Best deals on scrappage offers or nearly new cars?

[Miyazaki]

Hi all,

I must admit i'm not much of a car aficionado and have only owned one car in my life, which is a 1998 honda civic 1.4i. The wife drives it to work, whilst I cycle.

The car is still mechanically sound, but is getting on a bit and we really need a 4 door saloon type car that is a bit bigger. It is used mainly for commuting to work and visiting family dotted all over the country.

I am really confused about buying a new car with all the scrappage deals on offer and what a pre-registered car means and whether you can use a scrappage deal against one of these. The car we want to buy doesn't necessarily have to be new or nearly new, but must be reliable.

Should we get a new car with a scrappage deal or part-ex our car against a nearly new one?

The car will be bought on credit ( ) as we don't have enough dosh to get one with cash. We really don't want to spend more than about £4-5k.

Reliability is really top of the agenda, with mpg next as the missus drives for about 90 mins per day to and from work and doesn't like having to refuel all the time.

What sort of car do you think we should get, bearing in mind we don't want the hassle of getting it repaired all the time? I understand ford and fiat are quite unreliable, whilst German and Japanese cars are more reliable, but much more expensive?

Many thanks in anticipation of any help.

 

[un1eash]

With 4-5k you wont be able to go new so the scrappage scheme is out the window. I'd start looking at 2004-2005 skoda octavias which should be around your budget.

 

[FZR400RRSP]

With 4-5k you wont be able to go new so the scrappage scheme is out the window.

Yes, you can get a new car for £4-5K.

Kia Picanto The cheapest scrappage deal in the UK right now remains Kia's official offer on the entry-level Picanto, which can be yours for just £4,195 (32% off).

Suzuki Alto Suzuki's cheap-as-chips city car is normally priced at £6,795 (1.0 Alto SZ2). Under the scrappage scheme, you can buy it for £4,795 (29% off).

VW Fox VW's city car is basic but with £2,000 off the cheapest Fox 1.2 3dr model, it could be on your drive for just £4,845 (29% off).

Fiat Panda Fiat is offering an additional £100 saving on top of the usual £2,000 scrappage incentive, taking the list price of the Fiat Panda 1.1 Active ECO down from £7,095 to £4,995 (30% off).

Hyundai i10 Hyundai is offering a similar £2,100 deal on the i10 1.2 Classic city car, taking its price down to £4,995 (30% off).

 

[un1eash]

Which one of those is a 4 door saloon again?

 

[Miyazaki]

Yes, you can get a new car for £4-5K.

Kia Picanto The cheapest scrappage deal in the UK right now remains Kia's official offer on the entry-level Picanto, which can be yours for just £4,195 (32% off).

Suzuki Alto Suzuki's cheap-as-chips city car is normally priced at £6,795 (1.0 Alto SZ2). Under the scrappage scheme, you can buy it for £4,795 (29% off).

VW Fox VW's city car is basic but with £2,000 off the cheapest Fox 1.2 3dr model, it could be on your drive for just £4,845 (29% off).

Fiat Panda Fiat is offering an additional £100 saving on top of the usual £2,000 scrappage incentive, taking the list price of the Fiat Panda 1.1 Active ECO down from £7,095 to £4,995 (30% off).

Hyundai i10 Hyundai is offering a similar £2,100 deal on the i10 1.2 Classic city car, taking its price down to £4,995 (30% off).

Thanks for the input mate, but those cars are far too small for our needs.

 

[Miyazaki]

With 4-5k you wont be able to go new so the scrappage scheme is out the window. I'd start looking at 2004-2005 skoda octavias which should be around your budget.

Hi, and thanks for your input.

I've had a look on auto trader and can't see anything with less than 100,000 miles on the clock.

Do you think that would be a problem and significantly shorten the life expectancy of the car?

We would expect to keep the car for at least the next 5 years.

Thanks again.

 

[hornydragon]

If you forget scrapage and assume your car is worth atleast £500 in part-ex I would say look at Toyota Yarios Verso 1.4D (not pretty but decent size and economical and Toyota is a srelaible as it gets...)
Citreon berlingo multispace again not pretty not fun to drive but spacious and economical

Also 307 (1.6 HDi) and astra (1.3 CDTi) diesel estates are in your ball park if you shop around all under 40k and 3 years on autotrader.

