Motoring

Cars that cost the same as the average monthly take-home pay in South Africa

Staff Writer

 ·21 May 2023

The average take-home pay in South Africa is just over R15,000 per month, and there are 15 cars that cost around the same to finance.

According to the latest BankservAfrica Take-home Pay Index (BPTI), the average monthly take-home pay is R15,321.

According to the report, the unexpected headline inflation increase in March, among other factors, led to take-home pay slipping marginally.

“With inflation remaining elevated for longer than hoped for and little indication of a notably different economic environment in 2023, salary adjustments and the job market will likely remain lacklustre this year,” said independent economist Elize Kruger.

Considering the current figure, BusinessTech looked at all the new cars on the market that cost around the same to finance, and 15 vehicles require a monthly instalment close to the average take-home pay.

These cars include several bakkies listed on Naamsa’s best-selling cars list and as well as GWM’s limited edition P Series LTD 4×4.

The new P Series launched in South Africa on Thursday (18 May) and offers exclusive features and GWM’s newly developed four-wheel drive system.

The list below also includes the most powerful Honda Civic – the Civic Type R – which comes with 7kW and 20Nm more than the outgoing model.

While the take-home pay is R15,321, to accommodate this list, we broadened the monthly instalment criteria to between R15,000 to R15,400 – as there are no cars that cost the exact take-home pay amount.

To calculate the monthly instalments of the vehicles on this list, we used WesBank’s repayments calculator with the following parameters:

• Payment term – 60 terms (5 years)
• Interest – 11.25%
• Deposit – 0%
• Balloon – No balloon payment
• Extras – No optional extras

Following these criteria, and the instalment bracket, the cars that will cost you as much as the average take-home pay range between R683,000 and R700,000.

Experts still recommend that prospective car owners spend no more than 25% of their monthly income on vehicle finance. Therefore, people who can afford the cars on this list should earn around R61,500 per month.

The 15 cars will cost you as much as the average take-home pay in South Africa are listed below.

Citreon C5 Aircross 1.6T Shine 

• Price: R683,900
• Monthly instalment: R15,050

Hyundai Tucson 2.0 Elite

• Price: R683,900
• Monthly instalment: R15,050

VW T-Roc 2.0TSI 4Motion R-Line

• Price: R687,100
• Monthly instalment: R15,120

Peugeot Landtrek 1.9TD double cab 4Action 4×4

• Price: R689,900
• Monthly instalment: R15,182

BMW 218i Gran Coupe

• Price: R691,072
• Monthly instalment: R15,207

Toyota RAV4 2.0 VX

• Price: R691,700
• Monthly instalment: R15,221

MINI Cooper S Clubman

• Price: R691,799
• Monthly instalment: R15,223

Isuzu D-Max 3.0TD Extended cab LSE 4×4

• Price: R693,100
• Monthly instalment: R15,252

Ford Ranger 2.0 SiT double cab XLT 4×4

• Price: R693,300
• Monthly instalment: R15,256

Audi A3 sedan 35TFSI S line

• Price: R694,000
• Monthly instalment: R15,271

GWM P-Series 2.0TD double cab LTD 4×4

• Price: R694,950
• Monthly instalment: R15,292

Toyota Hilux 2.8GD-6 single cab 4×4 Raider auto

• Price: R695,300
• Monthly instalment: R15,299

Mitsubishi Triton 2.4DI-D double cab Xtreme

• Price: R698,990
• Monthly instalment: R15,380

Audi Q3 35TFSI

• Price: R699,000
• Monthly instalment: R15,381

Honda Civic sedan 1.5T RS

• Price R699,900
• Monthly instalment: R15,400

Read: The rising cost of owning a car in South Africa – and how much it has changed