Do you buy your cars outright or on finance/lease?

[Daddypigsglasses]

I’ve always saved up and brought a nearly new car then run it into the ground. It was instilled into me as a child that borrowing money was bad and this is the way my parents always did it.

I need to replace my car soon and it’s become blindingly obvious to me since my kids started school last year and I began noticing the other parent’s cars that we are the only ones (and I mean only ones) driving around in anything like a 12 year old focus.

Do most other people else get cars on finance? Is it the sensible thing to do? I can’t get my head around it. I’ve got around 8k to spend so likely that would get me a 15 plate decent car, which is still going to be older than everyone else’s!

I’m not usually showy but I seem to have serious envy where the other parents are concerned.

I always buy second hand cars outright & drive them until they fall apart. I don't do loans of any sort.

My current car is leased, I appreciate that it is probably not the most cost effective but it is peace of mind, and sometimes that is worth paying for.

Outright with dealer mileage which means I get it a £13k car for a about £3k off.

I sell my car to my mother after 3 years at a very good rate I know she’s got a decent car

I find this a lot less money and hassle than putting down a deposit and just leasing/PCP ing a car for 3 years

Finance. £150 deposit, same each month Lovely new Toyota. 3 years do the same again and have a lovey new car. What's not to like?

People seem to either own their car or it's rented these days. I may be wrong but the whole finance thing now rarely seems to lead to people owning their car, so it's effectively just paying hundreds of pounds a month to rent them.

I've never really understood it though. I want to know I own my car so spend within my means when choosing. The idea of getting into debt or throwing my money away each month so I can give the appearance of having lots of money is pretty confusing to me

Don't get me wrong, I waste my money in ways I'm sure other people would find odd, but the huge amounts involved with cars is the reason I get so confused by people's choices.

Outright.

People buying on finance are either kidding themselves that they're somehow magically find that paying over the odds doesn't matter, or they're pretending that they notice the difference with a fancier/newer car.

My DP's sister and her husband always get their cars on lease and every time we hear that it's such a good deal, they love the reliability, it's so wonderful, the car is so much better than they could afford.

In the mean time we've had one single second hand car, three years old when we bought it, which is still going strong. All we've done is replace tyres and windscreen wipers. We've paid a fraction of what they did, and at the end of the day, we own the car. They've constantly switched cars, 'upgraded' or 'downgraded' and enjoyed the feeling of showing off something new. I guess if that's what's important ...

We've been leasing for ages. Nothing too flash but it means we have a new car every three years so no maintenance costs really. We can afford a much higher spec/safer car paying monthly than if we bought outright.

PCP. So I can change it every 3 years for a new one. X

Lease. Can afford to buy but can’t see the point

Outright. And my car is ten years old.

Honestly though I couldn’t care less about my car. It’s a means to getting from A to B.

Always bought old bangers, with a dad in the mot business the repairs are cheap, usually cost price for parts.. thanks dad!

So long as it gets from a to b dont care what it looks like.

Love getting value out of old jalopies whilst other people waste hundreds every month!

I have always bought outright as the interest in finance is in my opinion ridiculous. The last car I bought I wanted a newish one so used some savings and took out a smaller low interest independent loan. Worked better for me as I still have savings so I feel secure and can afford to pay off the small interest on the loan over 2 years

Finance. Have never been able to afford to buy outright. I always keep the car after the finance has expired until it's near enough knackered then trade it in using it as the small deposit for my next one.
I usually have three years or so with no finance Payments. This time around I will hopefully be in a position to save them up so I can just buy outright whatever I get next.

@CloudsCanLookLikeSheep maybe they like newer cars?

All my previous cars I financed. An inheritance made it so that I could buy my 3 month old car outright. DH gets bored of cars quickly and wants a new one every 3 years so leases his. Once mines due it's first mot I'll get rid of it and get something new again.

Outright, second hand. I have a £7k Toyota I hope to keep for many years.

Maybe people who drive newer cars need them to be reliable and not let them down at inconvenient times and can afford them.

Plus they might not want to deal with buying and selling at the cheaper end of the market which can involve dealing with a lot of time wasting idiots. Having a garage you can trust not to rip you off is something else many people don't have, so it's understandable why many people finance their cars.

I know it's popular on Mumsnet to drive a £600 car for years on and without it ever going wrong or needing any money spending on it apart from tyres and oil but that's not many people's experience.

@BarbaraofSeville thats my attitude exactly you have summed it up. I had horrific luck with 'Buy nearly new outright'. Eye watering garage bill's and major stress at a time when I was just returning to my health service job after mat leave. I don't want to have to deal with randomers buying and selling or be at the mercy of the garages. I now finance a skoda fanow it was 1 year old and 200 euro a month and when my 3 years Is up with it I will trade it for another similar.

Skoda fabia that is !

It's actually cheaper to do hire purchase than buy outright with the depreciation on cars. Work out what you will lose in 3 years on a new car and what 3 year HP will be. You will be shocked.

I bought my car 2.5 years ago on finance. It was a year old at the time. That's the 1st time we've ever done it though. All our previous cars have bern bought outright & kept until they were run into the ground. My previous car was a 53 reg Ford focus; dp's car is an 05.

I bought this car because I needed something very reliable for driving to work on the motorway each day. I will probably keep it for a long time.

I’ve been stung with lease cars - £1000 extra bill for some small scratches, that type of thing.

I now buy nearly new outright - we are also the people at the school gates with a slightly bettered older car. Funnily enough, most of the well off people I know are the same. On the other hand, I also have a few acquaintances and also SIL who would rather buy a 10 year old Mercedes than a new Focus. They are always having car trouble and massive bills, but put up with it so they can be seen driving a fancy car. I don’t get it.

*battered

I began noticing the other parent’s cars that we are the only ones (and I mean only ones) driving around in anything like a 12 year old focus.

So it is worth debt and interest for this reason?!

I would never spend so much money on something that will only lose value

Keeping up with the jones is a foolish ploy