Topic: What Car Do You Own/Drive?

[TheKid.]

I started my leasing off about 4 years ago (2 cars ago) by using leasing.com to compare deals then went with the lease company who I liked the best

You get a lot more bang for your buck leasing than buying on hired purchase (or whatever it’s called now)

[Cohiba]

Thank you thekid, will have a look.

[TheKid.]

Last two cars I’ve had were an A4 sport for £167 a month, then an A4 Black Edition for £205 a month

Got an A5 sportback S Line due in February for £197 a month so there are great deals out there

I guess the off putting bit is the big ish initial payment you usually make

[nuts100]

Last two cars I’ve had were an A4 sport for £167 a month, then an A4 Black Edition for £205 a month

Got an A5 sportback S Line due in February for £197 a month so there are great deals out there

I guess the off putting bit is the big ish initial payment you usually make

Great cars and good prices. What do you have to put down to get the payments that low
Over here you can get leases with nothing down, but payments go up
All Audis etc you have to put a deposit and pay the sales tax

[[new username under construction]]

I guess the off putting bit is the big ish initial payment you usually make

That's also a plus though as you can turn your initial payment down to one months lease cost. Yes your monthly payments then go up but you can balance it so it's right for you

I don't think I'll ever buy a car again now I've leased a few

[blacksun]

Higher the price of the car, higher is the depreciation.

My friend works in a showroom had this to say about an Audi A6. It retails in Germany at about 60k Euros new car with decent features and accessories. You buy one, drive it around a week and say, 500kms later, its only worth 50k.

Its a really long image but it gives you an idea about how a new car is NOT an investment (yet!)

https://i.pinimg.com/originals/a5/2d/b6/a52db63a0a4469c9de9f8787af8c33ae.jpg

P.S. This is for the US market. I will search for a chart in the EU/UK market.

Yeah I get that I work for a Chevy dealer in the US but I am just astounded the R8 specifically drops that bad.

[blacksun]

That's also a plus though as you can turn your initial payment down to one months lease cost. Yes your monthly payments then go up but you can balance it so it's right for you

I don't think I'll ever buy a car again now I've leased a few

I've leased my last three and I wont go back, new car every three years with a payment the same or lower than if i bought it and all I'm losing is the depreciation I would of lost anyway.

[[new username under construction]]

Out of interest, what is a good leasing company online? I usually go with the manufacturer

[TheKid.]

Not sure who the best are about, I use leasing.com then just pick the best value

[AndyInVA]

Yeah I get that I work for a Chevy dealer in the US but I am just astounded the R8 specifically drops that bad.

Thats really interesting. I just bought a Chevy Silverado 4 door brand new. I had never bought a new car before and put zero effort into looking other than a few web searches to make sure the price was what I was expecting. It is interesting that you would never buy a new car.

I kept my last one for 14 years and would expect to keep this one for at least 10 years. For that duration I feel like it should pay off compared to getting a new one every few years. Also here, it looks like used pick ups still have a high value, it looked like it made sense to pay a few more thousand and get a warranty.

[MBL?]

Test drove one of these today.

https://www.topgear.com/car-reviews/toyota/gr-yaris



What a car! Ordering one tomorrow.

They haven’t released the price here but it’s looking like over €50k. I don’t envy you brits about much but when it comes to car prices...

To give you an example I’m considering buying a 2019 gti pp that is admittedly well specced but it’s coming to 35,400 Sterling.

[Drinks Sangria]

Could do with some help from some knowledgeable Rawkites - I know next to nothing about cars. I did post something similar a while back but the time has crept up on me - my PCP deal is running out in March and I intend to hand the car back - JCW Mini, which has been fun but I've had some horrible luck with it (windows put through on two occasions whilst down in London - privacy glass at £600 a side to replace) and barely driven it in the last year for obvious reasons.

I want to spend as little as possible (less than £2000) on an estate/saloon/4x4 that will give as much reliability as can be expected. Ideally I want to get 2-3 years out of it, as I'm buying a house this year and getting back the £270 a month the mini runs me will help big time when I move to a bigger mortgage, bigger bills etc.

