Right, got it now. Hopefully. You will probably have heard about the new tax regulations announced yesterday as part of the summer Budget that apparently simplify the VED bands while still setting amounts according to to list price and CO2. Here we'll attempt to explain them and also what it mean for certain PH-worthy cars.
"A Bentley? Lots of tax from this one"
The changes come into effect from April 1 2017 for new cars - nobody will pay more tax than they do currently for the car they own. Predictably the changes are pretty significant, especially at the far ends of the spectrum. No longer will sub-100g/km cars be exempt from road tax, with anything from 1g/km upwards paying the new standard £140 rate after the first year. That £140 rate is five pounds less than the current Band F rate (141-150g/km) and undercuts the current average tax payment of £166. Apparently.
But it doesn't stop there. The first year 'showroom tax' remains, with anything up to £2,000 payable depending on emissions. Even a car emitting 191-225g/km (Porsche Cayman 2.7, for example) is subject to a £1,200 first year levy. Oh, and don't think you can get away with buying an expensive car that's rated fairly low on CO2; anything with list price over £40,000 new (presumably on P11D value) will pay a £310 supplement over the £140 standard rate for five years. So the 77g/km, £52K BMW X5 xDrive40e now looks even less appealing...
Cheaper to buy, soon a lot more to tax
So this is from 2017, with the money being used for whatever it's currently dedicated to. It's said the changes will raise £3bn in the first three years, after which VED money will go to a new roads fund. The Chancellor said all the money raised through VED would fund "sustained investment our roads so badly need". In a startlingly obvious idea, he also added: "Tax paid on people's cars will be used to improve the roads they drive on." Genius (!)
So they're the changes motorists need to be most aware of. Though their implementation is a little way off, it's worth noting the car most likely to be affected by it. Cars like Dan's Subaru would be hit very hard; 242g/km would mean a hefty £1,700 first year bill on a £28,995 car... It's also bad news for manuals, unsurprisingly, though they at least counter with a lower purchase price. However, the price difference between an F-Type V6 S auto and manual is £500 closer thanks to the automatic's lower emissions.
Still, paying more road tax has to improve the quality of the roads, right? The Chancellor said so...
You won't be surprised to learn PHers are already discussing the Budget. Join the discussion here.
[Sources: BBC, Telegraph, Highways Agency via Flickr]