Surprising Features That Increase A Car’s Resale Value

Back to the real world, if you are anything less than filthy rich, you will probably have to opt for a more down-to-earth car and make peace with the fact that you will lose money on resale. However, there are ways to reduce the money loss. Here are some features that increase the value of used cars and, more importantly, make them easier to sell.

1. Air Conditioning

This is not so much an extra point to have in your car, as it is a terrible downside if you don’t have it. Most modern cars will have air conditioning nowadays and it is understandable why this is a coveted feature.

This is exactly why not many buyers will opt for a car that lacks it. Save for a few brutally lightweight sports cars, there are currently few cars on the road without air conditioning.

2. Cruise Control

As motorways are becoming more and more present, cruise control is growing into a necessity rather than a luxury. Fiddling with the throttle pedal to keep a constant speed, or just holding your foot in one position for hours on end is not something we like, so cruise control is a huge plus.

More advanced cars have adaptive cruise control that enables the car to keep a distance from the car ahead and hit the brakes for you when the distance is shorter than the desired one.

3. Seat Comfort

We put several features into one since they make one thing better – sitting in a car.

Many people will prefer leather or Alcantara seats. However, when these become worn, they tend to look really cheap, so try to keep them in good shape.

The other features are ventilation and heating in the seats. These are good especially if you have leather seats. There aren’t many worse things than an ice-cold seat at 7 AM.

4. Automatic Gearboxes

Being able to be rev-matching and shifting, many car enthusiasts would love having total control over the car and prefer manual cars to auto cars.

However, automatics are definitely more comfortable, easier to use and recent development made them faster and easier on fuel, which is something that was reserved for manuals just a few years ago.

The only downside is that they are more expensive, but as they are becoming more common even in lower-class cars, they are also bound to become cheaper to service. Moreover, the increasing numbers of speeds make the automatics far more sensible than manuals.

5. Sunroof

Yeah, this does seem less important than some other features here, but if you don’t have a convertible, there is nothing better than having a sunroof. And, despite its name, it’s not just for the sun. It’s great for a breeze of fresh air and a great view of the night sky.

Actually, the only three times when a sunroof is not a great idea are rain/snow, freezing weather and scorching sun. Though it is warm and humid in Singapore, it is sometimes refreshing to drive with an open roof in the early hours of the day or after sunset.

6. Navigation

If you really need an explanation, here you are. It is compact, easy to use, intuitive, extremely useful, often packed with additional perks and far more convenient than having a paper map that unfolds to the size of a billboard.

7. Condition

Remember the “mint condition” from the introduction? OK, it doesn’t have to be mint, but all of the previously stated features won’t help you sell a car if it’s as reliable as a politician’s promise.