Car loan and ULEZ misery!!!!!!!

andrewskywalker

I am completely stuck and need advice on what to do regarding the car loan I have. 
I bought my dream car 2 years ago as I had worked hard and paid off my loans, fed up with bangers I thought right I'm going to spoil myself. Worked all my life and deserved it. 
I live near the Excel in the horrendous London Borough of Newham and to my absolute horror 2 months after I signed the agreement on the car the wonderfully incompetent mayor of London announced the expansion of the ULEZ!!
I was in disbelief, I expected to have my car until I finally retired from work. 
I have contacted the finance company for the car and discussed my options which they said were
1. If I had paid back 50% of the finance I can hand the car back to them as long as the car was in perfect order and had all the service stamps etc or they would charge me for the  lack of servicing, damage to the car etc. Now I know these companies do not like you terminating the agreement so will try to find any excuse to charge you extra, and why should I just wave goodbye to 2 and a half years of money I have already paid on the car.
2. Trade it in for a ULEZ compliant model, went to a showroom and they offered me pennies for a premium luxury car because the market is being flooded with diesel cars now. Also I would have to start again on the finance, another 5 years of paying and interest and swallowing negative equity.
I am still paying finance, repairs, running costs on a car that I will be unable to use from October 2021 and it turns my stomach every day now. I have just paid out £400 today for servicing and other sundries, then I have to pay the finance again on the 20th of this month. It is money completely down the drain!!!!!!!!!!!!
Are other people who are going to be inside the ULEZ facing the same problems and what are they doing about it?

[Deleted User]

VTing at 50% would seem to be your best option if you want to get rid of the car, unless you think you can find s buyer to allow you to settle the finance in full.

Grumpy_chap

Apart from diesel, what is the OP's car?
Make, model, age, mileage?
That may open up more thoughtful comments.  The pending ULEZ requirements were in discussion well before 2015 and the current Mayor of London. Hence, I am confused the OP only bought this dream car 2 years ago.

molerat

Must have been an old car not to be Euro6 as anything sold post 2015 had to meet that spec.  Anyone living in London and buying a diesel should have really investigated what was likely to happen considering TFL's hate of them !

macman

I would try to sell your diesel behemoth out in Essex or East Anglia, where non-Euro 6 prices should be relatively unaffected by ULEZ. The downturn in diesel demand and hence used prices is a national trend following dieselgate, but ULEZ will obviously reduce demand in London further for old non-compliant vehicles like yours.
ULEZ has been around as a concept since 2014, as originated by some guy called Boris Johnson (whatever became of him?). But the expansion out to the North and South Circular is relatively recent, first mooted in early 2019; that's still maybe 6 months before you purchased your 'dream car'.

andrewskywalker

No purchased my car in Aug 2018

andrewskywalker

People can say should of coulda woulda all they like and give their passive sneers but my original post is how it was. Helpful comments only please

Grumpy_chap

What age, make, model, mileage is the car?
What did you pay for it?
What is the remaining finance owed?

macman

I rechecked the dates: the expansion was confirmed on 8/6/18: so about 2 months before you purchased your car, not 2 months after:
https://www.london.gov.uk/press-releases/mayoral/ultra-low-emission-zone-to-expand
That aside, why wait until now to act, 2.5 years later? Had you traded it in earlier, rather than wait until only 9 months prior to the expansion, the trade in price would only have been minimally affected by ULEZ. As the date gets nearer, the effect was only ever going to get greater.
If you post the vehicle and finance details requested by others, and the price you have been offered, then someone will be able to advise what a reasonable trade in price might be. But I still think you'll do better looking outside London.

Herzlos

I'm confused by the timeline here. You bought the car in Aug 2018 and the ULEZ is only now changing so that you can't use it?

You've certainly got no case of foul play, I live way up North and knew there were ULEZ changes. You bought a car that's now not suitable for you 2.5 years later, which is on you.

So your options are as they said; trade it in / sell it and take a hit there - we're about to hit a recession and the sort of people buying big premium cars are working from home so demand is through the floor.  Or pay the finance up to the 50% mark (which you might nearly at since you're 2.5 years into it) and take the hit there.