Buying a new car via a broker, and using the deprecation calculators,
its scary how much is wiped off after just three years.
If I pay £9k for a small city car, keep it for 5-6 years and then sell
for £3.5, it costs me around £1k a year (excluding running costs).
Because I require a new car due to ill health etc., I have no choice.
I'd struggle to justify £14k upwards on a small family car costing me
around £1.5k year, not to mention if it was on finance.
There is no way I could justify something like an Audi.The 'Audi A4
Avant 1.8 TFSI 170 SE Technik 5dr' which is a common site on the roads
can be had for around £23k from a broker ( list £28k), after three years
its value is circa £11.5k, that's £3.8k a year - or a CC Gibson. I
couldn't sleep at night losing that amount.
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We just bought a 15 month old Ford C-Max for £10k, with 13k miles on it. It looks and feels brand new. Somebody paid around 17k for it new. I've had a company car for years, but now plan to just buy cars from about 1-2 years old where a large chunk of the depreciation has already happened, just the car is almost new and in warranty.
I’m so bored I might as well be listening to Pink Floyd
I've always owned cars circa 10 years old and maintained and repaired them myself. Most initially cost around £500, with subsequent costs of around £90 -£110 a year including MOT and parts. However, I became seriously ill back in 2009, and in case the worst happened I wanted a new car for my wife so she had the protection of a five year warranty, three years service plan, and no MOTs for three years. The car I bought cost me £7k and offered me those advantages. I replaced it with the same type of car around a year ago, but this time at a cost of £5k plus my existing car.
In my current circumstances, the £1k a year it costs me offers peace of mind in case the worst happens. If I was able, I would buy ten year old cars.
Because I only require a city car, buying new makes more economical sense then buying a 2 or 3 year old used one, with a limited warranty and hardly any MOT buffer.
I was curious about other peoples viewpoints.
When you view it like that, its hard to disagree. My insurance is £131, I get around 50 mpg and there's no tax. My gas/electric cost £500 a year more than my car, my council tax a further £400 more and toilet rolls - well lets not go there !
Depends what you want from a car. If you are looking for just a mode if transport, then something like a two year old Kia seems a good idea(still have 5 years of warranty).
If you live in a city then better off with either taxi or the city hire cars.
If you can afford it then owning a new car is great feeling. I generally buy new and keep five to seven years.
If you are careful there are good deals around. Audi is giving a 7k "deposit contribution" on an a5.
This is because it is about to be replaced. Tempting, but my a3 is only just over four years old.
For me I am prepared to pay £3k a year for the luxury, reliability and safety of a relatively new car.
The brand new equivalent was only tempting in as much as the finance deal available was much, much better. Had we needed Seat finance then we would have paid in total less,over three years, on a brand new car than the pre registered one. But we didn't so saved a couple of grand instead.
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
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After spending years getting old cars through MOTs, its an hassle and cost I don't want on a brand new car.
Most new cars fail their 1st MOT on things like lights or wiper blades. Basic info is here http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/cars/article-2590646/Why-car-fail-MOT-The-common-reasons-revealed.html
To keep the warranty on my car I have to abide by the dealers servicing schedule which covers safety checks every year. I think most manufacturers do this now.
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Why the hell would anyone prefer a new skoda against that....
That was what I mentioned to the mechanics which is why they told me that it's not that rare.
The whole point is to ensure the car is safe. If it's a hassle to get an old car through, that's why it's necessary...
If the dealer services a new-ish car for you, it should be part of that.
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
A £2k car nowadays will happily last you for five years with minimal expense on repairs (indeed, probably less than a new one because people are less likely to be fussy about expensive dealer servicing and bodywork). Anything more than that is vanity - entirely understandable vanity, but vanity nonetheless.