Buying a car fixer upper might seem counterintuitive since cars often depreciate in value. Follow this guide, however, and your investment may grow.
The average new car in the United States retails for over $30,000. While used cars, on average, are cheaper, they can still cost a pretty penny.
That’s bad news for consumers but great news for you if you’re looking to sell. As a matter of fact, if you know which investments to put into the car you own, you could sell your car for well above what its average going rate is.
But which car fixer upper modifications are worth making to your vehicle? What’s likely to push up your car’s desirability in the open market?
Below, we answer that question by sharing ten investments that can equal some serious returns.
1. Invest in a Better Center Console
Touch screens are all the rage outside of vehicles. It stands to reason that they’d also be popular when people are behind the wheel.
Hence the growth in popularity that we’ve seen with touchscreen center consoles.
Touchscreen center consoles can do everything from control radios to enable GPS use. If your car doesn’t come with one of these as stock, head to a body shop and have one installed.
2. Throw in Some Floor Mats
While more simple than a center console, floor mats can be very valuable in their own way. It’s an industry trend that most cars these days are coming void of mats which is exposing new car’s carpets to additional ware and tare.
By including quality mats in your vehicle, you may find that buyers are willing to spend a little more on your car.
3. Up Your Speaker Game
There’s no extra-circular activity more popular when driving than listening to music, podcasts, etc. Believe when we say that all of that listening is made much more fun with high-quality car audio system packages installed.
Aftermarket audio system packages can be found at discounts during certain times of the year in select shops. If these packages are impressive, you can bet that buyers will absolutely see your car as being worth more to them.
4. Light up Your Interior
Almost every car has boring, white/yellow interior lights. Select cars, however, take their interior light game to the next level by installing multi-colored lighting.
That lighting can make a huge visual difference when operating your vehicle in the evening.
5. Take the Leap to Leather
When you purchased your car, maybe you didn’t have the money to invest in a premium iteration of your vehicle that came with leather seats. That shouldn’t stop you from making the leap to leather today.
Just about any body shop can replace their existing upholstery and throw in leather in its stead. Leather seats are always more valuable than other materials when you’re marketing your car to higher-end buyers.
6. Buy New Tires
New tires not only look great on a car but they’re also a pragmatic upgrade. They allow your car to grip the road better, can help fuel economy, and more.
So, whether your focus is on increasing value or boosting safety behind the wheel, tires are always a great investment.
7. Sport Nice Rims
Nice rims are perhaps the most culturally celebrated means of upgrading a car’s look. Remember when spinning rims used to be all the rage?
Today, rims are typically judged by size and build quality. The better your rims fair in those categories, the more buyers will likely be willing to pay for your car.
8. Make Your Car Device Friendly
A car without USB ports is a car that’s going to have a hard time finding its market. People are spending more time on their phones than ever and need a means to charge their devices on the go.
What’s more is that there’s a growing expectation that car’s USBs not only charge devices but enable devices to interface with car’s stereo systems.
Given how common those wishes are becoming, there’s an increasing amount of body shops that are selling affordable USB interface packages.
9. Get Wrapped
You’ve undoubtedly heard of painting your vehicle. What’s becoming more popular today though is wrapping your vehicle.
Vehicle wraps are essentially large stickers that seamlessly wrap around the body of your car. They enable people to change their car’s color without effecting its original coat of paint which allows for easy switch-backs and savings.
By wrapping your car in a color that’s uncommon for its make/model, you could attract several niche buyers that are willing to pay more.
10. Tint Away
Who doesn’t like privacy while they’re driving?
Window tinting enables people to sit in their vehicles without onlookers being able to peer inside to see what they’re doing. Hence why several buyers are willing to pay a premium for cars that have window tinting.
Note that there are legal limits to how much you can tint your car’s windows in some areas. Stay in compliance with those limits so not to make this car fixer upper modification one that hurts your vehicle’s value more than it helps it.
Car Fixer Upper Modifications Improve Driving Experiences and Fatten Wallets
What we love about investing in certain car fixer upper modifications is that they not only make your driving experience more pleasurable but can also fatten your wallet when you go to sell. Our team hopes that the modification suggestions we’ve made help you achieve those ends!
Are you still hungry for more insight into cars? If you are, head back to our blog directory to check out the newest content we have posted.
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