Hello!! Your thoughts please!

[mjw0321]

Hello all,

My name is Mark and I live in the south east. I am looking for some advice/suggestions about what car to get and your experiences with any of my options. My criteria include...... Up to 3.5 years old, something that looks and feels special! I am happy to buy via pcp and have up to a £7k deposit and would like to keep monthly repayments no more than £500 a month over 3 years, although could stretch to £600 per month for a new car with a new car warranty as I would save on buying a warranty for a used car. If I put £7k deposit in however, I would like there to be a good chance of some equity in the car at the end of the 3 years.

I have been considering a used Jag xfr, a used (or new) C63 amg, a used porsche cayman r (may be too expensive) and a new boxster/cayman s (probably too expensive) at the moment. Now, I know the porsches are very different cars to the other two, but it offers a different level of handling ability and this is part of my dilemma. I know I need to test drive the cars, but I am not sure how simple it is to walk into a dealership and be able to test drive a second hand car without any intention of buying the car then and there? I don't have experience of driving nice cars- fastest car I have driven is a saab aero and the best handling car is a mini cooper s, so I would appreciate your advice and experiences if you have driven more than one of these cars. I am also open to your suggestions!

My thoughts/concerns with each are-

XFR- Supposedly handles very well for a large car and will be rapid in a straight line with plenty of torque. But I enjoyed the go cart-like feel of the cooper s I drove and I wonder if the xfr will be lacking this

C63- Again supposed to be great to drive and handle well and with plenty of grunt. I guess if I was going for grunt it would come down to a choice between the xfr and c63, in which case I would need to drive both. I love the noise of the c63, but at the moment I am leaning towards the xfr out of the two

Used cayman r- I love the look of this car and I like the idea of a smaller car (that go cart feel). Handling will, I assume, be amazing. My only concern is if I will feel I wish I had more power? There are stories on here of people being disappointed by the power of boxsters, caymans and even the 997 carrera s. Additionally, a cayman r will be around £40k so may be too expensive. An xfr at £40k would require monthly repayments which are too high, however I don't know if the repayments on the cayman r would be lower given it will hold its value much better and therefore can have a higher balloon payment, thus reducing monthly repayments- any thoughts/experience with this? (I know the old cayman s is affordable but I don't really like the look of the old cayman s)

New boxster/caman s- Again I love the look and Im sure it will be great to drive, however I assume this will be way too expensive. I specced one on the porsche website and it said repayments of close to £900 per month with a £7k deposit, but these seem astronomically high. Any experiences of what would actually need to pay?

Apologies for the long post. I look forward to your replies!

[mjw0321]

Ecurie Ecosse said:

You can lease a new M5 for £3500 down and £580 per month including VAT.

I'm just back from the Nurburgring where I was taken round in one as the RingTaxi. They are rather special

http://www.contracthireandleasing.com/car-leasing-...

This is very interesting! I hadn't even considered an M5 as I assumed they are too expensive. I am planning on buying in the new year so it depends on what deals are around. Your suggestion prompted me to have a look at what people are paying on new M5s. I think if I got servicing thrown in I could stretch to £650 a month for an M5 over 4 years on pcp from BMW, and I have read they do some good discounts and deals on the M5. I wonder if this is a feasible repayment to be offered over 4 years?

[mjw0321]

Scootersp said:

What have you owned before just out of interest?

I am in my 20's so not much really! I had an H reg nissan micra, then a saxo vtr then a ford focus and now a saab 95 aero. I love cars and I now have enough money to get something nice, but other than extensive reading and youtube watching I have no point of reference!

[mjw0321]

The idea of an F10 M5 is very appealing. If I could get one with minimal options from BMW on a 4 year pcp, 10k miles a year, servicing included with a £7k deposit for around £650 a month including vat, I think I'd be sold!

I would be interested to test drive a new cayman s and the M5 to see how they compare- how much faster the M5 feels and how the steering feel and handling differs.

[mjw0321]

TheJimi said:

Assuming a decent warranty, I'd be looking at at GTR.

A GTR is certainly tempting, however the running costs scare me. I think in order to buy a seconghand one I would be pushing my budget before even considering the running costs. With the M5, if I got it new with servicing included, I would only have to worry about brakes and tyres, so I feel like I have some control/safety over the costs.

[mjw0321]

Sid's Dad said:

OP, you really can't go wrong with this budget. Every option is a great one. So book a day off, talk to and make appointments with all the right dealers, then go and drive some cars to help you decide what works for you. You say you don't have any reference points...so go and get some! You'll have a great day, you'll find out what floats your boat and you may just get a good answer to your question!