I've looked at Volvo V50s (03-06 range), Honda Accords, Ford Focus' and Toyota Avensis' - all online. I need to start test driving and in all likelihood buy something soon. I will only be driving it about 3 times a week as I'm working from home for the foreseeable and even once the pandemic is 'over,' we're only going back to the office for 3 days a week (I commute from a small semi-rural village) into Chester for work, mainly A road and then grindy miles once in town. Maybe max 6,000 miles a year (high end estimate).

Not bothered about it looking shit, I just want it to drive decent, be fairly economical and most importantly be obtained within my budget.

Any recommendations or help would be massively appreciated - cars are where I know next to nothing.

[rob1966]

Could do with some help from some knowledgeable Rawkites - I know next to nothing about cars. I did post something similar a while back but the time has crept up on me - my PCP deal is running out in March and I intend to hand the car back - JCW Mini, which has been fun but I've had some horrible luck with it (windows put through on two occasions whilst down in London - privacy glass at £600 a side to replace) and barely driven it in the last year for obvious reasons.

I want to spend as little as possible (less than £2000) on an estate/saloon/4x4 that will give as much reliability as can be expected. Ideally I want to get 2-3 years out of it, as I'm buying a house this year and getting back the £270 a month the mini runs me will help big time when I move to a bigger mortgage, bigger bills etc.

I've looked at Volvo V50s (03-06 range), Honda Accords, Ford Focus' and Toyota Avensis' - all online. I need to start test driving and in all likelihood buy something soon. I will only be driving it about 3 times a week as I'm working from home for the foreseeable and even once the pandemic is 'over,' we're only going back to the office for 3 days a week (I commute from a small semi-rural village) into Chester for work, mainly A road and then grindy miles once in town. Maybe max 6,000 miles a year (high end estimate).

Not bothered about it looking shit, I just want it to drive decent, be fairly economical and most importantly be obtained within my budget.

Any recommendations or help would be massively appreciated - cars are where I know next to nothing.

The cars you are looking at are all a good choice, also consider an S40/S60 if in your price range. I'm on a Jaguar forum and one fella was talking this week about how good his V50 was and talked about getting over 50mpg from it.

[JC the Messiah]

Always been happy with the reliability of Japanese cars. Honda in particular have been very inexpensive to run. The missus runs an 06-plate CR-V, and it's ultra-reliable.

[rob1966]

Always been happy with the reliability of Japanese cars. Honda in particular have been very inexpensive to run. The missus runs an 06-plate CR-V, and it's ultra-reliable.

Honda over engineer everything, their bikes are capable of doing huge (for motorbikes) mileages, they just build everything so well.

[Oscarmac]

Could do with some help from some knowledgeable Rawkites - I know next to nothing about cars. I did post something similar a while back but the time has crept up on me - my PCP deal is running out in March and I intend to hand the car back - JCW Mini, which has been fun but I've had some horrible luck with it (windows put through on two occasions whilst down in London - privacy glass at £600 a side to replace) and barely driven it in the last year for obvious reasons.

I want to spend as little as possible (less than £2000) on an estate/saloon/4x4 that will give as much reliability as can be expected. Ideally I want to get 2-3 years out of it, as I'm buying a house this year and getting back the £270 a month the mini runs me will help big time when I move to a bigger mortgage, bigger bills etc.

I've looked at Volvo V50s (03-06 range), Honda Accords, Ford Focus' and Toyota Avensis' - all online. I need to start test driving and in all likelihood buy something soon. I will only be driving it about 3 times a week as I'm working from home for the foreseeable and even once the pandemic is 'over,' we're only going back to the office for 3 days a week (I commute from a small semi-rural village) into Chester for work, mainly A road and then grindy miles once in town. Maybe max 6,000 miles a year (high end estimate).

Not bothered about it looking shit, I just want it to drive decent, be fairly economical and most importantly be obtained within my budget.

Any recommendations or help would be massively appreciated - cars are where I know next to nothing.

If you are buying a house an estate is very handy, and a tow bar or roof rack. In your price range I would ask a mechanic/friend who knows about cars to source you something and give them £150/200. Good luck with house and car mate.

[JC the Messiah]

They haven’t released the price here but it’s looking like over €50k. I don’t envy you brits about much but when it comes to car prices...

