How to get best resale value – Creta

The Hyundai Creta burst onto the Indian automotive market in 2015 with its stunning looks based on Hyundai’s Fluidic Structure 2.0 design philosophy and boasted of a feature packed cabin and exterior. It immediately captured hearts and minds and became the first SUV to reach the 1 lakh sales figure in just 12 months. It has consistently ranked among the top 3 best-selling compact SUVs and continues to be a frontrunner in its category. It has kept its place on the back of periodic refreshes and has even launched a new generation of the Creta based on its Sensuous Sportiness design language. The latest Creta is bigger externally, with a design that has divided opinions, and has brought a host of added features that continue to ensure it remains a trendsetter in its segment.

Factors Affecting Hyundai Creta’s Resale Value

Condition

A buyer shopping for second hand cars always has two prices in mind. He feels that irrespective of the price he pays up front, he might have to spend a bomb on repairs or replacement parts to bring the car up to a desired standard. Luckily, the Creta has a solid build quality, being rugged and durable. The engines used also have an enviable reputation. As a result, the Creta commands a good price in the market, with no trouble finding a buyer. There is a waiting period of around half a year for it in showrooms and since most people do not wish to wait that long, they turn their attention to the Creta that you want to sell, ensuring that you find a buyer almost immediately. Just be sure to have your vehicle serviced regularly at authorised service stations, keep its insurance up to date, replace parts like the battery and tyres in a timely manner, do a bit of patchwork on the dents from time to time and you will have no problems finding a customer, and getting the best resale value for your pre-owned Creta.

Odometer Reading

The lifespan of engines has gone up with improvements in technology and the ones on your Creta are famed for their reliability and durability. They can easily go from 150000 to 350000 kms depending on whether they are petrol or diesel engines. The engine life depends on factors like maintaining oil levels, servicing periodically at authorised service centres, timely overhauling and maintenance. Please do not listen to a broker or a mechanic asking you to tamper with the odometer reading for a pecuniary benefit.Don’t be taken in by this since odometer tampering, if detected, would forever ruin the resale value of your vehicle.

Number of Owners

The number of owners a vehicle has had plays a very important role in its valuation. As a rule of thumb, the more owners, the more the resale value slips because the chances of the car being operated roughly and not maintained properly goes through the roof. The greatest value is attached to cars who have a maximum of two owners in a five year span with prices that customers are willing to pay steadily deteriorating after three or four owners. That’s because single owners ensure that the car is driven by one or two people allowing maintenance standards to be maintained.

Model Popularity

As mentioned earlier, the Hyundai Creta came feature loaded. For example, the previous generation Creta came with 17 inch diamond cut alloy wheels, projector headlamps, LED DRLs and tail lamps. There are even six airbags taking care of the safety aspect. The top end models are the fully loaded ones with features like sunroofs, ventilated seats and rear view cameras among others. The newer generation offers more like cruise control, cooled glovebox and driving modes.The base levels were pretty barebones in comparison. There were six variants on sale in the old generation starting with the E and going up to the SX. The new generation has seven variants, starting with the E and going up to the SX(O). A special Knight trim is also offered on the upper two versions. You will find that your car will get a higher price if you own a variant at the upper end. The automatic vehicles tend to command a premium nowadays because more people are willing to upgrade to them because they want a stress free driving experience.

Age

The value of a car drops as soon as it is driven out of the showroom. Each succeeding year, its value drops further with depreciation. The Hyundai Creta holds its resale value well as compared to other cars which may lose 40% of their value in 5 years and almost 90% in ten. You can safely expect almost 60% of your Creta’s value in five years at a minimum and you might get a far better price if you’ve maintained your car well. The Hyundai Creta came loaded with features that are relevant even today. Picking up a car from the previous generation is not a hardship as both the looks and the features are comparable to the new version.

Accidental Status

It all depends on the severity of the accident. For example, you might have had to replace the tailgate after you had been rear ended or you might simply have had to replace the shattered tail light assembly. If the buyer can spot the repairs your car has undertaken they will definitely look to offer you a lesser price than what you may have in mind. Since authorised service centres can fix even major damages with company approved spares and are able to restore the car efficiently, it makes sense to be upfront with the buyer and be realistic on the price you demand depending on the severity of the accident that may have occurred.

Powertrain, Transmission and Colour

The Creta comes with both diesel and petrol engines. These engines have an enviable reputation for being dependable, powerful and fuel efficient. The old version had very powerful engines with three different powertrains offering a choice of one petrol or two diesel ones with great performance on both the city roads as well as the highways. The new generation also offers three powertrains with two all new petrol engines and one diesel engine. There is a choice of two automatics as well including a top of the line DCT. You will find that all versions of the Creta sell easily with the automatics being able to command a higher premium.

Colour is a subjective choice. Having said that, we can safely say that the Creta stands out in both black and white colours. Silver is also a popular choice. These colours have a slight but negligible price difference over the rest. The dual tone models of each colour also fetch a slightly higher price over the others.

Expected Resale Value of Hyundai Creta

We would expect your car to fetch a resale price of 8 lakh to nearly 15 lakh depending on the model and variant on offer. The kilometres run, the maintenance, insurance, age, condition among other factors detailed above will also enter into the equation. Please look at the table below to understand the price you will receive:-

Best Time to Sell Your Hyundai Creta

We would recommend selling your car on or before the five year mark which is when the car’s value depreciates steeply. The Hyundai Creta however holds its value well. It will give you a minimum of 60% of its value and even more if it’s well maintained. Banks also provide finance easily within this time period and the warranty of the vehicle also stands. We would recommend that you start looking for prospective buyers around 4.5 years if you would like to sell your Creta.

Summary

The Creta is a car that has captured the hearts and minds of many in the SUV space. Prospective customers are eager to own a vehicle which has fuel efficient and dependable engines allied to a robust build quality. The number of options available make it easy for them to choose a Creta in tune with their lifestyle requirements. The sheer quality and quantity of features on offer make the Creta an irresistible buy in the second hand car market. Put your Creta on the market today and it will be snapped up in next to no time. 

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