How the hell do people afford cars these days?
Discussion
ChocolateFrog said:
In a roundabout way.
Sold my V8 Touareg and bought a Duster.
Only a couple of grand difference but the Duster is 10 years newer and a fair chunk cheaper to run.
How different does it feel to drive?Sold my V8 Touareg and bought a Duster.
Only a couple of grand difference but the Duster is 10 years newer and a fair chunk cheaper to run.
I’m curious….does a modern Duster compare well with a decade old Touareg?
Got a decent car for the wife to drive around in and I’m back in a £1500 shed as I wfh and don’t do that many miles.
Been round the lease route a few times and the more expensive cars, perhaps I’m just old but couldn’t even consider spending £400/mth on a Kia/Hyundai/MG type thing.
I found I actually like old cars, there are a lot of interesting models in the sun £5k category to try and if one were to explode, the loss is not going to be too painful. Buying a car for the same value as a single maintenance bill on my previous Porsche is a little weird but perversely enjoyable. I no longer have a Porsche, but also no longer have the maintenance and need for indies etc - I can either work on the shed myself or send it to a local man when the job exceeds my limited skills.
It’s not for everyone, some prefer the security of a new car and I get that - and I need them to keep buying new so I can buy them at 5% of their RRP in a few years
Been round the lease route a few times and the more expensive cars, perhaps I’m just old but couldn’t even consider spending £400/mth on a Kia/Hyundai/MG type thing.
I found I actually like old cars, there are a lot of interesting models in the sun £5k category to try and if one were to explode, the loss is not going to be too painful. Buying a car for the same value as a single maintenance bill on my previous Porsche is a little weird but perversely enjoyable. I no longer have a Porsche, but also no longer have the maintenance and need for indies etc - I can either work on the shed myself or send it to a local man when the job exceeds my limited skills.
It’s not for everyone, some prefer the security of a new car and I get that - and I need them to keep buying new so I can buy them at 5% of their RRP in a few years
mattman said:
Got a decent car for the wife to drive around in and I’m back in a £1500 shed as I wfh and don’t do that many miles.
Been round the lease route a few times and the more expensive cars, perhaps I’m just old but couldn’t even consider spending £400/mth on a Kia/Hyundai/MG type thing.
I found I actually like old cars, there are a lot of interesting models in the sun £5k category to try and if one were to explode, the loss is not going to be too painful. Buying a car for the same value as a single maintenance bill on my previous Porsche is a little weird but perversely enjoyable. I no longer have a Porsche, but also no longer have the maintenance and need for indies etc - I can either work on the shed myself or send it to a local man when the job exceeds my limited skills.
It’s not for everyone, some prefer the security of a new car and I get that - and I need them to keep buying new so I can buy them at 5% of their RRP in a few years
Theres definitely fun and interesting cars to be had at a fraction of what the new car equivalents would cost, and as you say, they can be low depreciators / immune to depreciation.Been round the lease route a few times and the more expensive cars, perhaps I’m just old but couldn’t even consider spending £400/mth on a Kia/Hyundai/MG type thing.
I found I actually like old cars, there are a lot of interesting models in the sun £5k category to try and if one were to explode, the loss is not going to be too painful. Buying a car for the same value as a single maintenance bill on my previous Porsche is a little weird but perversely enjoyable. I no longer have a Porsche, but also no longer have the maintenance and need for indies etc - I can either work on the shed myself or send it to a local man when the job exceeds my limited skills.
It’s not for everyone, some prefer the security of a new car and I get that - and I need them to keep buying new so I can buy them at 5% of their RRP in a few years
Whilst we dont need the main car we have - 2019 M140i that we bought new - we dont feel we've any particular reason to sell it. We both love driving it and whilst we drive a lot less than we did, it does make any driving we do do fun.
We dont even need a second car per se - but if we did i'd do like you did and buy something down the money. Last time i needed one i bought a 330i for £1200!
Some will be cash but many will be finance. Deals are becoming worse as rates rise. Sometimes the opportunity cost of tying up cash makes financing the better option whilst rates are still relatively cheap and we see silly inflation.
I just stick to cash personally for the piece of mind, but it's not always the best way depending on other financial commitments. My daily is a properly old shed as a result, which may not float everyone's boat (I just like sheds for their dentability).
