If you are planning to buy a second hand car, you should be prepared to cough up nearly double the amount of money you would have paid a few months ago for the 2015 model vehicles, which are the lowest model year legally allowed into the country. The cost of second hand Vitz is now over Sh. 1 million while the cost of a Nissan Xtrail has risen by over Sh. 750,000.

A Toyota Vitz that used to cost Sh. around Sh. 700,000 has now risen by 44 per cent to Sh. 1.07 million. Apart from the hike in cost of second hand Vitz, the the cost of Nissan Note has gone up by 39 percent to Sh. 938, 000. According to a report that appeared in the Business Daily newspaper on Monday, the Toyota Rav 4 vehicle has gone up by over Sh. 750,000 to Sh. 2.84 million. This is a 52 percent jump from its previous selling price.

At the same time, the Toyota Harrier is now going for Sh. 3.64 million, up from Sh. 2.22 million, with some sellers pricing it at nearly Sh. 4 million. The price of a Toyota Premio has also increased to over Sh. 2 million from the previous price of Sh. 1.6 million.

A 2015 Toyota Pradois being imported at Sh. 4.7 million up from Sh. 3.6 million. This represents a 31 percent jump in the review period. However, a spot check on the market shows that this Toyota Prado is also selling at highs of Sh. 5 million to 6 million.

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Motor vehicle importers are expecting the prices to keep increasing throughout this year. “Prices have gone haywire since the start of quarter four last year and are unlikely to come down and will defy the January-March cycle,” Charles Munyori, the secretary-general of Kenya Auto Bazaar Association, told the newspaper. “The cost of the dollar locally is also a factor. Last year the dollar was retailing between Sh. 105 and Sh. 110. Currently, it is at Sh. 115 and above, depending on the source.”