New or used? PCP or personal loan?

[Piff]

GAP - never bought it myself. Others seem to though.

 

[iliria]

GAP - never bought it myself. Others seem to though.

Does it still provide protection on a car that is bought cash rather than finance?

 

[Piff]

Supposed to pay out the difference between insurance write off value and what you paid. But I don't know how that works in say 3 years time - does it return you to invoice value or just to market value? Others may have more knowledge.
Only experience I have had on stolen vehicles is that the insurance payout has been fair therefore my reluctance to payout on GAP which is effectively another insurance policy, covering the risk that your first insurance doesn't pay out enough.

 

[markjay]

Couple of great leasing deals here:

https://www.contractcars.com/car-leasing/mercedes/c-class-leasing-offer/

https://www.contractcars.com/car-leasing/mercedes/c-class-estate-contract-hires-deals/

https://www.contractcars.com/car-leasing/mercedes/e-class-lease-deals/#alternative-payment-profiles

Ant.

Am I correct in thinking that the E220d and C220d cost the same....?

 

[Deleted member 113659]

Am I correct in thinking that the E220d and C220d cost the same....?

Yes MJ. But the C220 has the premium pack which adds a lot of toys.

The C also has ILS & 19's. However I think these are both standard on the E220 AMG Line.

Ant.

 

[Lennox]

Very true Steve. If I asked him for a job I bet I would get it

I went for the second hand C200 Executive SE petrol and paid outright. I would have gone for the sport version but I believe that it does have a stiffer suspension which wouldn't suit me. The executive package gives me the metallic paint, leather interior, reversing cameras and satnav which will do me fine.

I am keeping the car for at least 5 years so I will certainly get value for money and I will be able to see if a Merc lives up to its name. For me it will be a major upgrade anyway considering that the car I've been driving for the past 8 years is a 1.4 basic Corsa

I thought long and hard about it and PCP is definitely not for me. The Merc that i just bought has dropped from £31k to £18k within 1 year (and 10000miles on clock). I think that it has shed off the biggest chunk of depreciation.

My only question remaining is: I have been offered the GAP insurance for £250. Do I need GAP if I am buying outright?

In short leasing vs used is apples and oranges. You cannot compare a brand new car that potentially a turn key driver to a used Unknown depreciating asset that you take 100% of the liability for. (Unless you have a manufacturers warranty on it)

So re: the gap insurance, it just covers you for the gap between either purchase price or back to new. Therefore you just get invoiced price. So if you got a cheap bargain, all you can buy again is a cheap bargain if you get my drift.

One reason I went used cash purchase fully loaded 535d instead of a leased no option Black edition A6 BITDI was exactly that, spec. Plus I can get out of my car whenever I want, I'm not tied into anything.

 

[Delayed Steve]

Very true Steve. If I asked him for a job I bet I would get it

I went for the second hand C200 Executive SE petrol and paid outright. I would have gone for the sport version but I believe that it does have a stiffer suspension which wouldn't suit me. The executive package gives me the metallic paint, leather interior, reversing cameras and satnav which will do me fine.

I am keeping the car for at least 5 years so I will certainly get value for money and I will be able to see if a Merc lives up to its name. For me it will be a major upgrade anyway considering that the car I've been driving for the past 8 years is a 1.4 basic Corsa

I thought long and hard about it and PCP is definitely not for me. The Merc that i just bought has dropped from £31k to £18k within 1 year (and 10000miles on clock). I think that it has shed off the biggest chunk of depreciation.

My only question remaining is: I have been offered the GAP insurance for £250. Do I need GAP if I am buying outright?

Glad you got sorted mate. Enjoy your new car, good luck

 

[markjay]

...I went for the second hand C200 Executive SE petrol and paid outright. I would have gone for the sport version but I believe that it does have a stiffer suspension which wouldn't suit me. The executive package gives me the metallic paint, leather interior, reversing cameras and satnav which will do me fine....

Did you get heated front seats with the Executive package?

