In 2019, 2.3 million new cars were registered in the UK but in 2020, there were only 1.6 million new registrations. That’s a huge drop!
Research by Kwik Fit found that an estimated 3.8 million UK drivers who were planning to sell their cars, decided to keep them instead after spending money on repairs. Another investigation by CarGuide showed that because of COVID-19, 32% of UK drivers didn’t change their cars in 2020. This study also suggests that the trend will carry on into 2021 with 36% of drivers saying that aren’t looking to change their car this year either.
Although the temptation to get a new car can be sizeable, many are realising that it’s a much more cost-effective plan to keep the car they already have and invest a small amount of money into repairs.
One in ten surveyed said that they only spent £250 on repairs, and they kept the car for another 12 months. This works out to around £21 per month!
What does this mean for you? Well, if you are one of the thirty-something percent that isn’t looking to get a new car, you will need to invest more in your repairs. As good as cars are, there’s a myriad of wear and tear items that will need replacing over time.
Common Wear and Tear Car Repairs
Of course, there are the obvious items that most are aware of such as brakes, tyres and wipers but there’s more to look out for. Your timing belt for example is key to making sure your engine runs smoothly, but these usually wear out at around every 5 years or 60,000 miles. A broken timing belt can cause catastrophic damage to your engine so we strongly advise getting this replaced before it is too late. A timing belt replacement before it snaps is around £300 depending on your car but if you wait until after it snaps and ruins your engine, you could be looking at 10-15 times more in repair bills!
Other things to be prepared for include gearbox flushing, replacement filters, brake fluid servicing and much more. Luckily, at CCM we can do all of this and more! Our technicians have years of experience under their belts. From the simplest of jobs to the most technical, you can trust us to get you back on the road safely.