I just stick to cash personally for the piece of mind, but it's not always the best way depending on other financial commitments. My daily is a properly old shed as a result, which may not float everyone's boat (I just like sheds for their dentability).
Deep Thought said:
Puzzles said:
pcp was a bit of a no brainer before but who knows what will happen in future
It was.I think when the manufacturers can sort out their supply issues and move back to volume sales, we'll see those compelling offerings come back again.
There was both good and bad PCP deals.
Tomanybikes said:
Deep Thought said:
Puzzles said:
pcp was a bit of a no brainer before but who knows what will happen in future
It was.I think when the manufacturers can sort out their supply issues and move back to volume sales, we'll see those compelling offerings come back again.
There was both good and bad PCP deals.
Worth calling out.
I honestly don't know how people afford these cars. Just to clarify I am NOT jealous as I love seeing nice cars, if anything I am genuinely intrigued as to how people make enough money to buy such nice cars.
With the general cost of living unless your house is paid off I don't understand how there's so many Range Rovers on the road and I'm not talking Evoque's either.
Anyway one day I hope I am in the position to buy a nice car for my parents, they deserve it more than I do.
With the general cost of living unless your house is paid off I don't understand how there's so many Range Rovers on the road and I'm not talking Evoque's either.
Anyway one day I hope I am in the position to buy a nice car for my parents, they deserve it more than I do.
flibbage0 said:
I honestly don't know how people afford these cars. Just to clarify I am NOT jealous as I love seeing nice cars, if anything I am genuinely intrigued as to how people make enough money to buy such nice cars.
With the general cost of living unless your house is paid off I don't understand how there's so many Range Rovers on the road and I'm not talking Evoque's either.
Anyway one day I hope I am in the position to buy a nice car for my parents, they deserve it more than I do.
Some Older folk (like myself) made it in property, much of it legally tax free, knew what they wanted later on in life, calculated how much that would take to support in £ without having to work, worked their arses off to make enough to cover it.With the general cost of living unless your house is paid off I don't understand how there's so many Range Rovers on the road and I'm not talking Evoque's either.
Anyway one day I hope I am in the position to buy a nice car for my parents, they deserve it more than I do.
Property market then was akin to YT and bitcoin today (or was) ie money for the taking if you were risk averse and got high off the rewards of working harder than anyone else.
Also, buying cars with a trader mentality means you don’t lose money on cars so easy justifying larger amounts, obviously doesn’t apply to the pcp purchases.
I think if you’ve always borrowed to buy cars then you have a slightly different mentality altogether tbh, I’ve never shopped for anything without money in my pocket, except houses in the 90s but they were making so much it was just factored in to the plan.
Aventador 700 said:
Some Older folk (like myself) made it in property, much of it legally tax free, knew what they wanted later on in life, calculated how much that would take to support in £ without having to work, worked their arses off to make enough to cover it.
Property market then was akin to YT and bitcoin today (or was) ie money for the taking if you were risk averse and got high off the rewards of working harder than anyone else.
Also, buying cars with a trader mentality means you don’t lose money on cars so easy justifying larger amounts, obviously doesn’t apply to the pcp purchases.
I think if you’ve always borrowed to buy cars then you have a slightly different mentality altogether tbh, I’ve never shopped for anything without money in my pocket, except houses in the 90s but they were making so much it was just factored in to the plan.
So what would you recommend for someone under 30 who has lived well within their means and stacked some cash? I really don't know if it's worth it buying property these days for investment purposes.Property market then was akin to YT and bitcoin today (or was) ie money for the taking if you were risk averse and got high off the rewards of working harder than anyone else.
Also, buying cars with a trader mentality means you don’t lose money on cars so easy justifying larger amounts, obviously doesn’t apply to the pcp purchases.
I think if you’ve always borrowed to buy cars then you have a slightly different mentality altogether tbh, I’ve never shopped for anything without money in my pocket, except houses in the 90s but they were making so much it was just factored in to the plan.
flibbage0 said:
So what would you recommend for someone under 30 who has lived well within their means and stacked some cash? I really don't know if it's worth it buying property these days for investment purposes.
I know you didn't ask me but here's my two pennies.You have to invest in assets. It's the only way to make any long term wealth. Working for "the man" limits your ability to gain financial freedom.
