What to Look For When Buying a Family Car
It can be really tough to choose an ideal family car. What you really need to do is to first evaluate the needs of your family and then go about thoroughly evaluating the various factors that are important.
Some essential tips for a sensible choice:
Budget
When your family is growing, the budget can be pretty much the most important thing to affect the choice of a new vehicle. You need to determine how much of a monthly payment your cash flow will permit without taking you to the brink. If you can decide on how many years you are going to use the car then it could serve as a very good indicator whether you need to consider a bank loan or can go in for leasing. If you plan to keep the car for around three years or so and stay within 15,000 miles per year, then leasing could be a great choice. You do not need to make a large down payment and the monthly installments are far lower too. Of course, you do not ever own the car, which must be returned to the dealer at the end of the lease. However, that’s a very good opportunity to upgrade your wheels to something that will go better with your family’s evolving needs.
Leasing cars is a very good option for you to get a new family car with a low monthly outgo. Otherwise, you may have to consider only pre-used cars that would never be quite as satisfactory. There are many who have been tentative about leasing a car due to the very steep foreclosure rates. They can now avail of services of online platforms that will match buyers who will be willing to take on the lease from you. Some like leasequit.com have already become quite established.
Safety
Though all contemporary cars have to abide by the new regulations governing vehicular safety, there are always models that are built with safety features as a prime consideration. When you are buying a family car, you need to make certain that the vehicle has an excellent crash-test rating, and features like side-curtain airbags, antilock brakes, stability and traction control, blind-spot notification systems, adaptive cruise control, lane-departure alerts, and other such safety features. Look up the list published by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety for the ratings awarded in four test categories.
Fuel Efficiency
Over the years, gas prices increased substantially enough to make a dent in the budgets of most families. To be fair, car manufacturers too have woken up to the problem and are now offering models that are far superior in fuel efficiency. You can also opt for hybrids and electricity-only cars. Before taking the plunge see the list compiled by The Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency for the fuel efficiency figures of various models.
Comfort and Convenience
If you and your family are going to be spending a lot of time in the car then choosing a vehicle that offers driving and sitting comfort is very important. Headroom and rear seat legroom, as well as cargo space, are very important considerations when you are reviewing cars. If you have a child that’s very young be sure to look at models that can accommodate a stroller. Never make the mistake of buying a two-door car for family use as it can be extremely cumbersome to use the rear seats, which most of the times are tiny in these models. As far as features go, the sky is the limit. Depending on how much you can afford, you can install music systems, sunroofs, alloy wheels, navigation systems and much more.
Author bio:
Stanley Adams is a senior sales manager at a leading automobile dealer. Passionate about cars, he has written a large number of blogs and articles on various aspects of car ownership, including finance. Some of his recent articles can be read on leasequit.com.
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