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hi there,
ive got a nz new 2006 corolla glx that has done 52000km with full service history at toyota. wanted to see roughly what will be the trade in price and if i was to sell privately what price i can sell for.

also ive got about $40k to spend on a new car, been looking at a number of different options. toyota corolla, honda civic, vw golf, skoda rapid, octaiva, nissan quashqai. Looking at brand new cars only.
What is the best options if it is your money? Looking at value of money, reliability, equipment, running cost and refinement

Thanks

All the vehicles you mention are good cars, but I'd suggest you try a few first, as you've mentioned such a wide spectrum of vehicles, therefore I think it would be best for you to narrow down the type of vehicle that would suit your needs first.
A few of the vehicles on your list are compact hatchbacks. Of those, the Corolla is the obvious one that has the long-standing reputation for reliabiliy, but equally, most new cars enjoy good reliability these days. The Golf is probably the one that meets the refinement part of your criteria, although Skoda product is basically VW product too, so perhaps the Octavia (being a little bigger than the hatchbacks you mentioned) may tick that box too.
The Qashqai is quite a different proposition, and is really an SUV/Crossover - but is absolutely loaded with equipment so is probably the front-runner in the equipment stakes.
Regarding the value of your trade - it will depend to some degree on what you are buying. For example, Toyota may pay more because they want to keep you with their brand, but if one of the other companies happen to be having a drive to convert buyers into their product, away from NZ's biggest selling brand, they may also offer you a good deal. As the Qashqai is very new to the market and in very high demand at present, Nissan may be less willing to over-inflate the value of your trade.
It's impossible for me to say what a dealer might offer you for your trade but as a guide, I'd have thought your Corolla would have a trade-in value of at least $10k and perhaps around 15% to 20% more as a private sale.

Thanks for the advice. Wanted to see if it was your money which option would you likely go for.
Also now that you have mentioned about the sale price for my corolla, I am actually in two minds on what to do. Do you think I should sell the corolla and purchase a new car or should I hold off from the upgrade?
Lastly if I do decide to hold on to the corolla, what do you think the value of the trade in or private sale price be say in 1 year time and I put on another 10000km.
Thanks

Don't take my word for it, as to the value of your trade. As I said, it's impossible for me to say (sitting at my desk, and sight unseen) what a dealer might offer you for your trade. The only way to know for sure is to present it to a dealer and ask the question.
Yes, you're likely to get a better price if you sell the Corolla privately, then go shopping for a new car - but it may not be as convenient as driving it into the dealership and driving out in the new car.
It's a real unknown how another year and 10,000kms might affect the value of your car, but it's fair to say that it won't be worth as much as it is today. However, the $$ value of depreciation does slow down a little as the value reduces.
My advice would be;
1) Determine what car would suit your purpose
2) Ask the dealer to give yo a change-over price
3) Decide whether that's acceptable to you
4) If not acceptable
a) Decide to try to sell your car privately - then purchase the new car once sold
b) Decide to delay the purchase and revisit the idea when finances are more favourable. However, remember that the change-over figure will be greater, the older your car gets.
As to which one I'd personally go for, it really bears no relevance as my needs and yours may be entirely different. Currently, my lifestyle dictates that an SUV suits my needs, so it would probably be the Qashqai, but from a pure "driver's" perspective, the Golf has a great chassis, so that appeals. The Corolla and Civic would both be easy cars to live with and retain their value well, and both Skodas are excellent - still quite under-rated in New Zealand. So all these cars perform a particular function very well, so it's up to you to decide which one performs the functions you require.

Thank you very much, the information is very helpful.
Just one last question, my friend has mentioned that all the cars that I'm interested in has either got the CVT gearbox or the DSG gearbox. He has mentioned that both those gearbox are not very reliable gearbox and has a their fair share of recalls. I am worry about future maintenance bills as I usually keep my cars for 5-10 years.
Is this something that I need to be worry about. As the car needs to be driven by my wife as well so manual transmission is out of the question.

Your friend is half right. That being that they're all either CVT or DSG. The reality is that almost all cars have one or the other of these types of transmission today. The only real exceptions being Mazda, Kia, Hyundai and premium brands such as BMW, Mercedes-Benz etc.
Almost all Japanese manufacturers use CVTs today and most European brands have DCTs (Double Clutch Transmissions, of which the DSG is one).
Both of these technologies had their teething problems in the early days, with CVTs from around 2000 to perhaps 2009/10 being quite problematic. Likewise, the DSG had some problems, and there was a recall. FYI, recalls are a good thing as it really means that the manufacturer has recognised problems and is addressing them.
Having said that, these days, the issues seem to be resolved with both types of transmission and I'd have no hesitation in buying either today.

Thank you! I think I have narrow down to the vw golf. I'm about to go into negotiation for the purchase price. May I ask how much of a discount does dealership usually give

It really comes down to the change-over price when you are offering up a trade-in. While the dealer will always have some room to move, it is not likely to be by thousands. My guess is that if you can negotiate the dealer's initial change-over price by around $1,000, you'll be doing well.