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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To be very confused over options for cars if you aren't 'liquid'?

51 replies

Seth · 13/05/2019 23:04

My car (14 year old Golf) has done me proud but is now starting to cost me more than I ever paid for it. I don't have the cash sitting there to buy another one outright either. I do need a car but don't actually drive much (think less than 3000 miles a year). I have been looking at the options of HP/ Leasing and am finding it a bit of a minefield. I need a bigger car than the smallest and cheapest ones out there as I know there are some very good deals out there. Part of me wants to just get a nice compact SUV - mainly because in my 30 years of driving I have never come close to owning a remotely new or nice car and I like them - however this isn't essential. Can anyone who knows about this kind of thing advise my on the pros and cons or either leasing or getting car finance ?
I can afford a £500-1000 (max) deposit and can afford about £200 a month. Any ideas gratefully received.

OP posts:

19lottie82 · 13/05/2019 23:17

If you’re doing a low mileage you should be able to get a decent lease deal as long as you don’t have a specific model you have your heart set on.

I’ve used Yes lease in the past and found them pretty decent.

The main drawback of leasing / hp is that when you hand the car back you have to pay for any damage to the car (minus a small allowance for normal wear and tear). If you’re not the most careful driver / best at parking then just a couple of small scratches can really add up.

SpoonBlender · 13/05/2019 23:35

Leasing is a terrible plan for this. You're paying all the depreciation on a vehicle, then giving it back. Pointless.

If you're doing under 3000 miles p.a. have you considered pricing up taxis and hire cars? Could easily be cheaper than £200/month.

PiratePetespajamas · 13/05/2019 23:38

Car club?

Aimily · 13/05/2019 23:44

Have you looked at any of the 'just add fuel' options out there? I think Peugeot and Toyota do them, car dependant it was £135 when I looked at it.
Quite a good option if you don't want to spend loads, I think it's a 5 year term and then you can hand it back or pay the lump sum.

19lottie82 · 13/05/2019 23:47

Spoon not necessarily, leasing works for some, but not for others. If a new car is important to you and you don’t want to shell out upfront for a vehicle, then it’s often the best option. There are some good deals out there. I doubt taxis would be a cheaper option.

badlydrawnperson · 14/05/2019 00:08

The main drawback of leasing / hp

Leasing isn’t the same as HP.

OP you will be paying one way or another. Is your Golf costing £200 a month in repairs/servicing? Because if not you are much better off keeping it going until it dies. The comparison of repair bills with purchase price or value is irrelevant.
With almost all forms of car finance you will need a deposit and the bigger the deposit, the smaller monthly payments.
You don’t get something for nothing so the cheaper the monthly cost the less you’ll have to show for it.

19lottie82 · 14/05/2019 00:13

Leasing isn’t the same as HP.

I didn’t say that, but the point still applies when / if you hand them back you are responsible for the costs of repairing any damages. You can pay a balloon payment to keep a car on HP, but the majority of people return or trade in the car.

19lottie82 · 14/05/2019 00:15

Is your Golf costing £200 a month in
repairs/servicing? Because if not you are much better off keeping it going until it
dies.

I get the point you’re trying to make but there is no way it’s worth paying £2400 a year to maintain a 14 year old car! The car won’t even be worth that!

bumpertobumper · 14/05/2019 00:27

I also have an old car, and for the past few years have spend 500-1000 per year on repairs.

No, the car wouldn't be worth much more than 1000 if I was to sell it, but that is not the point. It is reliable and gets us around where we want to go.

To get a new car I could spend a two or three grand but then have a car that would probably cost the same in maintenance.
In my dreams would spend about 12k to get a decent newish car but can't afford it. Or lease/hp a car but that would cost about 3k per year, so considerably more than what I am paying at the moment.

And bonus is I don't care if I scratch the wheel when parking or were to bump into a lamppost.

If it keeps going then keep driving it is my motto.

flirtygirl · 14/05/2019 00:28

Get a loan or interest free credit card then buy a low mileage reliable car thats 3 years old so done the bulk of its depreciation.

Lots of info on reliable cars and real petrol and repair costs.

TheNanny23 · 14/05/2019 00:35

@bumpertobumper

I used to think that about used cars, but eventually could not deal with paying a grand a year to drive a completely unreliable car!

