Should you buy a new or used WAV?

New vs used wheelchair accessible vehicles

Once you’ve identified your need to buy a wheelchair accessible vehicle, the next decision to make will be should you buy a new or used WAV? There is of course another conversation to be had around should you buy or hire a WAV – but we’ve discussed that here.

Ultimately the decision to buy a new or used WAV comes down to the budget you have available for a WAV, however there are some factors that may come into play – regardless of your budget.

Get more bang for your buck!

There is simply no getting away from it – WAVs are expensive! We all know that buying any new car is a major purchase and many prefer to buy used to avoid the initial depreciation and to hopefully get a slighter high-spec car than they would have been able to afford had they bought new. Wheelchair accessible vehicles are similar, not only are you buying a brand new vehicle you are also paying to have the vehicle initially converted, this in itself can be a major cost. Buying used means that you are buying a vehicle which has already been converted and has most likely passed the point of steepest depreciation. Buying a nearly-new or used WAV potentially means you can get a slightly better equipped WAV than you would if buying new.

Used WAVs are generally low mileage

When you buying a used standard car – it can be a minefield if the car you end up with is a great buy or not. That lovely high-spec vehicle may look fantastic on the outside – it’s not until you find it’s an ex-hire vehicle with almost 100k on the odometer! The vast majority of WAVs have very low mileage in relation to their age. Often WAVs are not used as a main vehicle (certainly not in the same way a family car might be used for commuting), they can sometimes be a second car or only used occassionally. Mileage on a used WAV can quite often be only be around a couple of thousand miles per year and in some instances even less. (Of course there are exceptions with higher mileage) Light-use second-hand wheechair accessible vehicles are easy to find and could save you thousands over the list proce of a new one.

Used WAVs can often be as good as new

When taken with the low mileage of most WAVs (as discussed above) – it’s clear that many wheelchair accessible vehicles are very light-use vehicles.

Perhaps the WAV has been purchased as a vehicle for occasional days out or even just to use for appointments, this mean that some used wheelchair cars can have extremely low use and even though are a few years old could almost be described as nearly-new. These types of used Wheelchair accessible cars are generally well looked after and with minimal use and therefore minimal wear and tear (indeed we’ve had five year-old WAVS which look like they have just driven from the showroom!), these WAVs are defintely be something to consider rather than buying new.

Speed of delivery

What might be a deciding factor for many; the delivery times of the vehicles. At the time of publishing there is a global chip shortage, plus continuing supply chain issues caused by the COVID and Brexit – mean that for many new vehicles it can be up to a year from ordering to finally taking delivery of your new vehicle – when you add in the additional waiting time of the conversion you could be in for a long wait.

Compared to a used wheelchair accessible vehicle, which are usually able to be collected/delivered within a week of selecting the vehicle (sometimes sooner)

This is a critical factor for many, depending on your requirements or the prognosis for the wheelchair user you may not want to wait (or in fact be unable to wait) for up to a year. A used wheelchair accesible vehicle allows you to select a car and have it delivered wihin a week or two.

Warranty and after sales

This is an important factor for all vehicles new or used. Brand new cars come with the manufacturers warranty and usually a warranty for the conversion itself. Depending on where you purchase your used WAV from there is very likely a third-party warranty available, various dealers offer warranties of different lengths – at WavsGB all our used WAVs come with a 12 month RAC vehicle warranty.

New vs old wheelchair accessible vehicles – what should you choose?

Depending on your circumstances and finance this may not be something you have a choice of, but if you are in the market for a Wheelchair car – then some of the factors that may influence your decision are below: