According to Motorway research, the average Brit owns almost £300,000 in assets (like property, a car, tech, and investments), but almost half never track their value.
Some of these assets are designed to increase in value over time and provide financial security, like investments and property. Others, like cars and tech, are often thought of as necessities or lifestyle choices, making owners less likely to track their value.
However, when you get the inside track on the ongoing value of your car, you can make the most of this asset. Clear depreciation trends are visible at a glance in Motorway’s free Car Value Tracker, allowing you to plan to sell your car for the best value.
Read on to learn more about Motorway’s new Car Value Tracker tool, which helps you get the most out of your car.
Why should you track your car’s value?
Like 9.1 million other Brits, your car might be your most valuable financial asset. Over half of people surveyed think their car’s value always decreases, but that’s not necessarily the case. Depending on your specific car, and market conditions, there can be short periods during which the value of your car on the used-car market actually goes up, or holds steady for longer than expected.
All vehicles depreciate at different rates, and although some overall trends can be observed, it’s only by tracking your own car’s value that you can make the best decision for when to sell your car. There can be long periods of very slow depreciation for some car brands, typically between two and five years after a car is bought new.
For example, keeping your three-year-old car for an extra year or two could be a great move financially, depending on your make and model. However, for some car owners, it could equally be a mistake.
This is why it pays to track your specific car, rather than looking up average depreciation rates. Motorway’s free, new tool, Car Value Tracker, shows your car’s changing valuation over the past 24 months on a graph, incorporating any real valuations you’ve previously taken out on the site.
Motorway’s valuations are based on live market data, to reflect current and changing market conditions for your specific vehicle.
Why does your car’s value change?
A lot of elements contribute to your car’s value; some of them are within your direct control, such as mileage and condition. Others are less obvious. Most motorists won’t be paying close attention to what different brands and models of cars are fetching on the used-car market.
Some factors that affect the current value of your car, positively or negatively, might not have been on your mind when you bought your vehicle. Anything from fuel type to paint colour can sway the market demand for your car at any given time. Policies such as the 2030 electric switchover also have a big impact on cars across the new and used markets, changing the availability and desirability of well-established car models and introducing new hybrids and electric cars.
Ford recently announced they have discontinued the beloved Fiesta, possibly increasing its value on the used car market over the coming years. In the past, car depreciation almost always followed a downward trend but, over the past two years, the industry has experienced unprecedented changes.
Global supply chain shortages, a slowdown in new car production, and a rapidly changing economy have resulted in used cars holding their value – and, sometimes, values even increasing. When you use Motorway’s Car Value Tracker, you can sign up for monthly alerts reminding you to check your car’s value, so you always have a sense of how quickly your car is losing value.
Motorway has teamed up with Rachel Riley MBE, maths genius and TV presenter, who is encouraging the public to actively track their cars’ value using Motorway’s Car Value Tracker.
“January is the perfect time to take control of your finances and the first thing you can do is take stock of your assets," said Rachel.
"Think about what you own that could be of material value: a car, a mobile phone, a gold necklace? All of these items could be considered assets and, as such, they depreciate and appreciate depending on market conditions and trends.
"An asset such as a car will see prices rise and fall, depending on demand in the used-car market, meaning it’s important to track the value of your car to understand the best time to sell.”
Start tracking the value of your car
To value your car and start tracking now, visit Motorway.co.uk. Simply enter your reg and mileage, and the Car Value Tracker will do the rest. You can enter details for up to six cars and track them all simultaneously.
We value your car by using live market data from daily sales on Motorway’s used car marketplace as well as the broader car market. Then compare how your make and model. based on your reg and mileage, is selling across our nationwide network, against similar vehicles, including older and newer examples.
This ensures our valuations are always as up-to-date, reliable, and accurate as possible. You can enable monthly alerts reminding you to check your car’s value, so you stay in the know and spot trends appearing.
And the best part is: it’s all completely free!
*The research was conducted by Censuswide, with a nationally representative sample of 2,000 adults (aged 18+) between 07.11.2022 and 12.12.2022.
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