I now pay £100 a month to drive a 2018 car. No MOT, no more breaking down, no stress. I was always cynical about PCP but it has taken such a weight off my shoulders instead of plugging thousands into rust Buckets. My car is nothing fancy but gets me from A to B smoothly.

bumpertobumper · 14/05/2019 00:36

Just to add, when looking at overall cost of the car- I have had my car ten years and have worked out that purchase price (7k) and servicing repairs works out in total an average of approx 1500 per year, so less than half the price of leasing a car that size on an annual basis.
Of course, it is not new, so depends on priorities. Suggest you really do the sums to see what works for you. Much better value to get a loan, but outright and keep it for ages

theboomtownrat · 14/05/2019 00:39

The new fiesta active is a great wee car.. you could get one for £200 pm with no deposit on PCP

bumpertobumper · 14/05/2019 00:41

TheNanny I suppose there is an element of luck - my car has never let me down. Needs fixing - brakes, cam belt, that sort of stuff but it is a reliable car.
That is why I hold on to it because another in my price bracket may not be...
I can totally see the benefit of a nice new car for 100 a month!
As a family of 5 with some bulky hobbies we need something a bit bigger so the newer cars are more pricey
All things to be weighed up...

Original poster

Seth · 14/05/2019 07:09

Thanks - some really informative comments here - much more useful than reading the 'proper'/marketing info out there.

19lottie82
Thanks for the recommendation of yes lease (name made me smile) and also useful re the fact that every little scratch os accounted for and charged for at the end. I live in a densely populated area with parked cars on both sides of the road constantly and it would almost be impossible to remain scratch free!

spoonblender thanks for the suggestion but taxis really wouldn't work in my situation.

flirtygirl - That's really interesting re the Credit card. My initial reaction was to flinch at the idea of a large sum on a credit card as then it seems more like debt hanging over my head - which is funny as that's exactly what the other options are really. It just seems like a large lump some - that said it has been so long since I bought a semi decent car I don't know how much a 3 year old car would be as I have only been looking at leasing (or similar) so far and not buying outright..

OP posts:

BobbinThreadbare123 · 14/05/2019 07:12

I'm not going to suggest payment plans but I will suggest that you look at a Dacia Duster or one of those models. They're on your price bracket and you're getting a good sized car for the money. They're coming out well in reviews and reliability surveys too.

Original poster

Seth · 14/05/2019 07:14

Aimily That's interesting - I'll look into 'Just add fuel'

OP posts:

Original poster

Seth · 14/05/2019 07:18

bumpertobumper

That has been my mentality for a long time. The DC are always asking me if we are EVER going to get a new car (as all their friends' parents drive found in much nicer /newer ones and they get lifts etc) .. and I have always said that ours is fine... but I long for a life of not driving on slightly longer distances with my heart in my mouth in case something goes wrong. (have been stuck on the side of the motorway twice in the last couple of years)

OP posts:

LakieLady · 14/05/2019 07:19

I think the cheapest way of motoring is to buy an old, cheap car and chuck it away if/when it needs an expensive repair.

We've run several cars that have cost next to nothing to run, the best of which was a £450 hatchback that DP used for daily commuting for for 4 years without paying for anything more than the MOT, brake pads or tyres. We also had an A4 that was £1,100 that in its first 3 years only needed a 60p bulb and a new battery, which was about £35.

Older cars are less complicated, too, so don't tend to run up big bills so easily.

The worst car I ever owned cost me £4k. Because I'd invested a lot of money in it, I felt obliged to keep getting it fixed and it cost me a bloody fortune.

SandlakeRd · 14/05/2019 07:20

I had a similar dilemma not long ago and went round and round in circles! I ended up adding up the total I would pay (deposit plus monthly payment) and a PCP car and on 2/3 year old car to buy outright.

The PCP was more expensive but you are getting a new car if that is important. I went for the 2/3 year old car as it meant I still had the “asset”’after 3/4 years and wasn’t worried about damage.

I took out a v low interest personal loan to buy the car. However I bought the car on the garage finance as it made the car MUCH cheaper. You can can then pay the finance off with the loan and just pay the loan back at a lower interest rate.

Still18atheart · 14/05/2019 07:22

nothing to add just in a similar situation so just watching to see what other options are out there

AlyssasBackRolls · 14/05/2019 07:25

I'd stick to second hand but I couldn't be trusted with a shiny new car You pick up e.g. a ten year old Citroen Xzara Picasso for well under a grand and they're v roomy. Buy something old for a few hundred with MOT and drive it til it dies, then repeat.

Curiousrugbymum · 14/05/2019 07:40

I drive an 2000 plate Golf GTI ...so 18 years old. Done only 110,000 miles and it has been a fabulous car. It has been in the wars at times and is a bit shabby looking (scrapes, bumps) but mechanically it is rock solid.

Curiousrugbymum · 14/05/2019 07:42

I said I would keep it until it dies...it seems to be indestructible .

Original poster

Seth · 14/05/2019 09:02

sandlakeroad Very interesting!! would that also be similar to taking out a zero balance credit card and putting the payments on there do you think ?

OP posts:

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