Oh, and you shouldn't give a st what the internet thinks. It's your money, your choice and your car. So enjoy it because you can.

Of course, you are right and I will certainly do this. I am always interested to hear the opinions, thoughts and suggestions of those with more experience than me though. I want to have carefully considered all my options and any potential oversights or pitfalls before taking the plunge.

[mjw0321]

55palfers said:

Get a few insurance quotes too.

Yes I appreciate this is definitely a factor.

[mjw0321]

TheJimi said:

In terms of performance, you're looking at a one hell of a big jump from what you've had to stuff like the M5, GTR etc.

I hope you're sensible (I say that without wishing to appear patronising)

Lol, yes I am. I have been on a defensive driving course which we have to do to receive our company car allowance and I spoke to the instructor about getting another day with him once I have a more powerful car. I don't take risks such as dangerous overtaking, speeding through built up areas etc. But thanks for the concern.

[mjw0321]

matc said:

If you're set on something new, then I would look at a c63 coupe on a 2 yr pcp. You could use half of your deposit, get payments around the £600 mark and when you're bored of it in a couple of years use the other £3500 to get something else.

I wouldn't recommend a 4yr finance deal to someone your age, anything could change, kids, house buying, change of job/career etc. I would also recommend a pcp as opposed to a CHire deal, as it's a lot easier to get out of, if things do change.

Nice position to be in - try to ignore the inevitable anti-finance/you should buy a £3k mondeo and bank the cash posts; anyone would think this isn't a car forums most of the time!

I am definitely thinking about c63 too, however my worry with a 2 year deal is it is too short. How long until an engine it functioning at its full potential. I don't want the car to still be breaking in for a 1/4 of the time I own it (this is a genuine question as I have never owned a new car).

As far as the other factors relating to a 4 year deal- I have already bought a house with my fiancee. I am in a secure job and she is a doctor so we are in a fairly safe position. And yeah, kids will be in around 2 years if all goes to plan! If I could get the M5, I think I would want it for 4 years. I can't imagine wanting to replace it in that time.

I am expecting the "if you can't afford it outright then you can't afford it" comments at some point. These arguments seem ridiculous; if I can afford to pay the monthlies and running costs, why would I want to wait until I am 50 to enjoy a car like the M5?!

Thanks for the advice!

[mjw0321]

P1H said:

For what it is worth my colleague took me out in his xfr and I was amazingly underwhelmed.

Yes it pulled incredibly well but it had about 5% of the drama and excitement I'd (personally) be looking for in a 500bhp + car. I appreciate this is part of the appeal, but not when you are in your 20's like you or I.

I can't see the same problem arising with a c63......

Interesting to know- thanks!

[mjw0321]

csmith319 said:

You mentioned wanting some equity at the end of the deal, with the choices above you may not get any, as that's really how PCP works, guaranteed future value, so you stump up some deposit pay interest on the whole sum you borrow but only pay back what's being depreciated. If the car is worth more at the end than the GFV then you may own some equity buy you'll still owe the GFV.

(I know you'll understand this, but I'm getting to my point!)

You've got a decent amount of deposit and am happy to pay a scent amount a month. I would (an have in your situation) taken a simple loan at a low APR and added it to the deposit or go HP. It means a slightly cheaper car but you would own it outright at the end of te term. You could easily get yourself into an E90 M3 (saloon or coupe) with from BMW with a warranty. Personally I would prefer one of those to an M5 anyway, smaller, lighter and more fun to drive, and more than powerful enough. Will likely be no hassle to own.

Otherwise, all the cars you're looking at would be great! Sure I'll be shot down on this!

Yeah, this is certainly a valid option. A 3 year old c63 or xfr from merc or jag can be had for around £30k. So a £23k loan would have to be taken out over 4 years (with repayments of around £550 a month). However if I had a 3 year old car I wouldn't really want to keep it more than 3 years, so I would have to hope that after 3 years, the car is worth enough to clear the remaining balance and leave some equity.

I thought bmw tried to build in 10-15% equity on their pcp deals (that is what I read somewhere on here)? And worse case scenario, I could get together another few thousand for a deposit within 4 years, although yes ideally I would like to have some equity at the end.

[mjw0321]

JG93 said:

Not sure what engine your focus or 95 were but I'd personally go for a hot hatch before diving into a few of those on your list

The 9'5 is 260bhp and in-gear acceleration is up there with a bmw 330i (ish). I don't see the need to go for a hot hatch as I would just want something more special right away, especially knowing I can afford it.