Car Finace

okiegirl

Hi there,
I have 3 children and another on the way and will need a 7 seater like a zafira or something. I have a r reg renault scenic which is mechanically sound but the body work is scratched loads so i was gonna trade it in as i dont think i'd get much for it with the bodywork like it is. i have no cash to play with but could just about afford payments on fiance per month.
Which companys are the best to try for car finace?i have never had it before so dont know which companys are reputable.

Conor_3

If you have no cash to play with and are just about able to scrape the payments together, my advice is to stick with what you've got as you're heading for a world of financial pain should anything go wrong at all.

anewman

I thought the renault scenics were 7 seaters?

Why get finance - and buy an expensive car that will depreciate loads, plus you'll be paying the finance company thousands for the privelige while struggling to make ends meet - when you can save for a few months and buy an entire car for £1000? Then save a bit of the money you'd be paying as monthly payments in case of any repairs needed.

How about a Mitsubishi Space Wagon? E.g. here

hewhoisnotintheknow

ive not been in a newer shape zafira, but the W reg shape rear (boot seats) are useless and totally unusable if you have young children who need putting in their seats or anyone over 5ft

lauren_1

I would strongly urge you to look at Sharan/galaxy/alhambra's or a space wagon as pp said than to go for a zafira, especially a zafira on finance.

You can get a fairly cheap used one for less than 2k if you hunt you may even get a 1k<.

For what you would pay for finance,tax and insurance on a new car you could easily afford to run a used, insure it, tax it and still be able to save for repairs with money left over

Conor_3

anewman wrote: »

I thought the renault scenics were 7 seaters?

They are which is why I can't work out why they want to change it unless they're snobs and a few scratches here and there matter. Personally as long as its reliable and safe, I'd keep it rather than get in debt I can barely afford.

AdrianHi

If the car you have is sound you may as well keep it until it gets troublesome.
If the scratches are bothering you and if they are not too deep a professional detailer should be able to sand out, polish up and remove light scratches and swirl marks
leaving the car 90%-95% mark free and gleaming like new for around £200-£300.

If you were going to go for a Zafira lease it. Very small deposit, lower monthly payments, it's much cheaper than buying one even with 0% finance offers. Leasing companies buy cars like this in for around 25% off list price. There are some brokers around who can also sell you one with that kind of discount if you are hung up on having to "own" the car.
Unmanageable debt is bad, but in the end interest charges are a very small component of the total cost of owning/using a car and it's worth remembering that if you pay cash you loose interest on that money no longer invested which is a finance charge in itself though nearly always less than loan interest charges.

Depreciation is almost always the biggest expense, your current car does not really depreciate at all. If you want to save money get your old reliable scenic polished up and save up the monthly payments you were going to make for the deposit when you do have to replace the car.

okiegirl

Conor wrote: »

They are which is why I can't work out why they want to change it unless they're snobs and a few scratches here and there matter. Personally as long as its reliable and safe, I'd keep it rather than get in debt I can barely afford.

No i am not a snob as u put it so nicely thank you!Cant afford to be!
Mine is a 5 seater renault megane scenic,if it were a 7 seater i wouldnt want to change it.
The scratches on the car aren't the issue of me wanting to change it,if u read what i put originally,i said that i didnt think the car would be worth selling privately due to the condition of the bodywork to then put the money towards a bigger car,hence why i thought about trading it in for a finace deal...
The issue is that when i have this fourth baby,we will not be able to go out as a family unless we get a 7 seater,so my husband and the kids can all go to,and then theres the issue of when we go on holiday etc,,,,
I've always said i wouldnt get finace but certain situations make u think u have no other choice. I had not thought about leasing,might look into that.

anewman

You could try selling the Scenic on Ebay - maybe put a reserve on it of what you'd get for scrap.

Noone ever needs finance to buy a car. You can buy a perfectly safe roadworthy 7 seater for £700 these days quite easily.

AdrianHi

My closest friends with 3 children plus dogs went down the 7 seater road a while back.
They needed reasonable boot space too.
Sadly the Toyota Previa is no longer sold here, the Renault Grand Scenic expensive, the one that won was the Chrysler Grand Voyager on price, sliding doors plus the seats fold and stow under the floor. £30K plus not a lot over 20mpg on the V6 petrol, the diesels don't have rear aircon vents. There is a new model just out that may have resolved this issue now.
Big money to run these vehicles.

Inactive

Is it not possible to add another seat to your car?....Just a thought..