To give you an example I’m considering buying a 2019 gti pp that is admittedly well specced but it’s coming to 35,400 Sterling.

Hasn't realised it wasn't available yet over there.

The best review I've seen, not for detail, but for the enthusiasm and joy of the reviewer it's from Ireland:


<a href="https://youtube.com/v/D8s3jv1_m24" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">https://youtube.com/v/D8s3jv1_m24</a>

[Drinks Sangria]

Cheers for all the replies - confirmed some thoughts I had and given me a few more to look at.

I did fancy the CR-V, ones that have a reasonable track record at MOT though are pushing £3,000 and with £300 odd road tax on top. £2000 isn't a hard budget, I'll pay more for something that ticks all the boxes (beggars can't be choosers at that price point, granted) but is a guideline.

Due to the age of the cars I'm generally looking at, the GOV.UK's MOT history page is a godsend. Granted I know little about cars but seeing MOT failures for needing replacement tyres is very different to what looks like some fairly catastrophic issues I've seen on cars that otherwise looked decent on the face of it. Risky business buying used cars of this age.

In an ideal world we'd just use my Girlfriend's Golf for everything, but it's not realistic to expect her to drive me to work on days I'm needed in the office when she's full time also. Hence the need for 'does the job, is reliable and affordable.'

[JC the Messiah]

As others have mentioned, if you have a relative or friend who is a mechanic, or generally technically knowledgeable with cars, it's worth getting them to check over any cars of that age for sure.

The missus' brother is a mechanic, and I bought a JCW Mini about 10 years ago (the older, supercharged, version). He warned me off the first two we looked at, and gave the green light to the third. Probably saved me a lot of money.

[Drinks Sangria]

Thank you, I've a mate who used to be a mechanic so will see if he is free to tag along to any test drives. I like the look of some of the Lexus saloons - AutoTrader is a minefield, there's a lot on there that are suspiciously cheap.

[rob1966]

Thank you, I've a mate who used to be a mechanic so will see if he is free to tag along to any test drives. I like the look of some of the Lexus saloons - AutoTrader is a minefield, there's a lot on there that are suspiciously cheap.

Lexus are posh Toyotas, so will be really reliable too, I think they finish No1 or 2 in the lists. Swerve French cars. Might be an idea to go to a dealer to at least give you some comeback if anything goes wrong.

Try and get one with as good a service history as you can, do what you did with the MOT on any car you fancy as well.

[blacksun]

Thats really interesting. I just bought a Chevy Silverado 4 door brand new. I had never bought a new car before and put zero effort into looking other than a few web searches to make sure the price was what I was expecting. It is interesting that you would never buy a new car.

I kept my last one for 14 years and would expect to keep this one for at least 10 years. For that duration I feel like it should pay off compared to getting a new one every few years. Also here, it looks like used pick ups still have a high value, it looked like it made sense to pay a few more thousand and get a warranty.

Well my wife also works at the dealership as the warranty admin so anything that needs doing is pretty much covered under warranty for the first 3 years, then we give the car back and start again. It costs us nothing in repairs and we live five mins from the dealership so we don't put a lot of miles on the car, if you do a lot of miles per year then leasing may not be for you but for us it works great.

All the senior management here lease rather than buy.

[rob1966]

Well my wife also works at the dealership as the warranty admin so anything that needs doing is pretty much covered under warranty for the first 3 years, then we give the car back and start again. It costs us nothing in repairs and we live five mins from the dealership so we don't put a lot of miles on the car, if you do a lot of miles per year then leasing may not be for you but for us it works great.

All the senior management here lease rather than buy.

It's all individual preferences and whether you are arsed about having the newest model. My car is 11 years old, I've had it 4 years and intend to keep it until it dies. Its got leather, heated seats/windscreen/ bluetooth phone etc. The touchscreen for radio/climate/sat nav was state of the art in 2009 but outdated now, but I can get a full android system for £600 if I want. The car cost £6200, its cost me £100 in repairs. Wife's car was bought as a 9 month old car in 2006, cost just over £9k, £130 in repairs since she got it, walks the MOT every year. If we both leased we'd be looking at over £14k every 3 years, my wife would have spent over £30k so far, which would be £21k wasted.

[MBL?]