Xsara Picasso, Megan Scenic and Meriva small people carries may also be in budget for petrol motors

 

[Bilbob]

Would also look at a focus Cmax... silly VFM, a lot of car for the cash...

 

[dan54]

If you forget scrapage and assume your car is worth atleast £500 in part-ex I would say look at Toyota Yarios Verso 1.4D (not pretty but decent size and economical and Toyota is a srelaible as it gets...)
Citreon berlingo multispace again not pretty not fun to drive but spacious and economical

Also 307 (1.6 HDi) and astra (1.3 CDTi) diesel estates are in your ball park if you shop around all under 40k and 3 years on autotrader.

Xsara Picasso, Megan Scenic and Meriva small people carries may also be in budget for petrol motors

If I was writing a list of cars I'd run a mile from, these would all be on it.

 

[dan54]

Would also look at a focus Cmax... silly VFM, a lot of car for the cash...

Very underrated car.

 

[Miyazaki]

If you forget scrapage and assume your car is worth atleast £500 in part-ex I would say look at Toyota Yarios Verso 1.4D (not pretty but decent size and economical and Toyota is a srelaible as it gets...)
Citreon berlingo multispace again not pretty not fun to drive but spacious and economical

Also 307 (1.6 HDi) and astra (1.3 CDTi) diesel estates are in your ball park if you shop around all under 40k and 3 years on autotrader.

Xsara Picasso, Megan Scenic and Meriva small people carries may also be in budget for petrol motors

Thanks, i'll consider the toyota, but the rest of those on there don't inspire me with confidence in regards to relibility.

 

[Miyazaki]

Would also look at a focus Cmax... silly VFM, a lot of car for the cash...

Very underrated car.

Are they really good?

I thought ford stood for 'fix or repair daily'?

In what way are they underrated then?

 

[dan54]

Are they really good?

I thought ford stood for 'fix or repair daily'?

In what way are they underrated then?

Fix or repair daily applied in 1973-those days are long gone.
Definately an underrated car.Ive had one for over 2 years now and thats a record for me,very quiet on the m/way,handles lovely,can get 2 pushchairs in the boot and plenty of space for 3 in the back.

 

[hornydragon]

If I was writing a list of cars I'd run a mile from, these would all be on it.

Me too but i am not in the OP's situation....

 

[sidicks]

Fords are good cars - the main issue is that oversupply, particularly to fleets, which means that depreciation can be horrendous. If, when buying new, you negotiate a discount, then this is less of an issue.

In your position, you should be able to pick up a bargain - a car where someone else has suffered most of the depreciation. You should have plenty of cars to choose from, and if (NOT when) it goes wrong, then repair costs shouldn't be excessive.

I'd pursue this route if I were you!

Sidicks

 

[Miyazaki]

Fords are good cars - the main issue is that oversupply, particularly to fleets, which means that depreciation can be horrendous. If, when buying new, you negotiate a discount, then this is less of an issue.

In your position, you should be able to pick up a bargain - a car where someone else has suffered most of the depreciation. You should have plenty of cars to choose from, and if (NOT when) it goes wrong, then repair costs shouldn't be excessive.

I'd pursue this route if I were you!

Sidicks

Thanks for that.

 

[Miyazaki]

Ok,

I think I will go for a focus c-max and either the 1.6 or 2.0 diesel ghia version with the cruise control, as the skoda octavia was just too rich for us.

How much of a discount should I expect to be able to negotiate from a dealer? Bearing in mind we would look to trade in our current car on top, which according to parkers we should get £700 for.

So say if a car is advertised with a dealer for £5000, we were able to get it for £4300 with a trade-in, would you expect to be able to negotiate the price lower?

Any tips on this? I am clueless.

 

[un1eash]

They may not budge on the price much if they give you full trade in value for your car, dont expect to get £700 just because parkers say that. You need to look at the price your car is selling at as they will want to make a profit on it.

Say you do get £700 but they wont budge on price then start looking at things on the car that may need attention. The easiest are whens a service due,brakes and tyres. If its due a service in the next couple thousand miles then get them to give it a service. If tyres are getting low then get them to replace the tyres. If brakes are looking low then get them to replace.

