Buying a pre-owned bakkie? Here’s what you should know

by Caira-lee Durand

February 21, 2019

Buying a pre-owned bakkie? Here's what you should know_istock

The rest of the world might call them pick-ups or utes but we call them bakkies and they remain South Africa’s best-selling vehicles.

In 2018 the Toyota Hilux and the Ford Ranger once again topped the SA auto retail charts with Nissan, Isuzu and VW Amarok holding solid sales numbers.

Gumtree Autos Jeff Osborne says the trade in pre-owned bakkies also remains extremely healthy with more than 10,000 Gumtree listings right across the country priced from R18,000 to R800,000.

Osborne offers some basic tips for the best way to buy a pre-owned bakkie.

  1. Mileage doesn’t matter so much because these beasts are built to last. Some have cracked a million kms and 40% of listed bakkies have done more than 100,000 km. What matters more is how they have been looked after so check the service record and investigate whether there has been a major replacement recently of something like a clutch.
  2. Think clearly about what you need the bakkie for – is it a workhorse or more of a town vehicle? For the former, ruggedness and reliability take priority, for the latter interior comforts are important and a double cab for extra passengers is essential.
  3. Focus on the basics and don’t be distracted by features which you can add-on yourself as required. Concentrate on the functionality of the vehicle and its suitability for the task at hand.
  4. Bakkies are thirsty so fuel consumption can be a major expense. Don’t go for more power than you need and understand that the newer models have better fuel efficiency technology.
  5. Buy the best and use the 2018 Gumtree Pre-Owned Car Awards as a guide. The judges assessed a range of factors including re-sale value, running costs and performance on 2016 double cab bakkies 4×2 under R460 000 and voted for the Toyota Hilux 2.8 GD-6 Raised Body Raider (A) as the winner with the Ford Ranger 3.2 TDCi Wildtrak (A) as runner up. The VW Amarok 2.0 BiTDi Highline 132kW, Isuzu KB300 D-TEQ LX and Nissan Navara 2.5dCi LE also made the final shortlist.