Thank you, I've a mate who used to be a mechanic so will see if he is free to tag along to any test drives. I like the look of some of the Lexus saloons - AutoTrader is a minefield, there's a lot on there that are suspiciously cheap.

Ive a 10 going on 11 year old Lexus gs450h that I’m looking to change now. It hasn’t missed a beat and it’s pretty well known that they are the most reliable of the “luxury” brands. In saying that it is not a practical car at all as the batteries are between the back seats and boot. From 2012 they are under the back seat so the boot is much bigger.

[blacksun]

It's all individual preferences and whether you are arsed about having the newest model. My car is 11 years old, I've had it 4 years and intend to keep it until it dies. Its got leather, heated seats/windscreen/ bluetooth phone etc. The touchscreen for radio/climate/sat nav was state of the art in 2009 but outdated now, but I can get a full android system for £600 if I want. The car cost £6200, its cost me £100 in repairs. Wife's car was bought as a 9 month old car in 2006, cost just over £9k, £130 in repairs since she got it, walks the MOT every year. If we both leased we'd be looking at over £14k every 3 years, my wife would have spent over £30k so far, which would be £21k wasted.

Geez that sounds expensive, I spend about 300 quid a month for a $40K Blazer and the last one was just over 400 for a $60K Camaro SS. It'll cost me 10K over the 3 years but I'd have lost that in depreciation if I'd bought it so no real difference either way but we get a new car every three years and that cuts down on maintenance costs etc so it works for us

[rob1966]

Geez that sounds expensive, I spend about 300 quid a month for a $40K Blazer and the last one was just over 400 for a $60K Camaro SS. It'll cost me 10K over the 3 years but I'd have lost that in depreciation if I'd bought it so no real difference either way but we get a new car every three years and that cuts down on maintenance costs etc so it works for us

Because for me and the wife having a new car doesn't interest us, it works for us. Her car was 6 months old when bought, had about 12,000 miles on it, its not even done 70k now. The first £5,000 hit on depreciation was met by someone else and so over the 15 years she has owned it, its cost £600 a year to own, I service it myself so that keeps the running costs right down. Its covered in dents and scratches too and she doesn't care, still drives as well as anything. My car was around £30k new, someone else took that £23k hit. I pay around £250 each year for a service, I do it to keep a full service history. The car is now worth about £3200, so its cost me around £750 a year so far and that'll drop as I expect at some point values will go up as the car becomes collectable.

I think once electric cars become mandatory in the UK, leasing will be the only way to go as electric cars cost an absolute fortune, a Mini starts at £29k and they will likely hold their value, so leasing will make the most sense

[L4Red]

Where's the best place to sell cars now? Got a 2007 520d Msport Touring to get rid of, almost out of MOT and 158k so obviously not expecting much for it. Assume these we buy any car gaffs are all a swizz?

Thanks in advance

[WhoHe]

Yes I think WeBuyAnycar etc. are after getting it for nothing, the last time I sold a car my son-in-law stuck it on a Facebook site (for Liverpool) and it sold easy. You can use Autotrader.co.uk to get a valuation so you know what roughly to ask for, not sure about selling on there these days. Don't do Facebook but I'm sure a search would get it.

[rob1966]

Where's the best place to sell cars now? Got a 2007 520d Msport Touring to get rid of, almost out of MOT and 158k so obviously not expecting much for it. Assume these we buy any car gaffs are all a swizz?

Thanks in advance

Yeah WBAC will offer you loads less than its worth as they buy them to send to Auction.

Not sold a car in years so no idea where is best. When my father in law had to stop driving in about 2015/16, he had a 2004 520 SE (I think it was) with a average mileage but damaged/scraped/dented all along the passenger side, her brother sold it to Evans Halshaw, gave him about £2800, WBAC offered around £1300.

A quick Google found a couple of cars same as yours, around 141k for over £3500? Be worth you nipping into a dealer and asking

[gamble]

Where's the best place to sell cars now? Got a 2007 520d Msport Touring to get rid of, almost out of MOT and 158k so obviously not expecting much for it. Assume these we buy any car gaffs are all a swizz?

Thanks in advance

I'd try sell it private, I've had the same car. It's really well thought of for those in the know. The F10/F11 and the G30/G31 have a lot more electronic issues and the old Bangle Bimmer was a classic.

