New car lease or buy used?

ripplyuk

I can't decide between buying a used car or getting a new one on a lease as I've seen some advertised for around £100 a month with tax/servicing included. However, I'm a bit worried because I've been reading about 'dilapidation' charges. Is it likely to cost me dearly if the car gets a few scratches? I don't want to be worrying every time I'm in a crowded car park etc. How reasonable are the companies when it comes to this? Has anyone been hit with a massive bill when they handed the car back? Also, does leasing usually work out cheaper than buying a used car with all the associated maintenance/repair costs?

rdwarr

As this is a "Money Saving" site then it has to be "buy used". Many people here have fantastic cars which have cost under £1000. The biggest cost on a new car is depreciation. Buy a car that has already depreciated and you're laughing.

I did have a lease car for a couple of years and they have to go back perfect. You will be charged for the most minor ding.

w211

How old will the used one be?

A new car on lease will be under warranty, and problems with the car will be sorted out. Depends on how vital you need to the car for work, etc., and if it will cost you money not having a car (which could happen if you buy a used one, and is off the road, as it needs repairs).

When you got a lease car, they should give you some blurb on what condition the car is required to be in when you give it back.

It doesn't have to be 100% perfect, they make allowances for reasonable wear and tear. You could be allowed two small dings in each panel for example, and scratches/scuffs smaller than 25mm are allowed, etc. Tyres should be branded and legal.

If you buy a used car, certain items may need replacing such as tyres or brakes. Doing average miles, and driven carefully, you may not even need to replace the brake pads on a new car, and may only need to replace a pair of tyres (on the driven wheels). However, you could be lucky and find a used car with brand new tyres and brakes all round :-)

Just ensure you're able to make the leasing payments if you take it out, as it's a contract you're signing. If you want to cancel it, you could have to pay 90% of it back - depending on the contract.

ferry

Just out of interest is it possible to private lease a new car for a short term say 1 year.
Also are there any preferred companies for this?

Hintza

ferry wrote: »

Just out of interest is it possible to private lease a new car for a short term say 1 year.
Also are there any preferred companies for this?

Yes but they tend to be relatively expensive as all the cost associated with the short lease are spread over only 12 months.

ripplyuk

I don't need the car for work. I only drive about 4000 miles/year mainly for shopping and hospital appointments. I really like the thought of something hassle free and reliable but on the other hand, I've started to like certain aspects of running my old car. At least if I wreck it or someone steals it, it's not the end of the world and I won't need to claim on my insurance and lose my no claims. But it's now going to cost much more to repair than its worth so I'm checking out all the options. I've seen some 4 year old cars with low mileage that I could buy outright but I know that any car can need expensive repairs so I'm not sure if a lease car would work out cheaper overall. It's the thought of constantly worrying about anything happening to it that's stopping me.

tykesi

But it's now going to cost much more to repair than its worth

But is it going to cost 'much more' than buying a new or used car whcih could also cost money to maintain?

martinthebandit

Buy second hand every time for me.

Work out your budget, spend half of it on buying the car and save the rest for maintenance and servicing, that's the way to economic, worry free motoring.

ripplyuk

tykesi wrote: »

But is it going to cost 'much more' than buying a new or used car whcih could also cost money to maintain?

I usually agree with you on that. I'm always telling other people to repair not replace but my car is now 12 years old ( though it has only 53000 miles on it) and the mechanics are beginning to mention it might be better to replace it. I'm just worried I'd be throwing good money after bad. Where do you draw the line on the cost of repairs? Mine is going to cost the best part of £1000 to sort out and then I bet it develops another problem.

The lease payments seem much cheaper than the monthly repayments if I buy a car a few years old. It would still worry me because of the responsibilities of a lease car if it gets damaged but since it seems cheaper than buying, maybe I should try to accept that. Having said that, my own car was paid off in 4 years but then gave me another 4 years payment free driving with almost no repair bills. I can't decide what to do!

ripplyuk

Forgot to add that any car I get is likely to get a few scratches as I live in an area with single track roads and often have to pull in tight to the hedges. Sometimes the branches scrape along the car but it's never caused any obvious damage to my own car that I'd be worried about. Would the lease company will be more likely to find damage that I haven't noticed and charge for it? Or is it only if it's glaringly obvious?

rexmedorum

The thing with leasing though is that you're only financing the use of the car for the term, say 3 years. So you pay a deposit + montly term for 3 years (at 100 gbp that's 3600).

After that you'll have nothing to show for it. So to compare costs you'd need to guestimate (using parkers for example) how much you'd get back for it after 3 years.

And then see how much the difference is will that cover repairs?

ripplyuk wrote: »

I usually agree with you on that. I'm always telling other people to repair not replace but my car is now 12 years old ( though it has only 53000 miles on it) and the mechanics are beginning to mention it might be better to replace it. I'm just worried I'd be throwing good money after bad. Where do you draw the line on the cost of repairs? Mine is going to cost the best part of £1000 to sort out and then I bet it develops another problem.

The lease payments seem much cheaper than the monthly repayments if I buy a car a few years old. It would still worry me because of the responsibilities of a lease car if it gets damaged but since it seems cheaper than buying, maybe I should try to accept that. Having said that, my own car was paid off in 4 years but then gave me another 4 years payment free driving with almost no repair bills. I can't decide what to do!