Last of all you want atleast 6 months tax. £4300 is what you want to pay for the car on the road and you dont want to have to spend any money for atleast 6-12 months so service and tyres.

Also ask about warranty, any decent dealer will give you atleast 3 months free where as some will charge extra for this.

 

[hornydragon]

Worth looking at a few main dealers as they should offer better warranty and terms as your looking at finance the sticker price of the car is irrelevent its the monthly payment that matters so haggle as much as you can and walk away if not 100% with car and deal it is a buyers market afterall

 

[Miyazaki]

The reason I ask is that compared to the parker's guide price which includes average mileage for age, most of the cars i've looked at on autotrader are about £500 over parker's valuation.

Do you think i'd be able to just take in a print out of parker's price and ask them to match it?

 

[Miyazaki]

Worth looking at a few main dealers as they should offer better warranty and terms as your looking at finance the sticker price of the car is irrelevent its the monthly payment that matters so haggle as much as you can and walk away if not 100% with car and deal it is a buyers market afterall

By main dealer, do you mean to get a ford from a ford dealer?

I don't really understand what a main dealer is.

 

[Miyazaki]

They may not budge on the price much if they give you full trade in value for your car, dont expect to get £700 just because parkers say that. You need to look at the price your car is selling at as they will want to make a profit on it.

Say you do get £700 but they wont budge on price then start looking at things on the car that may need attention. The easiest are whens a service due,brakes and tyres. If its due a service in the next couple thousand miles then get them to give it a service. If tyres are getting low then get them to replace the tyres. If brakes are looking low then get them to replace.

Last of all you want atleast 6 months tax. £4300 is what you want to pay for the car on the road and you dont want to have to spend any money for atleast 6-12 months so service and tyres.

Also ask about warranty, any decent dealer will give you atleast 3 months free where as some will charge extra for this.

So basically accept the price they initially offer and negotiate down based on tyre wear, length of remain MOT, etc?

 

[un1eash]

Main dealer would be your ford dealer yes.

If they are unwilling to move on price then start on the extras, first get the best price you can then start with how much tax,mot,service,tyre wear, warranty etc...

If its a main dealer at the end if your happy with the deal ask for more, carmats full tank of fuel etc...

If you dont ask you wont get. It may sound petty but walking away from a deal over £50 of fuel isnt a bad thing as theres plenty of Cmax out there.

Also ask how long they've had the car in stock, if its new stock they wont be desperate to reduce the price, if the cars been sitting on the forecourt for months then they'll want it gone.

 

[hornydragon]

By main dealer, do you mean to get a ford from a ford dealer?

I don't really understand what a main dealer is.

MAin dealer as in the place you can buy a brand new car (doesn't have to be a ford specific franchise) but a dealer rather than a supermarket/used pitch by all means look at as many cars as you can once you have seen 3 you will get a good idea of whats what, specs ages conditions etc. It can be a pain looking for cars but my top tips are this:

1hone up first to check details adverts can be misleading.
2:Get sales persons name and number (build a relationship) give them your name and number
3:Keep a chart to compare cars you have looked at/enquired about Spec, age, mileage, price, waranty etc
4:Once you have the deatils of available local cars call the sales person of the ones you prefer back and book a time/ date for test drive. (build the relationship)
5:Clean your car, good wash and Vac before going to garages (your trying to sell yours 2)
6: Take anything you need to make sure fits with you (push chair, Musical instrument, dog etc)
7ont be afraid to ask questions have a poke and play take as long as you need driving the car (both) on the sort of roads you normally drive.
8: Get all facts figures offers etc written down
9: Check car paper work log book, service history, note down details of garages that did the work and feel free to phone them and see if anything else was done.
10: Don't get pushed take your time if you want the car put your offer on the table and be prepared to walk away.


Hope this helps

 

[hornydragon]

Also ask how long they've had the car in stock, if its new stock they wont be desperate to reduce the price, if the cars been sitting on the forecourt for months then they'll want it gone.

YOu can often find this out if you do your own HPI check if the dealer has the stock on forecourt finance (forgot the proper term) it tells you when they financed it so roughly when it came into stock, if its over 6-8 weeks ago they need to move it if its under 2 weeks less likely to so concerned.

You can try selling your privatley to get more than the part X price