Monday 20th January 2014

Best time to buy a new car? Now

Great discounts won't last warn experts - best look at some deals then

---

"Let's just say, it's absolutely the best time to buy a car." That was the response of Ford's European sales boss Roelant de Waard when we asked him recently about the scale of discounts on new motors being offered.

Last year the average discount on new cars in Europe was just over £2,000 according to research from analysts TNS. Which means some makers where offering a hell of a lot more than that. All this helped boost the UK car market up 11 per cent last year to 2.3 million, the highest since 2007.

BMW dealers 'malleable' on M135i deals

At the risk of sounding like One Pound Fish Man, these deals won't last. Car companies were pricing cars to sell in the bouyant UK as almost every other market in Europe tanked. But in December things were looking more stable, with all the big European markets seeing car sales rise.

The problem as usual was that car companies, particularly the mass-market ones, were making too many cars, which is great for buyers because the cars have to be sold, no matter what.

But the car makers are now tackling this excess by stopping production temporarily or shutting factories completely. "Once the difficult decisions to close factories by the various manufacturers are executed then I think you'll start to see a healthy price level," said de Waard. Healthy for Ford he means, less so for the car buyer.

Ford is closing its Genk, Belgium, plant (home to Mondeo, which moves to Spain) at the end of this year, Vauxhall/Opel shuts its Bochum, Germany, factory this year also, and Peugeot Citroen closed its Aulnay, France, plant in October.

But deals are still good and not just for the more bread and butter motors, thanks in part to low interest rates. Here are some of the more PH-worthy deals we found on new cars.

Run-out deals on C63 AMG are tempting

BMW M135i
Kicking off with a PH favourite, how about a BMW M135i 3dr for £379 a month for two years with just £1,137 (three monthly payments) down? This from a leasing outfit called First Vehicle Leasing. (All these deals include VAT with annual miles at 10K unless stated)

BWM 640d
Sticking with BMW, a dealer will give a whopping £16,000 off a new 640d M Sport Coupe if you take out their PCP deal for three years. That brings the monthly payments to £793 with a £5,000 deposit.

BMW 320d Touring
More mundanely, a 320d Sport Touring is £320 a month through BMW dealers for the same three years at £5,000 desposit on a PCP.

Ford Fiesta ST
The terrific little hot hatch is yours for £199 a month leased from Ford for three years, with £4,378 down and an annual mileage limit of 9,000. A PCP deal is very similar, but for two years.

Sensible pants Skodas for buttons

Ford Focus ST
On a lease this is just £50 a month more than Fiesta, with a £5,334 deposit and the same mileage for three years.

Mercedes C63AMG
Merc dealers will charge you £669 a month for three years PCP with a £5,776 deposit. Comes with a £6,000 discount.

Skoda Octavia vRS TDI estate
Lings also has an excellent deal on a for £303 a month for two years with three payments up front.

Jaguar XF 2.2d
Lings again has a 2.2 diesel Luxury for £362 a month for four years, again with three payments up front.

[goron59]

What about just buying the cars outright? Or are the deals just on credit agreements?

[blackchrome917]

The Crack Fox said:

A price list of some cars on tick. Jesus. C'mon chaps give us something interesting to read whilst pretending to be busy at work. Boring.

+1

[Flashmurder]

Best time to buy a new car? Never

[pork911]

Is ford's European sales boss an independent observer?

[zeppelin101]

Flashmurder said:

Best time to buy a new car? Never

So if no one ever buys a new car, where is your enormous selection of second hand cars going to come from?

Ridiculous response.

[NickUSA]

Of course a car manufacturer or dealer would say it's the best time of year to buy a new car ...... Why ?

Because January to the end of February is the quietest time of year for them as many drivers would rather wait until the new registration comes out on the 1st of March.

[Flashmurder]

zeppelin101 said:

So if no one ever buys a new car, where is your enormous selection of second hand cars going to come from?

