Car leasing

I've leased cars for years. It's just a long-term rental of a utility, though I know some people get ever so invested in a lump of steel and plastic with wheels. I don't do many miles, so get pretty cheap deals. Keep it serviced (though you can pay for maintenance in the lease deal), don't knock it about and you won't get clobbered on the "fair wear and tear" when you return it. Anything major is covered by manfacturer's warranty. I suppose the downside is that you have less choice about model and trim, but idgaf about that. I have found Rivervale Leasing to be very good and competitively priced - leased 3 cars through them over the last 8 years.

I wouldn't have thought it's the cheapest way to drive, but it's convenient and you get a new car.

beansnikpoh said:

Mind you - someone has driven into my current tank, which I'll have to pay to get fixed. There were bits of car and headlight "glass" all over the road one morning - minor scrape on my front bumper and wing, but I expect that will be expensive.

Just use one of those mobile repair blokes, if you take it to a dealer they would just get one of those in and then charge a hefty premium on top. I'll send you a message with details of a local chap.

Don't be too conservative with your mileage allowance. A 3yr deal on 5k miles per year is not just 15k at the point you hand it back. It's assessed annually, like at service time, and billed if you run over on any single year.

When you are casting around and speccing a car, any extras cost you heavy as only the base car value is considered for its retained value. The cost of those extras is fully depreciated over the time you possess it. If there are flashy bits you want, it's worth looking at a higher spec that includes them as standard.

me-109 said:

A 3yr deal on 5k miles per year is not just 15k at the point you hand it back. It's assessed annually, like at service time, and billed if you run over on any single year.

I didn't know it worked like that, but definitely worth knowing thanks.

What Katani said.

beansnikpoh said:

What's that, less than £40 a week for a new car? Hard to argue at that price.

To put the "exit charges" into perspective - as I said, I've had 3 cars over 8 years, not gone over the mileage limit - which for all the cars I've had is 12p per mile, and never been charged for any of the minor dings, scrapes or spills, even of the alloy wheels. The criteria by which they grade the car for wear and tear are freely available online, make sure you go round the car with the assessor at end of lease. Mind you - someone has driven into my current tank, which I'll have to pay to get fixed. There were bits of car and headlight "glass" all over the road one morning - minor scrape on my front bumper and wing, but I expect that will be expensive.

I once got charged £150 for a bit of chipped off paint, 1 x 1 inch area, on the very bottom of the front bumper. Scratches to the rims are not so much of a problem, but paintwork defect are.

johngti said:

Cheers folks. Seen a decent deal for a Nissan Qashqai (sp!!) for £162 including maintenance over two years. 5000 miles PA is more than enough for me.

Given that Mrs GTi’s uncle just died and has a perfectly serviceable car on his drive, It’s a shame I can’t just nab that and drive it around for a while!! And since Mrs GTi is the sole executor for his will, she’s going to have to be above board on everything.

Purchasing a GAP insurance policy may be worth considering: https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/insurance/gap-insurance/

Recently handed an Alfa back and was fearing the worst. Scuffed alloys and some car park scars.

But, less than £300. They did miss a couple of small dings which really surprised me. You'd expect proper Eagle eyed inspection.

photonic69 said:

micaab said:

Recently handed an Alfa back……….

What? In a big cardboard box?

My past experiences of Alfas has been the miracle of them disappearing in front of my very eyes into a pile of rust.
(Was quite a while back tbh)

Lol that reputation is still with alfa.

But no, the Stelvio was faultless over 3 years. A few alfa quirks but nothing mad.

Car was good. Can't same the same about the dealership.