Owning a car in New Zealand is much more affordable then in the UK or Germany.
Costs:
- Registration can be $50 - $120 a year
- Car purchase: $2000- $6000 is the average budget for travelers, depending on car condition, size and budget.
- Insurance: Flexible range of insurance policies and regulations in New Zealand. Starting from $40 NZD a month.
Car insurance is not a legal requirement in New Zealand – however we strongly recommend some form.
Options:
- Third party – damages to other are only covered, not your own damages
- Third party + fire and theft – additional cover or fire damage and theft
- Comprehensive – full cover of others and yourself
Be aware you are purchasing second hand cars from unknown sellers, so nothing is guaranteed.A smart thing to do is have the car checked out by a mechanic, which can be $50-$100, but less risky.
Reliable Platforms:
- Facebook Marketplace
- Trade ME
- Autotrader NZ
Firstly be aware of the risks of buying a car second hand.
Red Flags:
- Limited or broken up service history
- Kms over 260,000 on the clock ( Unless Toyota)
- No Rego (registration)
- A high volume of previous owners (especially in short period of time, this indicates people were unsatisfied)
- No WOF (Warrant of Fitness) Equivalent of MOT
- Tampered odometer
- Rust or mismatched paint (Signs of flood damage and crashes)
- Low KMS
- Seller is relaxed and not desperate or pushy
- Comprehensive service history (Full is ideal but rare, so mostly complete is usually OK)
- Toyota, Subaru, Honda, Nissan, Suzuki are OFTEN the most reliable
- Reliable brands - Japanese brands are recommended in NZ , due to reliable builds being able to withstand the questionable road quality
- Engine size gives a good idea of fuel usage – bear in mind bigger engines more often than not lead to larger fuel expenditure (Not in every case though!).