The million pound question is what to do with your money in the current climate. Every asset class (stocks, commodities, bonds and soon property) are taking a beating. We are in a bear market and an unofficial recession. You will get many experts and analysts telling you what to do with your money. It's precarious right now, nobody knows what this next 5-10 years will look like. We've had the biggest market bull run probably in history from 2011 ish to 2021. You missed that boat.
Even index funds which were thought to be bullet proof, say the S&P tracker funds, are showing weakness because macro conditions mean we're in a downtrend. Logic says people now need to get better at stock picking rather than broad market trends - stock picking is bloody hard.
What I would say is there is no magic bullet. Go and learn and educate yourself on stocks, markets, property investment and so on. There are/will be opportunities to get in, but it's not a casino and putting large amounts of your wealth into something requires proper examination and rationale. How will you know when to get in? You need to learn.
I continue to invest about one-third of my income in investments/savings - mostly concentrated on commodities (nickel, gold etc) and a couple of medical growth companies. I pay myself that every month before I do anything else. Then it's housing, bills, groceries. Then whatever I have is disposable cash. Always pay yourself in the form of savings/investments first. It's a long term game with a minimum requirement of 10 years.
I do like Andrew Craig's "How to own the world" as a good primer. It's a few quid but covers all the basics and common terminology. Best of luck - if you are under 30 you have a golden opportunity to create proper wealth from compound growth. You're ahead of the game! Best of luck
Edited by silent ninja on Saturday 10th September 18:20
I agree with the above. I'm only relatively poor, but plenty in the village i live in own a range rover. This is what the ones i know do:
Works in I.t, made money from selling land for housing, own a small chain of pharmacies, owned a consulting business, set up an insurance business, sold a recruitment business, doctor/dentist couple.
Basically, having a job is not the main way, is my guess.
Works in I.t, made money from selling land for housing, own a small chain of pharmacies, owned a consulting business, set up an insurance business, sold a recruitment business, doctor/dentist couple.
Basically, having a job is not the main way, is my guess.
flibbage0 said:
Aventador 700 said:
Some Older folk (like myself) made it in property, much of it legally tax free, knew what they wanted later on in life, calculated how much that would take to support in £ without having to work, worked their arses off to make enough to cover it.
Property market then was akin to YT and bitcoin today (or was) ie money for the taking if you were risk averse and got high off the rewards of working harder than anyone else.
Also, buying cars with a trader mentality means you don’t lose money on cars so easy justifying larger amounts, obviously doesn’t apply to the pcp purchases.
I think if you’ve always borrowed to buy cars then you have a slightly different mentality altogether tbh, I’ve never shopped for anything without money in my pocket, except houses in the 90s but they were making so much it was just factored in to the plan.
So what would you recommend for someone under 30 who has lived well within their means and stacked some cash? I really don't know if it's worth it buying property these days for investment purposes.Property market then was akin to YT and bitcoin today (or was) ie money for the taking if you were risk averse and got high off the rewards of working harder than anyone else.
Also, buying cars with a trader mentality means you don’t lose money on cars so easy justifying larger amounts, obviously doesn’t apply to the pcp purchases.
I think if you’ve always borrowed to buy cars then you have a slightly different mentality altogether tbh, I’ve never shopped for anything without money in my pocket, except houses in the 90s but they were making so much it was just factored in to the plan.
what was ‘sacrificing living your life’ for? & subsequent cash to be spent on in your plan?
Some hoard money for the sake of it it, they think it makes them more secure, in fact it ends up owning them as they’re afraid of loosing or spending it, maybe thats you?
Its important to use money imo or it’ll end up using you, i cant stand the stuff as i saw it as an evil, my intentions were to get enough and then just feed off it for the rest of my life, no stocks, no pensions, no greed or obsession with it etc.
All the above is very particular to me / us though, we have no dependants so aiming for pot zero, properties remain but we have zero to do with them and they’ll go to charity.
We are quite different to most in our mentality though, legacys, respect in the business world bla bla means nothing to us, respecting ourselves and the way we conduct ourselves toward others has always been important, keeping away from monied others helps in this regard, i ramble somewhat in the mornings, sorry for diversion…
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