Hybrid - buying used vs leasing new - advice please?

[GiantKitten]

We were considering a used Yaris for max £10k, but it would be a few years old, & would need MOTs etc.

It looks as if we could lease a new Kia Niro or RAV4 for not much more per month than a new Yaris. (I want one with nice high seats )

We’re both retired & won’t be doing high annual mileage, but it will be parked on the street, & DH is not the best driver, so I’m thinking the main drawback is the potential cost of fixing minor bodywork damage (which is never a minor cost).

Oh, and presumably insurance would be higher

If you mean leasing, not PCP, you’ll be walking away , handing the car back at the end of the lease term, say 2,3 or 4 years.
If you’re happy with that, having spent that £10K in that time, then who can stop you. You would still need to look after the car even when leasing though?

Insurance likely won’t be higher, chuck some details into a comparison website and see what happens

@tanstaafl

If you mean leasing, not PCP, you’ll be walking away , handing the car back at the end of the lease term, say 2,3 or 4 years. If you’re happy with that, having spent that £10K in that time, then who can stop you. You would still need to look after the car even when leasing though?

We’d have to be much more careful when leasing, I meant, & DH isn’t - his current (old) car is full of minor damage we don’t bother to fix, but returning a lease car to perfect bodywork condition could be expensive.

I know with leasing you end up with no car, but after 3-4 years on a 3-4 year-old car we’d end up with a 6-8 year-old car, not worth much, & probably with increasing servicing costs every year. It’s a bit swings and roundabouts...

@Elai1978

Insurance likely won’t be higher, chuck some details into a comparison website and see what happens

Oh, good idea! That might eliminate some of the choices at the start!

As someone who’s driven Toyota hybrids for years, my advice is don’t go for a Yaris, they’re pigs. Horrible things to drive. If you want a hybrid go for an Auris, it’s a different world. You could get a four year old Auris with all the bells and whistles for less than £10k, with some warranty left.

@VinylDetective

As someone who’s driven Toyota hybrids for years, my advice is don’t go for a Yaris, they’re pigs. Horrible things to drive. If you want a hybrid go for an Auris, it’s a different world. You could get a four year old Auris with all the bells and whistles for less than £10k, with some warranty left.

Oh dear, really? I haven’t driven either yet, just sat in one of each. The Auris is obviously nicer, and generally bigger, but lower so it has the low seats problem for me.

That’s a shame. The bloke drives a Prius, which might be better for you. They go on for ever which is why they’re so popular with taxi companies. My test drive in a Yaris lasted half a mile I hated it so much but I was trading in an Auris so the contrast was very clear cut.

What annual mileage would the car be doing OP?

@VinylDetective

That’s a shame. The bloke drives a Prius, which might be better for you. They go on for ever which is why they’re so popular with taxi companies. My test drive in a Yaris lasted half a mile I hated it so much but I was trading in an Auris so the contrast was very clear cut.

Thanks, I’ll look at the Prius

Where do you get your servicing done? Can a normal garage service hybrids, or are they best done by Toyota? (Do lease cars have to be serviced by a main dealer?)

@tanstaafl

What annual mileage would the car be doing OP?

Probably under 8000 - running around locally plus the odd long trip. We’ve also got a very old but very low mileage Zafira which we’ll be keeping.

Servicing is best done by Toyota. We’ve both got service plans so we pay monthly (0%) and it feels as if servicing is free. I think lease cars have to be done by main dealers.