S Class or 7 Series? Does anyone have any experience of either?

[arthur sarnoff]

I'd try sell it private, I've had the same car. It's really well thought of for those in the know. The F10/F11 and the G30/G31 have a lot more electronic issues and the old Bangle Bimmer was a classic.

S Class or 7 Series? Does anyone have any experience of either?

Driven both, yes.  Current model BMW and the S class that was launched in 2013 and only really had a facelift so far, I think, although that may be wrong.  BMW is a better drive for me, but some of the fitting feels a bit cheap for something that price.

[Charlie Adams fried egg]

Where's the best place to sell cars now? Got a 2007 520d Msport Touring to get rid of, almost out of MOT and 158k so obviously not expecting much for it. Assume these we buy any car gaffs are all a swizz?

Thanks in advance

I've always used autotrader and have had good experiences. Done 4 sales over last few years and all have gone without a hitch.
If you get calls fairly soon after listing, in my experience they tend to be genuine buyers that have match notifications set up. I think you can always tell from the phone call whether they want it too.

I always price them to sell, but may offer a small, and I mean small discount. But they'll have probably done their research too and will know the price is on the money.

I'm not sure about other sites, but I know Autotrader has the reach. Because it's a big site it can really help you price the car too.

For the bigger transactions I've had people send me money while sat in my kitchen. I just go upstairs and shift it to another account as soon as it's hit the one I gave details for. Maybe I've been lucky but all the people I've sold to have been sound.

[L4Red]

Thanks lads, gonna take some decent pics this weekend and put an honest listing on auto trader. Seems I could get a little bit more than I expected, don't really want the hassle/expense of another MOT (prob needs a new tyre as minimum) and there are one or two little electric faults (sensors/lamp warnings but still working) and it's got about 6 weeks left so fingers crossed someone takes a punt.
It only had one advisory on the last MOT that I got sorted by the garage there and then and has barely done any miles since.

[rob1966]

Thanks lads, gonna take some decent pics this weekend and put an honest listing on auto trader. Seems I could get a little bit more than I expected, don't really want the hassle/expense of another MOT (prob needs a new tyre as minimum) and there are one or two little electric faults (sensors/lamp warnings but still working) and it's got about 6 weeks left so fingers crossed someone takes a punt.
It only had one advisory on the last MOT that I got sorted by the garage there and then and has barely done any miles since.

If you can, I would put it through an MOT. A part worn tyre might be all you need and it'll pay for itself when selling it. If I was looking at a car with only 6 weeks left on its MOT, then I'd be trying to get it as cheap as possible.

[Son of Spion]

If you can, I would put it through an MOT. A part worn tyre might be all you need and it'll pay for itself when selling it. If I was looking at a car with only 6 weeks left on its MOT, then I'd be trying to get it as cheap as possible.

I'm no used car salesman, but I'd agree with you there, Rob.

I've just bought a car I found on AutoTrader after looking for what I wanted for some time. To be honest, I'd not touch anything that only had weeks left before it needed a new MOT. Twelve months MOT is a good selling point, but six weeks definitely isn't. With barely no MOT left on it, I'd want it as cheap as chips or not at all. Why would a potential buyer take the risk unless it was for a really low price? A little pre-sale TLC could make all the difference on the eventual purchase price, I'd say.

Anyway, I hope the sale goes well, L4Red.

[L4Red]

Thanks lads. Gonna try and get someone to give it the once over and see if it would pass with a very minimal amount spent, e.g a new tyre tops. If not I don't want it to fail an MOT and I'm basically stuck with a lump of scrap metal that I've got to get repaired and won't recoup the money.

I've got a new car good to go and it's a great deal but don't want to be paying for two any longer than I have to!

[rob1966]

Thanks lads. Gonna try and get someone to give it the once over and see if it would pass with a very minimal amount spent, e.g a new tyre tops. If not I don't want it to fail an MOT and I'm basically stuck with a lump of scrap metal that I've got to get repaired and won't recoup the money.

I've got a new car good to go and it's a great deal but don't want to be paying for two any longer than I have to!

Best option.  Do you have a regular MOT place you go to who could give it a once over?

