A Little Collision Repair Is A Good Investment Before Selling Your Car (NAPSA)—Before you trade in your car or truck at a dealership or decide to sell it yourself, it may be well worth your while to make a quick walk-around to assess its exterior condition. A dented fender, broken light or similar defect will reduce the re-sale value of your vehicle by hundreds of dollars. Exterior condition is among the most important factors in determining your vehicle’s re-sale value, and it’s becoming an even more crucial consideration every day. Why? The continuing surge in new-vehicle sales by manufacturers—prompted by short-term leases and aggressive incentives —has created a surplus of highquality used vehicles. Potential purchasers of these used vehicles—whether auto deal- ers or discerning consumers— now have a large and growing inventory from which to choose. More important, more used vehicles in good condition, regardless of age, are showing up on dealer lots and in theclassified ads. This surplus has the effect of driving down the value of cars or trucks with obvious external flaws. In manycases, this devaluation may be greater than you think. For example, according to one vehicle-rating group, the difference between the value of a 2001 Ford Taurus LX in Texas is more than $1,000 whensold in “excellent” con- dition compared to being sold in “fair” condition. (Seefirst chart.) The re-sale equation is significant for even older vehicles. For example, the equivalent value difference for a 1996 Ford F-150 pickup truck tops $1,000. (See second chart.) Of course, getting the most value from your vehicle will require 2001 Taurus LX Sedan 4-Door—Standard Options—36,000 Miles DealerTrade-In Texas Poor NN Fair $4,765 Poor NN Fair $6,650 Good $5,580 Excellent $6,075 Fair-to-Excellent +$1,310 Good ~—-$7,390 Excellent $7,985 Fair-to-Excellent +$1,330 Private Party Sale 1996 F-150 Long Bed—Standard Options—100,000 Miles Dealer Trade-In Texas Poor Fair NN $2,535 Poor NN Fair $3,755 $3,195 Good $3,600 Excellent Fair-to-Excellent Good $4,310 Excellent $4,790 Foir-to-Excellent +51,035 Private Party Sale +$1,065 @ Values from Kelley Blue Book (www.kbb.com) on Sept. 3, 2003. Values vary by location. “Excellent” means the vehicle needs no reconditioning. The paint is glossy and the bodyis free of visible defects. There is no rust. “Good” meansthe vehicle is free of any major defects. The paint and body have only minor blemishes.“Fair” means the vehicle has cosmetic defects. The paint and body need work to be performed by a professional. There may be repairable rust damage. “Poor” meansthe vehicle has severe cosmetic defects. The vehicle may have problems such as a damaged frame or a rusted-through body. “N/V” means “no value.” Motor Companyoffers the following advice to help balance the investment you make with the paired or replaced. For significant sheet metal dents or cracks in plastic components, replacement may be the most cost-effective 1. Rely on the professionals for collision repairs. While fixing an exterior cosmetic defect may appear simple, you may run the risk of creating more problems than you solve. Your local dealership either provides the repair services you need or can refer you to an independentcollision repair shop in yourarea. 2. For exterior body parts— such as fenders or bumpers—you are likely to be faced with the choice of having the parts re- 3. For safety-related items such as lighting—replacement of the part is a necessity. Whenreplacing exterior parts, always rememberto ask for genuine replacement parts made by your vehicle’s manufacturer. Genuine replacement parts are the same as those used on your vehicle when the vehicle was built, with equivalent fit and finish— twoof the key factors that vehicle appraisers assess when determining a vehicle’s value. an investment on your part. Ford return you may expect to receive. option.
