Loan advice for new motor for newbie...

youngbuck88

Hi chaps,

I am in need of a newer, bigger car as I have a nipper on the way.
More importantly though, my current car only has an 'Ncap 2 star rating' and I'm just not comfortable carrying baby around in it at all.


I will obviously sell my current motor. But basically my question is - as a 25 year old, on 15k a year ( September I'm getting a promotion which would see me earn at the very least 20k ), living at home still ( GF will be moving in ) with very little previous history of credit, apart from phone bill, insurance, all paid on time aswell as my credit card payments.

Would you say a personal loan would be best in my circumstances in order to purchase the car I want. Also, am i likely to get accepted ? ... LLoyds were almost begging me to take one out not so long ago with several calls asking me to come in and talk. At the time i didn't want one.

You see, I'd rather have the money to buy a second hand minter, than save up and ' buy one for the sake of it '.

I've looked at the rates and if I was to borrow 7k, it would enable me to buy a car ( 5.5k ish ) and also clear a little bit left I have on a 0 % Credit card.

I know there is car finance available at certain garages, but I want the cash so that I'm able to buy private, if I needed to.

Best i've seen is roughly 7k over 48 months, for like 165 per month. Total repayable 7800ish ? Is that good ?

Thanks for the help.:)

longtermplanner

Including 1.5k which is currently on 0% in this loan is not a good idea. Also what will you get for selling the current car?

Could you not try to clear the 0% card now, keep your current car until September when you will get your promotion and then borrow 5k then?

forgotmyname

£7k on a car when you earn £15k or even £20k is too much...

The NCAP tests are a fixed point though. Are you going to have a head on crash into a block at 38mph or whatever the latest test speed is?

If you see car crashes under different circumstances then you may think again.
Many years back they said the Nissan Patrol was the safest car. It was big and heavy, One of the car shows crashed it head on into a much smaller and lighter VW Golf. Bot cars came off badly. The Patrol driver would have died because the passenger compartment failed much more than you would expect.

Save and buy something for cash. I only paid just over £2k for my Mondeo and i would rather have an accident in that than a NCAP rated 5 star small hatch.

If the £165 a month is the advertised rate then you may not get than. You could pay a lot more.

youngbuck88

longtermplanner wrote: »

Including 1.5k which is currently on 0% in this loan is not a good idea. Also what will you get for selling the current car?

Could you not try to clear the 0% card now, keep your current car until September when you will get your promotion and then borrow 5k then?

Probably 1k

I was saying 7k hypothetically, so that means I'd be able to just clear my 600 quid on card. Saving me at least the monthly minimum payment. I also owe the misses a few quid, from when I was made redundant at my previous job, which it would help me do that aswell. But of course she's not charging interest ( i hope haha ). But realistically I could clear card yes, then loan 5k or something.

Yeah TBH, it's more likely going to be 21 - 23 k but said lower as not to over guesstimate, i dont actually know untill i see the contract in a couple of weeks.

I appreciate the info though and will defo take what is said on board. This IS why I'm here after all.

honey10

Borrowing the money to buy this new car isn't a smart idea with a baby on the way, thats just my opinion. Maybe saving up for the next month or two, aswell as the money you get for the car you currently have will be enough? In my experience fords are reliable, relatively cheap to run and even newer models are easily picked up for less than £1500. Also cheap to fix!
I'm not sure when baby is due, but I'm sure the £165 a month could be put to something more useful.

magpiecottage

I think forgotmyname is thinking on the right lines.

The problem you face is that you can only spend your money once and no amount of money will make your child 100% safe. Not only does the rating for the car tell you nothing about what might happen in a different type of accident, it will provide no protection whatsoever when your child is not in the car.

Some things you can do, though. Buy NEW child seats. Regardless of the car you have, if it is over 3 years old, it will have an annual safety check (i.e. the MOT). A second hand child restraint has no such safety record. Make sure the child is always strapped in, and always in the back because that is generally safer than being in the front.

Look at your home too. Your child will spend far more time there than in the car. How will you stop them poking things into that nice hole in the wall where you normally plug the hoover in?

Make sure you have a working smoke alarm.

Get into bed with a blindfold on. Then get out of bed (still with the blindfold on) and crawl through your home to the child's cot. Grab something child sized (a pillow or something), now, still crawling and still with the blindfold on, carry it outside.

Then do the same from any other room in the house that you are likely to use.

The child's mum had better wait until after the birth to learn to do this but should do it too.

You may think this daft but if there you would not be able to see and you would need to drop to the floor because that is where the last of the breathable air will be.

So, for less than £100, you have increased your child's safety far more than getting a new car would achieve.

honey10

Just a point on the above message, a rear facing seat for as long as possible (preferably at least one) is a massive improvement in safety

BillJones

To the above, I'd suggest that some advanced driving lessons would also be a more efficient use of your money than a shiny new car. Most accidents could, with hindsight, have been avoided. Advanced driving lessons will teach you to improve observation, making it less likely that you'll get in an accident in the first place.

Yes, that's more effort than taking on a loan and buying a new car, but probably worth it.

youngbuck88

I appreciate the advice. I think were kinda steering off the track a bit in terms of advanced driving lessons. I know I'm only still young but I'm a very responsible driver, no points and never an accident.

It wasn't just about the safety as such but I did see the ncap crashes on a saxo n was like

I have bought all the baby's stuff already, we're all set for our arrival.

I suppose I just thought that if I went to a garage and they said part ex saxo and go on finance, they would charge me more than a bank loan in interest. But there's a lot more I could do with the loan to basically have one monthly payment. Also selling my current car private I'd get More money for it.

Part of it aswell is a treat for myself. As ive basically worked hard and gone without for years , now I've finally got the job I wanted I thought yeah buy something nicer than the sax. 165 pm, id still have like 5-600 quid spare a month after utilities and bills.

honey10

It sounds as though you are set on the loan, so my advice would be to have a look on money supermarket to see the deals compared, then speak to your bank and see what they say. I would also do a budget to check you do have left over what you think you should each month.

londonTiger

you can buy good family cars for 2K.

I understand parents are overprotective over children when it comes to cars. But this whole NCAP mallarky is a just silly. The best defence is to drive safely and not take any undue risk. Not be overcly concerned if you get a HGV drive straight into the side of you whether you will survive the blow or not.

If you want a big car just get a 6 seater like a zafira or something. Leave the back seats empty - there should be plenty of space there to buffer any shocks and protect your child.

At your income and your outgoings, I dont think you'll live comfortably with a 6grand loan payment.