Ridiculous response.

q_q

[pork911]

zeppelin101 said:

Flashmurder said:

Best time to buy a new car? Never

So if no one ever buys a new car, where is your enormous selection of second hand cars going to come from?

Ridiculous response.

You forget we are individuals, I don't think he was suggesting a categorical imperative

[oop north]

I can offer you a BMW M135i for £25 a month - just give me £34k up front...

Those Ford deals with £4k+ deposits double the monthly cost (roughly) and hey presto they aren't great deals at all... Just daft to pick some low monthly deals without factoring in the deposit...

[hornetrider]

This article is too months too late - M135i's were 210+VAT before christmas.

[Cotic]

Does everyone buy cars on PCP (balloon nowadays? Always appeared to me to be a horrifying arrangement, hence I've never done it.

1) You appear to be tied in to the manufacturer; unless you can afford to raise the deposit for the next car at the same time as paying the monthly payments (in which case, why not get a loan which pays for the whole blummin' car?)

2) There's a 'agreed final value' which appears to be set at a rather low (but not that attractively low) sum. The principle being (i suppose) that the car is worth more when the deal is up, which means you have some trade-in value to finance the next deal (albeit with the same manufacturer/dealer), or which tempts you to pay £x for a now 3-year old car which you've already had finance on for 3 years.

3) Mileages are fixed to 10k per year or so. Any more, it's 25p/mile 'contribution', any less do you get a better trade-in? Personally I find it difficult to predict my next month's mileage - let alone 3 years worth.

I admit the deals are attractive in a headline kind of way (ONLY £199/per month for 3 years! Hassle Free!) but I can't see how they stack up financially.

Anyone care to argue the case for them?

[toon10]

Wow a mortgage payment for a 640d. Aren't diesels chosen as they are cheap to run? If you can afford that then, oh I give up. Mental.

[crosseyedlion]

Cotic said:

Does everyone buy cars on PCP (balloon nowadays? Always appeared to me to be a horrifying arrangement, hence I've never done it.

1) You appear to be tied in to the manufacturer; unless you can afford to raise the deposit for the next car at the same time as paying the monthly payments (in which case, why not get a loan which pays for the whole blummin' car?)

2) There's a 'agreed final value' which appears to be set at a rather low (but not that attractively low) sum. The principle being (i suppose) that the car is worth more when the deal is up, which means you have some trade-in value to finance the next deal (albeit with the same manufacturer/dealer), or which tempts you to pay £x for a now 3-year old car which you've already had finance on for 3 years.

3) Mileages are fixed to 10k per year or so. Any more, it's 25p/mile 'contribution', any less do you get a better trade-in? Personally I find it difficult to predict my next month's mileage - let alone 3 years worth.

I admit the deals are attractive in a headline kind of way (ONLY £199/per month for 3 years! Hassle Free!) but I can't see how they stack up financially.

Anyone care to argue the case for them?

Theyre the cheapest way of renting a car. If that's what you want to do, treat it like a utility or renting a house, thats fine.

[RemarkLima]

Kind of agree with the above... What happens at the end of the 2 or 3 years? You keep on going or have no car?

I'm sure it works well for some, and particularly business / company cars, but sadly not for me. I'd rather own outright and face the bills

crosseyedlion said:

Theyre the cheapest way of renting a car. If that's what you want to do, treat it like a utility or renting a house, thats fine.

Ah, that makes sense... If you think of it as a ongoing rental rather than an asset, then that'll work.

Still, we all know a mortgage is a better long term proposition, than eternal rent on a house.

[1878]

"Man with interest in selling cars says now is a good time to buy cars."

Wow, who'd have thought it.

[r11co]

blackchrome917 said:

The Crack Fox said:

A price list of some cars on tick. Jesus. C'mon chaps give us something interesting to read whilst pretending to be busy at work. Boring.

+1

+2

An article title that has nothing to do with the content, and reads entirely like a shill piece.

Poor, poor show PH. In the past this sort of thing would be marked 'advertising feature'.

Cotic said:

Anyone care to argue the case for them?

