MZANSI’S recession isn’t stopping people buying cars.
George Mienie, CEO of AutoTrader, the used car publication, said, when it comes to the vehicle industry, the secondhand car market is not doing badly.
The weaker economy is pushing people to buy used rather than new.
“Used car prices only rise about six months after new car prices.
“If new car prices rise by 10%, used car prices will only rise by the same percentage about half a year later.
“This means that used car buyers can get good value in the used car market right now.”
The weaker rand exchange is also good news for various local original equipment manufacturers.
“We have a large vehicle-part manufacturing industry. BMW, Ford, Isuzu, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan, Toyota and Volkswagen build cars here and exports are predicted to grow from 340 000 this year to 384 000 units next year.
He said, last month’s car exports rose by 7,7% – versus a 2,5% drop in domestic car sales.
Local exports also benefit from the weaker rand.
“Catalytic converters are usually our number one export. South Africa exported catalytic converters worth R18,7 billion last year on top of all the other engines, tyres and spare parts.”
He said that motorists and the motor industry will survive the current crisis.
“Mzansi relies on cars, buses and taxis for mobility. We don’t have a widespread train network. Instead of new cars we should buy used models or brands not as expensive as we’d like.
“Maybe we need to hold onto our cars for longer. This creates a positive business increase for service stations. Maybe motorists will look at more affordable brands – such as those imported from China – but we will always need wheels.”
