09/01/2026
As a Certified Financial Planner®, I’m trained to start with one question before any big decision:
What does this do to cash flow, capital, and long-term options?
That applies to cars too.
If you evaluate a vehicle emotionally, you’ll choose one way.
If you evaluate it financially, you start asking different questions.
And the answer often comes down to this: is the car a lifestyle choice… or a recurring capital decision?
I recently bought a second-hand BYD Dolphin (10,000 km) for R450,000 as my daily-use vehicle.
Not because it’s trendy — but because when you run the numbers properly, it’s exceptionally capital-efficient.
And this wasn’t a compromise on comfort or tech either. It’s quiet, comfortable, well-equipped, and genuinely easy to live with day-to-day.
Here’s what the maths looks like using the same framework I use with clients (prime finance, 48 months, conservative depreciation):
• Monthly finance: ~R11,700 vs ~R32,500 (a typical R1.25m SUV)
• Energy cost: R0 (off-grid home charging) vs ~R12,000/month in fuel
• Depreciation over ~4 years: ~R250k vs ~R750k
All-in over four years:
• Typical SUV: ~R1.64m
• BYD Dolphin: ~R360k
That’s roughly a R1.28m difference.
And the key point: you don’t “make your money back” only when you sell the car.
You recover value every month through lower interest, lower depreciation, and better cash flow.
This isn’t ideology. It’s simply capital efficiency — and for many households, it can meaningfully improve monthly breathing room without giving up a good driving experience.
Would you ever consider separating “daily efficiency” from “occasional capability” when choosing a vehicle — or do you prefer one car that does everything?
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