for treating financed cars as unaffordable?

I find it odd when people start comparing houses and cars, they’ve said themselves that cars depreciate, so car ownership really is not advantageous in that regard!

I’m fine with not owning a car. I don’t want to own a car! I want to rent one.

People that dont agree with cars on finance; do you feel the same about mortgages? Only buy a house if you can afford it outright?

I don't think most people are against buying a car on finance if you don't have the savings to buy outright. It's leasing that many don't like. That's like renting where you own nothing at the end of it.

I have no interest in car ownership, and being responsible for repairs etc. I prefer to rent (lease) one with a maintenance package. It’s nothing to do with affordability for me (I can afford to both buy a car outright and to lease one), it’s about my preference.

Leasing a new car ensures the car is fully roadworthy, fuel efficient, under warranty and can be affordable.

I know a lot of mumsnetters take pride in running an old banger but unless you’re lucky or have a mechanic in the family they can quickly become costly to repair and unreliable.

We net over £8000 a month, our car payments are a tiny fraction of that, we could absolutely save the £40,000 and put the money down but there are so many financial reasons why we don’t do that. One of the benefits of PCP is that the car company is often on the hook for some of the depreciation depending on how you pick your car and the balloon payment it has. It takes away a lot of the unpredictability of car ownership which I hate.

Cars for me are the same category as holiday as opposed to my financial investments; I’m paying for the experience, it’s not an asset that needs to bring me any kind of financial return. I have a certain amount of money a month I am happy to pay on cars, and I accept that it is higher than buying something older and maintaining so I have a decent car, new, bells and whistles etc because cars are a priority for me.

It’s a tricky one , because few people have money to outright buy a new or nearly new car.

obviously with new cars less likely to brake down or have big bills .

and not forgetting people WANT a nice new car (who doesn’t?)

factor that in with the convenience of getting to work/ shopping/ day trips not using the bus and many can justify the monthly cost.

personally I don’t have a car on finance. We have in the past . Our current car is ten years old, but as it normally only travels less then 50 miles a week , it will probably hang on another few years

husband would love a new car, he sees it as a symbol of doing well in life.

the thought of working just to pay for a stupid car is madness to me.

others will say it’s important to their lives

( not forgetting 90% of mumsnet seem to live rural with no public transport. Least that s what most posts claim 🤷‍♂️)

We bought an 80K car on finance in 2022 and paid it off last year. Expensive cars last so still going strong. Before that we had a 17k car, also on finance (0% available then!) and also paid it off over 4 years, still going strong as second car for the kids to learn to drive in. For us it was a way to get new, therefore reliable and doesn't to be in, and lasting cars without having to use savings and pay it off out of salary. Worked for us and at no point was it risky or unaffordable. Obviously the cars are worth far less now but we have no intention of selling them at the moment so, so what I guess.

My first car I bought cash new for about 12k and had it for 20 years!

Strange, there seems to have been several similar threads recently about everyone having ‘£100k’ cars on the drive and discussing how normal it apparently is now. I don’t know a single person who has a £100k car, that must be quite rare. A £40k one, yes often, but £100k is rather extreme.
I have never had a loan for a car or leased anything, but I’m getting to the point where I think it might be sensible to take out a loan. My car is 15 years old and while it’s always been fairly reliable, repairs and MOTe are, naturally, increasing in both value and frequency and I just can’t be arsed with the hassle anymore. Plus we live in the middle of nowhere so can’t be doing without a car. Life’s busy and it’s another pull on my time and money. I’m currently looking at 5-6 year old Volvos for around £20k-£25k, and that seems quite posh enough for me!!

This is an extremely valid point.
Read the small print would be my advice because you will be liable for the excess after the insurance pay out which is unlikely to cover the value.
Its a trap, you pay through the nose to drive a nice car, will never own it but they get huge money rolling in every month.
Insane

Why best car in the world. It's starts never breaks down, easy to park and my last one gave me 20 years of good service and apart from tyres and wiper blades never cost me anything else and this one is 8 and costs £20 a year to tax.

