Should I replace my car?

PenguinA

I currently have a 68 plate Peugeot 108, after recently having a baby I have realised that I can't fit the travel system in my car. I bought my current car for cash and if I trade it in will hopefully get £6k for it (more like £8k if I sell myself but not sure I want the hassle). 
I am looking to get a bigger car but won't have anything except the money from my current car to go towards this. What am I best to do?
Would I be able to get any sort of PCP deal with me being on maternity leave? Is this the best thing to do? I've always bought cars for cash so don't have much experience of anything else. 

MikeJXE

PenguinA said:

I currently have a 68 plate Peugeot 108, after recently having a baby I have realised that I can't fit the travel system in my car. I bought my current car for cash and if I trade it in will hopefully get £6k for it (more like £8k if I sell myself but not sure I want the hassle). 
I am looking to get a bigger car but won't have anything except the money from my current car to go towards this. What am I best to do?
Would I be able to get any sort of PCP deal with me being on maternity leave? Is this the best thing to do? I've always bought cars for cash so don't have much experience of anything else. 

I don't recommend doing that

If you have always bought your car (like me) I would stick to that rather than be in debt and sometimes never actually own the car, you should get a good car for 6/8k

PenguinA

Looking online all I can get for £6k cash as a larger size would be 10 years old minimum and 50k+ miles which puts me off, for something decent I'm looking at £10k minimum unfortunately 

CliveOfIndia

PenguinA said:

Looking online all I can get for £6k cash as a larger size would be 10 years old minimum and 50k+ miles which puts me off

10 years old and 50k miles is not necessarily bad, as long as the car has been well-maintained.  Pretty much all the cars I've had over my life have lasted well over 15 years and done well over 150k miles - always bought outright, second-hand, usually at about 7 or 8 years old roughly.  Depends on your priorities, and to some extent on the type of journeys you do, but you should be able to find plenty of decent cars for £6-7k.

A PCP deal is a great way to drive a new car, but at the end of the day, you're still paying for a brand new car, no matter how it's wrapped up in tempting sales patter - and it will always be far more expensive than buying a decent used car outright.  Have a look at some PCP examples, do the sums (factor in the balloon payment if you want to keep the car) and work out what it'll cost you overall.  To my mind, it's still a very expensive option (but then, I'd never buy a new car anyway, but that's just me).

Herzlos

Used ar prices are still bonkers, so everything is going to cost more than you'd expect. It just seems better to buy new now if you can stretch to it.

You could get a 2014 Vauxhall Zafira for under £10k, which will give you plenty of space.

Or you can get a brand new Dacia Jogger for about £16,500. It's got a horrible name but it's a pretty spacious 7 seater estate. 

Finance on maternity leave may cause you some problems depending on your maternity pay, but it's probably not impossible especially if you're starting with a £6k deposit.

Flight3287462

Op what outgoings have you got?  Energy prices will be going up in April (hopefully down after that), mortgage rates are rising so if you have a mortgage is it fixed and when does it expire.  Do you rent?  I would expect rent to go up especially your landlord is mortgaged.  Council tax will probably rise too.

So you need to be careful.

Why not change your travel transit system for something that fits?  That would be the most sensible option.

https://heycar.co.uk/car-seat-chooser/peugeot/108-2014

On the other hand as a new mum you don't want a banger so a small loan payable in 12-24 months might give a bit more lee way.  (You don't want to have a long loan on a slightly older car, the car may last less time than the loan.)

greyteam1959

Change the travel 'system' would be the better option.

PenguinA

Changing the travel system when it's 2 months old isn't going to be possible, I had a good look when I bought it and couldn't find a decent system that fitted my car.
I have previously taken an interest free credit card to help with the cost of cars but took out a credit card last year to cover a new sofa so can't do that again just now

Grumpy_chap

PenguinA said:

Changing the travel system when it's 2 months old isn't going to be possible, I had a good look when I bought it and couldn't find a decent system that fitted my car.
I have previously taken an interest free credit card to help with the cost of cars but took out a credit card last year to cover a new sofa so can't do that again just now

Are you saying that the value of the travel system is greater than £4k you would need to change the car?
While it will grate to change the travel system after such a short period and lose whatever was spent on it, that must be lower cost than the £4k for the car swap.
Indeed, you won't lose all the cost of the travel system.  The original retailer may give you something back if it is still unused (which it must be if it won't fit the car) and you buy the alternative from them also.  Failing that, online auction or marketplace sites must yield some return.

Unless you really want to change the car and seeking validation that is the correct thing to do.

Flight3287462

PenguinA said:

Changing the travel system when it's 2 months old isn't going to be possible, I had a good look when I bought it and couldn't find a decent system that fitted my car.
I have previously taken an interest free credit card to help with the cost of cars but took out a credit card last year to cover a new sofa so can't do that again just now

I included a link to a site that gives you a number of options which you could check out.

Looks like you just want a new car which is fine but you need to sensible when the cost of living is rising and your income is impaired and I covered that in my previous post too.

Herzlos

That link seems to just be car seats and not travel systems. It's all the extra stuff.

I certainly remember having a nuisance of a time fitting the frame + basinette into an estate car, and the boot on a Pug 108 is pretty small. 465mm x 857mm.

That said, if the back seats fold independently, and there's only 2/3 passengers, you can drop one of the seats and put the travel system there. I know a few people who did that or put the buggy parts in the front passenger seat.

It's also worth noting that you can move away from the basinette stage after about 3-6 months, so it's very temporary.

You should be able to get a car seat + frame that'll fit though. Like this: https://www.online4baby.com/mamas-papas-flip-xt2-gemm-car-seat-travel-system-fossil-grey