Cars you can buy for under R350,000 in South Africa right now

·25 Feb 2023

Despite heightened inflation and a cost-of-living crisis in South Africa, 50% of new vehicle buyers are financing a car with a price tag of over R300,000.

According to TransUnion’s latest Customer Pulse study, the price points of cars (new and used) being financed have seen upward movement year-on-year, with a clear move from under R200,000 to over R300,000 bracket.

This is partly because a limited number of quality vehicles are now available under R200,000, said TransUnion.

In South Africa, there are roughly ten new cars available under R200,000. This increases to 23 cars if you bump the value within R250,000.

As a result, TransUnion’s latest Vehicle Price Index showed that only 29% of South Africans buy cars within the R200,000 to R300,000 bracket, while 50% buy vehicles that are over R300,000.

To give you an idea of the cars you could buy within these brackets, BusinessTech looked at the entry-level cars on the market that fall within South Africa’s most popular price bracket.

As it stands, you can buy 29 new vehicles within the R250,000 to R350,000 range.

The cheapest car on this list is the Suzuki Ciaz 1.5 GL –retailing R256,900 at its dealerships. This Sudan produces 77kW of power and 138Nm of torque, which helps with its listed average fuel consumption of only 5.5L/100km.

Using Wesbank’s vehicle finance calculator, assuming no deposit and a 0% balloon payment over five years (60 months) at an interest rate of 10.75%, the estimated monthly repayment is R5,649 per month for the Ciaz.

The abovementioned interest rate follows a recent rate hike by the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) in January, taking the prime rate from 10.5% to 10.75%.

Industry experts still recommend that prospective buyers shouldn’t spend more than a quarter (25%) of their monthly income on vehicle-related costs. So, if you earn R20,000 monthly, your total vehicle expenses should not exceed R5,000. And this should apply to the whole vehicle expense, including:

Vehicle instalments
Insurance premiums
Fuel costs

Considering this recommendation, the minimum monthly salary required to afford the Suzuki Ciaz is R22,596.

On the other end of the spectrum, the most expensive car on this list is the Honda Fit 1.5 Comfort – priced at R347,500 off the showroom floor.

This car has a petrol engine that pushes out 89kW of power and 145Nm of torque, with an average fuel consumption of 5.5 L/100km.

According to Wesbank, the estimated monthly repayments for the Fit is R7,607 per month – meaning the minimum monthly salary required to afford the car is R30,428.

Judging from this statistic and the experts’ recommended budget for vehicle finance – those who earn between R22,000 and R31,000 in the country should be able to afford all 29 cars on this list.

To view all the cars under R250,000, click here.

All 29 new cars with a price tag of R250,000 to R350,000 are listed below.

Suzuki Ciaz