We leased for years and so we had a brand new car every three years.

Our last lease was on a very luxurious E class Mercedes that we got on a really good deal for £280p/m ( we were all set to go for an X trail as we were regular campers at the time and needed the large boot) but this deal popped up and it was too good to turn down as it was almost the same price. It was a fantastic car.

After the lease ran out there was a problem getting new Mercedes cars imported and our order was suddenly cancelled after a 6 month wait and we were facing another long wait with no car.

So we went out and bought a three year old smaller and lower spec Mercedes and took out a loan. We are paying more for the loan payments on a three ( now 6 year old) A class than we had paid for the lease on the high spec E class.

We now plan to keep that car until it falls apart and will have a good few years of driving without a monthly loan repayment hopefully but will no longer have a lovely new car with the latest gadgets and tech on it.

Leasing definitely worked better for us.

People are far too comfortable being in debt these days.

I leased once and was appalled at the extra amounts I had to pay back for mileage, wear and tear etc. The thought of doing it again made me anxious. I’ve gone back to buying second hand known reliable brands and running them into the ground. Just recently got a six month old ex demo which is under warranty for five years and I’m enjoying it easily as much as the luxury lease car I had.

Also get that some people don't live somewhere service and mot is easy. I just drop mine off at a nearby garage and walk home. Pick it up on my lunchbreak.

I bought a BMW new 8 years ago and financed a third of the cost over 3 years. I've now had 5 years where my car has cost me tyres MOT and service/ replaced the occasional part. Very cost effective.

I costed up what i was willing to pay in finance costs as its just wasted money.

Planning another 2 years unless something goes wrong with it then will do the same again but put more cash in as I want an X7. I'm getting them as big birthday presents.

@Shade17 you may be right, I don’t know the difference! All I know is I pay a very manageable amount a month to a car dealer and don’t have to worry about servicing etc and I can buy it, give it back or trade in for another at the end of the term

That’s not a lease by the sounds of it. More likely a PCP or similar.

And a lot of those people have more money than sense.

£190k household income here, and I’m driving a 2017 Fiesta. We are saving up to replace it with an electric car that we own outright in 2028, budgeting around £30k. But until we have that cash in the bank, the Fiesta is doing the job perfectly.

My electric car costs £300 a month. The electric is about £25 a month. Absolutely brilliant value. My kids had an old Skoda bought outright. Great car, until it started costing a fortune to keep on the road at £90k miles.

I’m very much in the buying second hand outright camp. However I do worry that prices have gone up. I hope I can still afford to buy one outright when the time comes. (Saving a bit each month towards it to be a bit more prepared.)

Of course people own things. I saved up and bought my newish second hand car for cash. I wouldn't dream of leasing or buying on one of these PCPs, they cost a lot more in the long run. I also own my house.

I would never buy a car. I much prefer to lease, it’s easy, it’s affordable and the costs to running and repairing it are next to nothing. Every time I’ve bought a car it ends up costing me a fortune in keeping it on the road. I can afford to buy but I can’t see the point.

As much as I could afford to buy cars outright I feel it's more sensible to finance a depreciating asset and make the money from capital.

My last two cars have been owned outright and over 3 years have cost me more than if I had gone new and financed

Really, you have lots of wealthy friends and none of them have expensive cars? Sure.

Anyway, here in the real world where we are genuinely wealthy - most of our main cars are on lease. It’s irrelevant as to whether it’s a good deal or we’re throwing money away - to be totally blunt we have the money to throw away, and their is no concern for our situation changing. They are on lease because we will likely swap them for a newer model in a few years and the lease model keeps it simple with multiple advantages.

Our few real-world wealthy friends all drive Land Rovers, BMWs and Mercs (no Audis for some reason?) as their day to day drives. Not a Skoda in sight funnily enough . People want luxury, refinement, capability, power, prestige,
status, enjoyment - countless reasons beyond “driving from a to b”. How soulless. Most lease for sure, there’s an odd older Merc or Ranger Rover that’s owned outright and kept because the owner likes it/
for sentimental reasons, but overwhelmingly it’s lease.