Posts Tagged ‘car leasing’

Is it worth having Maintenance?

Tuesday, January 29th, 2008

A fully maintained lease offers complete peace of mind and financial security as the monthly figure you pay incorporates the total cost of routine servicing and maintenance. This way all servicing, tyres (normally excluding punctures), brakes and exhausts are covered with no additional cost. Should you go over your mileage allowance the pence per mile penalty will also incorporate maintenance. Therefore you should have no unexpected costs over the duration of the lease.

This is extremely beneficial to high mileage users, typically 20-30k per anum.

Lower mileage users, up to 20k per anum, should also consider non-maintained contracts on their own financial merit. This is due to one main factor:

Recent changes in European law (Block Exemption) mean you have the right to take your vehicle anywhere you choose for servicing. Providing the servicing garage use OEM parts and adhere to the manufacturers servicing schedules.

This greatly affects lower mileage leasing customers as dealership prices can be higher than other smaller or local garages.

Therefore my advice would always be to measure up the money saved from having the vehicle maintained yourself, to the peace of mind of a fully maintained contract. Higher mileage users may find the convenience aspect of a maintained contract appealing, whereas lower mileage users would see benefit in the money saved.

Free CO2, Fuel Economy and Fuel Cost Calculator

Saturday, October 13th, 2007

This free tool, will calculate CO2 values, Fuel MPG and Fuel Costs within a few seconds.

It can certainly help make a descision on your new vehicle, or even find out what miles per gallon your car should be doing!

http://www.ultracar.co.uk/calculator/index.asp

Audi Lease - Why are they so good?

Friday, October 12th, 2007

Over recent months, Audi have become more and more agressive with their leasing products, and yet this would seem a strange move, for a multitude of reasons.

Audi have almost always maintained supply, just less than demand. For example with an Audi TT, everyone has to go on the waiting list. To this effect, there is a certain amount of prestige available from waiting for a car.

Keeping the vehicles always in demand has one major influence on the leasing costs - While the vehicles are in demand, the residual value of said vehicle remains with strength.

Once a couple of years have passed, with the RV’s (residual values) holding strong, it is now time to start pushing the vehicles heavily into the leasing market (because you only pay for the difference between invoice cost and residual value).

The added bonus to Audi has been that more and more, car manufacturers are moving toward supply on demand, and not stock piling. This brings everybody else inline with their delivery timescales, so if you want a BMW 1 series instead, you will still have to wait for it now.

The same applies to Golfs,Leons and alike.

Provided car manufacturers continue to stretch delivery schedules for vehicles, removing the option for the customer to stroll into a dealership and pickup an alternative, Audi will continue to flourish in the personal and business leasing world. I have even seen prices for A3 Hatchbacks at less than £200 per month!!!

 At least this article give an insight as to why.

Car Leasing and Finance - Different Contract Options

Thursday, October 11th, 2007

Regardless of whether you are a business or an individual looking for a new car there are a many varied and cost effective ways of financing the vehicle that will be able to meet your needs…..below are some simple explanations of some of the more popular options. …..Contract HireContract Hire is the leasing of a vehicle, normally to a vat registered business or company, for a set time and mileage at a fixed monthly rental. The monthly rental is determined by the cost of the vehicle, the period and mileage covered as well as the resultant depreciation. Maintenance packages are often included within Contract Hire agreements, but are not obligatory. …..Sale and LeasebackSale & leaseback can be used when your company already owns its own vehicles. Your fleet of vehicles could be purchased at an agreed realistic market value and then leased back to you through the funding method of your choice. This method removes any residual value risk for your company and would enable a cash injection into your business thus increasing your working capital. …..Outright Purchase Price CheckFor many people the concept of buying a car outright is daunting not least because the future value of the car is so difficult to quantify. The added complication of maintaining the car and the costs associated with this may make it a less attractive option. However if you are in the position of having cash to purchase your chosen vehicle outright and feel comfortable with the concept of servicing, taxing and disposing of it then shopping around for the best deal is important. Make sure you barter hard as somewhere a dealership will want to sell a car to hit its ‘target’ and will be willing to sacrifice profitability. ….Personal Contract Hire Personal Contract Hire, as its name suggests, is essentially the same as Contract Hire but for private individuals. If you want fixed cost motoring, or have opted out of a company car scheme then Personal Contract Hire could provide you with hassle free motoring without the residual value risks associated with traditional ownership.VAT is built into the monthly payments, but is not reclaimable by private individuals. Maintenance packages are usually available so that you don’t get any nasty surprises. ….Hire PurchaseHire Purchase is the traditional method of financing a vehicle with the vehicle becoming the property of the lessee at the end of the period. The monthly payment is determined by the amount of deposit paid, the period of the contract and the sale price of the vehicle. ….Personal Contract Purchase
Personal Contract Purchase (PCP) is a method of funding where an individual leases a vehicle for a set period at a fixed monthly charge. At the end of the contract, there is an optional balloon payment which the individual can pay to buy the vehicle otherwise they can choose to return the vehicle with nothing further to pay. The monthly charge is governed by the initial cost of the vehicle, the mileage covered, the period of the agreement and the estimated value of the vehicle at the end of the contract. In addition, features ranging from basic servicing to total vehicle management packages can be included if required. PCP being an alternative to Hire Purchase, the traditional method of financing, is also covered by the protections as set out in the consumer credit act.

The Benefits Of Leasing Cars

Wednesday, October 10th, 2007

When it comes time to purchase a car, many people are faced with the decision of whether to buy a car or to lease it. There are benefits of leasing cars that should be carefully examined before making a final decision. Whether the car is for business or personal use, there are several benefits of leasing cars. Aside from the benefits of leasing cars, though, the disadvantages should also be examined to see if another option for buying a vehicle would be in the best interest of the buyer. Choosing the finance option that best suits the buyer and will make the most sense financially will save a lot of money in the long run and the buyer will be sure to be pleased with the choice.

One of the benefits of leasing cars is the ability to make a lower down payment or none at all. Because the vehicle will be traded in at the end of the term and there is no outright ownership of the vehicle, many financial institutions require low or no down payment to get into the lease. The affordable monthly payments are another of the benefits of leasing cars. Similarly to a car loan, a lease will require monthly payments to be made for the continued use of the vehicle. These can be affordable and fit well into most people’s monthly budget. Because the benefits of leasing cars are so that there is an opportunity to trade the vehicle in after the term, many people are able to set their budget accordingly yet still be in a late model car that is in good condition.

For people who wish to trade in their vehicle every two to three years, the benefits of leasing cars are evident. You can get into a two to three year lease term and at the end of the lease, simply trade the car in for a newer model. The benefits of leasing cars are that you can keep your monthly payment fairly similar throughout the course of the new lease as well but you will have a new car at the end of two or three years. People who like to have a vehicle that is fairly new as a status symbol or who do not want to deal with the hassle of maintenance that comes with older cars may find leasing a better option than a loan. The benefits of leasing cars will be proven when you experience the low hassle of always having a new car.

The benefits of leasing cars are not for everyone, though. Although benefits of leasing cars are many, at the end of the term, even after you have paid thousands of dollars over the course of several years, there will never be a completely owned vehicle. The benefits of leasing cars are sometimes not worth not having the paid off asset for some people. For some, the benefits of leasing cars do not outweigh the idea that their payments will cease after a time and they will have a completely paid for vehicle with only routine maintenance costs to attend to.