[Drinks Sangria]

Been continuing the car search. Went and had a look at a Volvo C30 last week in Prenton, drove quite nicely, sounded fine and seemed sound but there's a few issues on it's MOT history I want my mate, a former mechanic, to take a look at before I'd go for it. Priced at £2000 currently for an 08 plate with 114k on the clock. Maybe not quite spacious enough for me though (I'm not the biggest youth but I'm lumped with taking my team's footy gear everywhere and routinely have two dogs we like to drive out with for long walks).

I've not really read anything reliable as to where Car Sales sit now with the renewed lockdown - I'd say I'm pretty safe in assuming that dealerships are closed for the time being in a traditional sense and can operate a click and collect sort of set up. Anyone who's buying click and collect without viewing and driving first though is taking a risk I'm personally uncomfortable with.

[rob1966]

Been continuing the car search. Went and had a look at a Volvo C30 last week in Prenton, drove quite nicely, sounded fine and seemed sound but there's a few issues on it's MOT history I want my mate, a former mechanic, to take a look at before I'd go for it. Priced at £2000 currently for an 08 plate with 114k on the clock. Maybe not quite spacious enough for me though (I'm not the biggest youth but I'm lumped with taking my team's footy gear everywhere and routinely have two dogs we like to drive out with for long walks).

I've not really read anything reliable as to where Car Sales sit now with the renewed lockdown - I'd say I'm pretty safe in assuming that dealerships are closed for the time being in a traditional sense and can operate a click and collect sort of set up. Anyone who's buying click and collect without viewing and driving first though is taking a risk I'm personally uncomfortable with.

Cazoo 

Yes, dealerships are closed again, they can do click and collect though or delivery. A lot depends on the dealer you are buying from. A franchised dealership really should have the car ready to go, especially in this climate, but a lot of smaller ones only fix faults if the buyer spots them. The likes of Cazoo etc do offer a full refund within 7 days and also give you 7 days insurance, so you can change your mind - I've noticed they are more expensive than a main dealer though. Obviously at £2k you're looking at a small dealer.

If you pay on credit card then at least you have some protection.

https://cardealermagazine.co.uk/publish/qa-can-car-dealers-open-in-the-new-2021-national-lockdown-can-i-buy-a-car-in-the-third-lockdown-will-there-be-an-mot-exemption/212264

[Drinks Sangria]

Cazoo 

Yes, dealerships are closed again, they can do click and collect though or delivery. A lot depends on the dealer you are buying from. A franchised dealership really should have the car ready to go, especially in this climate, but a lot of smaller ones only fix faults if the buyer spots them. The likes of Cazoo etc do offer a full refund within 7 days and also give you 7 days insurance, so you can change your mind - I've noticed they are more expensive than a main dealer though. Obviously at £2k you're looking at a small dealer.

If you pay on credit card then at least you have some protection.

https://cardealermagazine.co.uk/publish/qa-can-car-dealers-open-in-the-new-2021-national-lockdown-can-i-buy-a-car-in-the-third-lockdown-will-there-be-an-mot-exemption/212264

It's like you've said mate, at £2k I'm operating in a different market to Cazoo! I tend to try and not get caught up in looking at smarter cars in a higher price bracket - I get too tempted to spend a chunk of house deposit on them!  It's hard as well because there's so much value to be had currently in that £6k - £12k bracket, I've seen some brilliant cars (to my limited knowledge) priced to go immediately - but in current circumstances, that extra £4k - £5k is better used on top of my deposit or to pay the stamp duty bill I'll be facing.

Been having a nose around on Facebook Marketplace - This is absolutely a double-edged sword and could lead to disaster as much as it could lead to a great by, but there genuinely do seem some really good bargains there to be had - people who just want rid fast for cash. I've spoken to a lovely older gent today who's selling his 08 Plate V50 with only 80,000 miles on the clock - looks in superb condition and has never failed a single MOT. I'm going to look at it when Covid Regs allow. Looking at the photos of the drive this car is sat on, it's priced for the gent's convenience just to get rid (£1595) (he's had a brand new XC90) of and he's turned down offers already from people who he 'didn't like the look of.'  I'm hoping I've dropped on anyway.