Car dilemma

[FedUpWithBriiiiick]

I've a bit of a dilemma about cars, hoping to take some opinions!

Facts of the case:

DH and I completed our IVA in 2021 (yey!)
There are a couple of historical defaults still showing on credit reports that should have closed by now - we are chasing these up.
IVA won't come off credit reports until July 2022.

We own our 2008 banger car outright. Been trying to ride it out through 2022/23 to be in a better position to get a new car, unfortunately it's decided to be on its very VERY last legs instead, and will not pass the MOT in April without serious dough being spent.

We are very unlikely to get standard car finance aren't we? And don't want to go down the high interest car loan route when we are so close to the finish line.

WWYD? Bite the bullet and get the car fixed up to get us over the line, or use our £3-4K cash in hand to buy a newer used car to get us through the next year?

Hi op
I'm sure you can get cars on finance with bad credit? These are normally a specialized company , maybe worth a Google :)

Hi lime, thanks for replying. Happy New Year!

Yes, I am aware of those high interest/bad credit finance providers, but would prefer to avoid them because we don't want to be over paying for a car for 5 years, when we are only 6-12m away from having good credit available to us IYKWIM?

I’d reassess your approach that £3-£4K would get you a car to see you through a year to get better credit and then… you take on years worth of debt again! £3K (so your lower figure) will get you your choice of 2009 Ford Fiesta with 90K. That age of car isn’t automatically a “banger” and I’m amazed at how many people think it is! Not disputing that yours may be!
Go through a dealer that you trust with a good warranty, but go into it thinking of it as your car for the next 5 years, not a stop gap.
And we’ll done on the IVC! 👏🏻

@Cocomarine

I’d reassess your approach that £3-£4K would get you a car to see you through a year to get better credit and then… you take on years worth of debt again! £3K (so your lower figure) will get you your choice of 2009 Ford Fiesta with 90K. That age of car isn’t automatically a “banger” and I’m amazed at how many people think it is! Not disputing that yours may be! Go through a dealer that you trust with a good warranty, but go into it thinking of it as your car for the next 5 years, not a stop gap. And we’ll done on the IVC! 👏🏻

A very good point Coco! Thank you for your kind words x

I got a 7 year old mini convertible for 4k as my first car. Its now 15 years old, has been through hell (I hadn't passed my test when I got it, so has suffered all the new driving mistakes) and still going. Its cost some in between to keep it going, but it has done brilliantly. 4k for a car is fine if you do your research, and in your situation avoiding debt a bit longer is probably a good idea.

Cocomarine is spot on

spending £3/4k on a car with cash will get a decent motor and id be looking at 6/8 years at that price to mean it £500 each year for having a car

check out the car tax price and mpg as these will also keep your running costs lower

check out auto trader for a good idea of prices, there are many filters. I used milage under 60k, car tax under £30, 5 doors and there was a good selection under £4k that would easily last 5 years.

get an AA check if you buy privately but many dealers use auto trader

many eco flex cars and you'll get good fuel consumption to lower costs

Thanks everyone. So the consensus is to go for a better used car, than sink costs into the dying swan?

Sounds like a plan 👍

Wait as long as possible to buy a used car. The prices are at a historic high but most reports have said they will return to more normal prices in 2022, espescially after the long awaited new cars hit the market.

(Lack of new cars drove up the price of used cars due to chips, raw materials, transport, pandemic and brexit issues.)

I bought my 2013 Citroen C4 auto (always a bit more expensive for an auto) with 25k on the clock for 5.5k three years ago, it's not sexy or fast but it's easy to drive, fairly spacious and has a huge boot. Agree wait as long as you can into 2022 , I couldn't buy the same car for the same price now

Wait as long as possible to buy a used car. The prices are at a historic high but most reports have said they will return to more normal prices in 2022, espescially after the long awaited new cars hit the market

That’s a really great point

And if you can time it when the new registration plate is released they’ll be a few more second hand cars suddenly on the market as they’re traded in

Good advice to wait for prices to drop, but don't leave it until the last minute so you're without a car.

Agree that you should be able to find something for £3k that will last a few years if you shop around, a relative has just bought an old but well maintained low mileage car for even less than that but it might take a few weeks of looking to come across something suitable.

March 1st the new registration plates come out