Someone will be along to do so in a moment, but what their argument will come down to is that they have a large disposable income and see the cost as worthwhile to them, rather than good value in an objective sense...

Edited by r11co on Monday 20th January 11:15

[Pistom]

I've never bought a car on finance but I can understand how finance is making cars affordable for the masses.

On a typical pcp, you are paying quite a small deposit, quite a small monthly amount for 2-3 years for what I call a brand new car (because it is brand new - and a car).

Some would argue that you end up with nothing at the end of it but that's not true, you end up with the benefits of having had the use of a brand new car. At the end of 2-3 years start again.

Everyone wins, except of course they don't. As the buyer, you have spent a lot of money out with little to show for it. The same as renting a house or renting anything.

The saying goes that if it flies floats or fks, your better off renting. My car does none of those so I buy.

I get a good car allowance and a massive mileage allowance but currently drive a snotter and bank the rest of the money (well spend it on drugs and prostitutes) as both are preferable to having a new car (in my eyes).

[Cotic]

crosseyedlion said:

Theyre the cheapest way of renting a car. If that's what you want to do, treat it like a utility or renting a house, thats fine.

In a way, I agree, (although that's more like leasing, surely?), but using the house rental analogy you'd be asked to leave the property after three years or pay market value in order to stay. Or, here, live in this completely different brand new house and carry on renting.

Actually, this would be a bl00dy good way to buy a house, in retrospect. I'm patenting this.

Edited by Cotic on Monday 20th January 11:30

[TRB]

Can we have an article on the price of some other stuff please - save me googling.

[zeppelin101]

Cotic said:

Does everyone buy cars on PCP (balloon nowadays? Always appeared to me to be a horrifying arrangement, hence I've never done it.

1) You appear to be tied in to the manufacturer; unless you can afford to raise the deposit for the next car at the same time as paying the monthly payments (in which case, why not get a loan which pays for the whole blummin' car?)

2) There's a 'agreed final value' which appears to be set at a rather low (but not that attractively low) sum. The principle being (i suppose) that the car is worth more when the deal is up, which means you have some trade-in value to finance the next deal (albeit with the same manufacturer/dealer), or which tempts you to pay £x for a now 3-year old car which you've already had finance on for 3 years.

3) Mileages are fixed to 10k per year or so. Any more, it's 25p/mile 'contribution', any less do you get a better trade-in? Personally I find it difficult to predict my next month's mileage - let alone 3 years worth.

I admit the deals are attractive in a headline kind of way (ONLY £199/per month for 3 years! Hassle Free!) but I can't see how they stack up financially.

Anyone care to argue the case for them?

1) You can hand the car back at deal end with nothing to pay, provided the car meets the dealer terms. i.e. mileage is as agreed (or pay mileage charge) and the car is in a condition acceptable for it's age. Unfortunately most manufacturers seem to abuse the last point and they don't expect to just be given a car back anyway without an order for a new one from the dealers I've talked to.

2) The GMV is set low to ensure there is some equity in the car at the deal end yes. As you say, means you don't have to put much (or any) additional deposit in to get a brand new car every 2-4 years.

3) Mileage can be adjusted, it just means you end up paying more per month or need a bigger deposit and the GMV is less. However, mileage is only considered if you give the car back and don't take a new deal on, i.e. you walk away. Otherwise mileage is irrelevant.

I bought an Aygo on PCP at the end of last year. I view it as a fixed payment which saves me money in commuting over my other car with no tax or MOT to worry about for 3 years. At deal end, I'll pay off the GMV and sell the car privately, hopefully recouping a %age of my deposit which I can then stick on something cheap and cheerful as my commuting mileage will have dropped significantly by that time.

Given that a lot of the deals that manufacturers apply are only available with finance then it's a no brainer for a new purchase. For instance, my parents got 2k off a brand new Focus just walking into the showroom without haggling but that was revoked as soon as they discussed buying it with cash. Solution? Buy it on finance and just pay the remaining finance off after your first monthly payment. 2k saved.