day a noticeable tend- ' 'iicy in the closed car models-is to have i. sliding roof which opens either parially or completely. So far as the vriter is aware, none of these models j Las as yet come to New Zealand, but he • rould imagine that they are a. develop-' | aent of the future. There is one case . rhere a tourer may prove more useful I han a closed car, this being in the ■ Baby" models where much 'luggage is I obe carried. It is difficult -job to ■ ack this satisfactorily, in the closed ear Iype, but with the open model the hood an be taken down, the luggage slipped i. and the hood put up again all in a '::■". •■.■. liffmninriits of body and! . • ■ ■•• ... .'a. a≥ well, but

you can get these to-day even in the! cheaper cars. * j Summarising, briefly the points which I matter in a new car purchase, it may be: stated you should first decide whether a I tourer or closed car will suit you, then j decide the price you can afford, and after I that go carefully into the features! offered by cars in your price field, not) forgetting the service available after purchaso and the re-sale-value of your car after some years' use.