Finance on servicing ??

[tarquin274]

Audi UK said:

Spread the cost. At no extra cost.


Spread the cost of looking after your Audi with 0% interest on all services, maintenance, repairs, tyres and accessories purchased with finance.* So you could enjoy a new Audi roof box or replace your tyres. The offer also covers the Audi air conditioning service.

Surely if you need to take finance out to cover the servicing you can't afford to run the car ?

0% though, let the feckless PCP wes load up !

I don't work for Audi. Honest.

[93DW]

tarquin274 said:

Surely if you need to take finance out to cover the servicing you can't afford to run the car ?

0% though, let the feckless PCP wes load up !

I don't work for Audi. Honest.

And the difference between this and putting it on a credit card is?

[basherX]

Assuming the cost of the service is the same as elsewhere (it won’t be, but assume it is for the sake of this argument) then 0% finance is the theoretically cheapest option.

It’s the fact that the service price is high, not the method of financing, that’s the issue. Enough people will fall for that to make it worthwhile for Audi to offer.

[Buster73]

93DW said:

And the difference between this and putting it on a credit card is?

No cash back on finance.

[Jamescrs]

They are offering the same at my local mini dealers so I imagine bmw do it too

[Wooda80]

Buster73 said:

No cash back on finance.

How much cash-back do you think you can get on credit cards these days? Generally not enough to make it worth the bother once you have met the qualifications ( annual / monthly fee or tied to a chargeable current account ).

[HTP99]

Price protects the servicing, against any future price increases.

[Alex_225]

Personally I'd assume the least you can afford even if you don't buy the car outright is the servicing for it but I guess as mentioned people put it on credit card or use their overdraft so much the same.

[Jimmy Recard]

93DW said:

And the difference between this and putting it on a credit card is?

Depends how you pay the credit card

I hope I'm never in the position that I need to borrow money to pay for car maintenance, but I do normally use a credit card for it

[tejr]

Wooda80 said:

How much cash-back do you think you can get on credit cards these days? Generally not enough to make it worth the bother once you have met the qualifications ( annual / monthly fee or tied to a chargeable current account ).

Barclaycard terms aren't that restrictive and there's no fee. Mine was dropped from 1% to 0.5% cashback.. I think newer applications are 0.25% which is a shame.. But even then, its literally free money for doing nothing differently, with added protection as a consumer..

But I guess it only really works out if you pay it in full.. So would be pointless.

[anonymous-user]

Financing the cost of the car is one thing but putting the servicing on finance to is a different beast all together but it depends upon why.

If it is because you can't afford the servicing otherwise then you can't afford the car.

[Baldchap]

I have taken service plans in the past. They give you X years servicing at today's prices and if you forget your Switch card on the day of the service, it doesn't matter. For those of us who are going to use the local dealer as a matter of convenience, what's not to like?

Edit to add: This isn't financing, it's simply paying on DD as a matter of convenience, normally resulting in a free service or other sweetener.

[valiant]

Nothing wrong with service plans and it’s hardly finance.

You’re simply giving the dealership (through a company like EMAC) a monthly amount that covers all your regular servicing needs. If you sell the car then EMAC will refund you any outstanding monies minus a small admin fee.

Plus you may get cheap or free MOTs, a percentage off parts plus a few other knick-knacks chucked in plus it’s inflation proof.

I’m on one for the Volvo as I’ve got the big belts service coming up which won’t leave me much change out of £900. Rather spread that out a bit.

Sounds like the Op hasn’t really read the small print before posting. (Best stay away from finance if that’s not your thing )

[PrinceRupert]

Wooda80 said:

How much cash-back do you think you can get on credit cards these days? Generally not enough to make it worth the bother once you have met the qualifications ( annual / monthly fee or tied to a chargeable current account ).

I make about £300 a year.

[Buster73]

Wooda80 said:

How much cash-back do you think you can get on credit cards these days? Generally not enough to make it worth the bother once you have met the qualifications ( annual / monthly fee or tied to a chargeable current account ).

Barclaycard, no fees , no ties to an account.

£240 back in the form of a credit on the account a few months back.

I’ve had well over £1.5k over the period I’ve had the card .

[Mark83]

This isn't news. Mercedes have done this for years. I took it out for my old C63 just before it's big B service to cover BAB services and saved money as it's a fixed monthly cost. Doesn't make financial sense to take it out to cover ABA services.

Service intervals and my mileage now on my M4 means it's cheaper to PAYG.

Pay for your servicing however you wish and whatever way works for you.

[hutchst]

valiant said:

Nothing wrong with service plans and it’s hardly finance.

You’re simply giving the dealership (through a company like EMAC) a monthly amount that covers all your regular servicing needs. If you sell the car then EMAC will refund you any outstanding monies minus a small admin fee.

Plus you may get cheap or free MOTs, a percentage off parts plus a few other knick-knacks chucked in plus it’s inflation proof.

I’m on one for the Volvo as I’ve got the big belts service coming up which won’t leave me much change out of £900. Rather spread that out a bit.

Sounds like the Op hasn’t really read the small print before posting. (Best stay away from finance if that’s not your thing )

The current trend I've just seen when looking for a new car is definitely finance. Chucking some free service as an incentive to get you to buy isn't really financing the servicing, but when they are now listing all servicing for three or five years in with the added extras, at a price, and then adding that to your monthly payments, it's definitely finance for the servicing. The extra 10% you're paying to the faceless middlemen is how an economy that doesn't manufacture anything useful actually works these days. It's how all those people crowding the beaches at Bournemouth while pretending to be working from home pay their mortgages.

[Tim bo]

Mark83 said:

Pay for your servicing however you wish and whatever way works for you.

Shush. Stop being sensible.

People want to rant and rave at other people for not doing things their way.

PH, where only your way matters.

[SkodaIan]

What they are offering isn't a service plan (which is really a form of insurance rather than loan as you pay in advance). This is a fairly simple short term loan with zero interest, the kind of offer furniture shops make.

I presume they are doing it to try to get people in through the door for jobs they'd otherwise avoid for a few months. Given the large number of fairly decent VAG specialists around too, it's probably also aimed at taking a bit of business off them too. These small businesses won't have the financial clout to do an equivalent offer.

People are quite illogical about money, and spend too much time focusing on the "free" element of the finance. Some probably won't realise that paying £100 for 5 months to get the job done at Audi is actually more expensive than getting the same job done for £350 at the indy.

[Court_S]

I imagine that such an option would be popular with those who have a car allowance instead of a company car where you get paid £x per month making the monthly cost of your car key.

It’s also a way for the dealer to endure the car goes back to them for servicing etc.