Is It Worth Part Exchanging My Car?

How Part Exchanging Your Car Can Save You Time and Money

Most car dealerships nowadays offer a valuation service, and many will have a team of experts to independently provide a valuation on your car. At Autozone, we can part-exchange your car as well as help you find the right finance for you!

What is Part Exchanging?

As mentioned above, part-exchanging is the process of using your current car as partial payment towards a new car in order to get a better deal. It combines the buying and selling processes into one smooth transaction, making it a perfect choice if you are looking to replace your current vehicle. At Autozone, we offer a part exchange service to our customers where you can receive an instant valuation for your vehicle if you use our online valuation form. The quote you’ll receive is instant and you’re not obligated to accept, but it will give you a good idea of what your vehicle’s worth based on its age, mileage, make, model etc. 

Here Are Some of the Ways That Part Exchanging Can Save You Both Time and Money

If you’ve not got the time to look through showrooms for your new car, finding out if your current car’s manufacturer has a scrappage scheme would be a great way to save you time. A scrappage scheme involves trading in your current car for a newer model, which will usually be discounted for you. They were introduced by the government to reduce carbon emissions by getting drivers to trade their less efficient vehicles for a more efficient newer model. Scrappage schemes are also perfect if you already like the type of car you already own, and updating to a newer model would mean still getting to drive the type of car that you like.

Part exchanging is one of the most convenient ways of selling your car. You don’t have to take time out of your day in order to arrange test drives and viewings like you would if you were selling privately. In most cases, you would even have to sell your car first if you went to an auction, there’s also no guaranteed sale either and it may need to be re-entered multiple times. Part exchanging with a dealership gives you the convenience of not having to worry about selling your old car first, at some dealerships you may even be able to part exchange your old car and drive away in your new one on the same day! 

Selling to a dealership is quick and easy. They value your car, then, you choose to either accept the valuation or choose to look elsewhere, you have the control of being able to choose who you sell your car to. There won’t be any haggling either, you won’t have to worry about trying to convince the dealer to buy your car, after the initial valuation you’ll need to make sure that you have the following items with you:

• Logbook
• MOT certificate - consider getting a more recent MOT test done
• Documentation of the vehicle’s servicing history
• Spare keys
• Locking wheel nut key
• Vehicle manual
   

Additional documentation may be required if your vehicle is on finance in order to settle your agreement: 

• Details of the finance company
• An up-to-date settlement figure
• Passport
• Driving licence
• Utility bill or bank statement dated within the last 90 days 
   

If you’re not a salesman, dealing with potential buyers can be stressful. Knowing how to value your car and sticking to that number when someone tries to haggle can be difficult. But another side to selling privately is that you’ll need to verify each person who is interested in test driving and purchasing the car from you. You’ll need to make sure that you’ve got the right insurance and that you can trust potential buyers will pay you properly. For some, the reason for selling your car can be that you’ve outgrown it whether it’s because you’ve got a growing family or are looking to downsize.

If you need that new car as soon as possible, part-exchanging takes the edge of having to find your new car. The fact that you get to use your old car as partial payment towards a new one gives you more access to finding a better car more suited to you, dealerships can also arrange a finance deal for you as well which will allow you to pay for the car via monthly payments over a 2 to 5 year period. Combining car finance with part exchanging can potentially get you a fantastic deal on your next car, while also giving you the freedom to choose the car you want and the most suitable finance deal for you.

Once you’ve part exchanged your old vehicle, the dealer will inspect it closely in order to decide on whether it still has enough value to be put into retail stock where it may undergo cosmetic and mechanical checks in order to prepare it for sale. However, if it doesn’t meet certain age, mileage or condition criteria then it’s likely that the car will be sold through a vehicle trader auction.

Simply put, part-exchanging your car with a dealership offers you a lot more choice than if you were to sell privately or at an auction. It provides you with an almost guaranteed way of getting the best deal on your vehicle, and that value ultimately helps you secure a better price for the new car of your choice. If you’re interested in part exchanging your vehicle in Barnsley and South Yorkshire, then Autozone can help get great deals for you. To get started, you can give us a call on 01924 360533 and one of our friendly and helpful team will be more than happy to go through the process with you.