 

[iliria]

In short leasing vs used is apples and oranges. You cannot compare a brand new car that potentially a turn key driver to a used Unknown depreciating asset that you take 100% of the liability for. (Unless you have a manufacturers warranty on it)

Lennox the used car is one owner only and has two years warranty left. It's an approved used from MB. So, basically, I have lost a year's warranty and 14000miles but have gained £12k. When you sit in front of the dealer and they try to push PCP under your nose it was difficult to see it. In fact, once i got home and put pen on paper it worked out that the £9k discount they were offering me for the new one was inflated and misleading and the real figure was £4k.

Glad you got sorted mate. Enjoy your new car, good luck

Thank you Steve. I thought It made sense for me to start further down the ladder and then go for a better model next time. I guess I would appreciate it more.

Did you get heated front seats with the Executive package?

Yes, got heated seats, black leather, metallic obsidian black, rear parking cameras and satnav. The original MB mats were already in so that was a bonus.

I am quite excited actually that I went for the petrol model. The torque is the same as that of the C200d and it has a 2l engine as opposed to 1.6 on the diesel. It has a much higher hp than the diesel and the 0-60 is 7 seconds as opposed to the 9.8 on the diesel. Granted, I would get less mpg on the petrol but at around 8000miles per year I dont think I would notice the difference.

 

[gIzzE]

My only question remaining is: I have been offered the GAP insurance for £250. Do I need GAP if I am buying outright?

GAP covers the gap in any finance, between what an insurer pays out in a write off vs what you owe to the finance company.

Did you ask them what it was covering exactly?

Return To Invoice insurance may cover you, but not GAP.


Oh and good choice on the C200, they tune nicely btw.
You can get 250-270hp from it no problem at all.

 

[gIzzE]

I am quite excited actually that I went for the petrol model. The torque is the same as that of the C200d and it has a 2l engine as opposed to 1.6 on the diesel. It has a much higher hp than the diesel and the 0-60 is 7 seconds as opposed to the 9.8 on the diesel. Granted, I would get less mpg on the petrol but at around 8000miles per year I dont think I would notice the difference.

I bet it is about £3-4 a week more in fuel, small price to pay. Enjoy!

 

[iliria]

GAP covers the gap in any finance, between what an insurer pays out in a write off vs what you owe to the finance company.

Did you ask them what it was covering exactly?

Return To Invoice insurance may cover you, but not GAP.


Oh and good choice on the C200, they tune nicely btw.
You can get 250-270hp from it no problem at all.

Well, I am buying outright so it sounds like the GAP may not be suitable at all? I will ask them when I pick up the car and if that is the case I will just take the GAP off the bill there and then since I still haven't paid for it yet.

Now I may need some more advice about the tuning bit as it sounds very interesting indeed

 

[FaeLLe]

Well, I am buying outright so it sounds like the GAP may not be suitable at all? I will ask them when I pick up the car and if that is the case I will just take the GAP off the bill there and then since I still haven't paid for it yet.

Now I may need some more advice about the tuning bit as it sounds very interesting indeed

Tuning will also impact your insurance, make sure you declare it.

 

[flowrider]

I'm a bit late to the discussion but for any newcomers my advice is NEVER buy GAP insurance, or any kind of insurance, from a car dealer. They will easily be double the cost that you would pay independently.

 

[David404]

Given that the bulk of depreciation on a car occurs over the first 3 years I'd be surprised if PCP over 3 years/30k miles on a new car was cheaper than buying good used example and keeping that for 5 years/50k miles.

Yes the used car will cost more in maintnance and the warranty preriod will be shorter but you wont have that big slug of depreciation. you'll also have more flexability in terms of when you swap and hoe many miles PA you do. Pal of mine had a PCP deal, time/miles seemed good, more then enough but then she moved house, annual miles sky rocket...

 

[flowrider]

Given that the bulk of depreciation on a car occurs over the first 3 years I'd be surprised if PCP over 3 years/30k miles on a new car was cheaper than buying good used example and keeping that for 5 years/50k miles.

Yes the used car will cost more in maintnance and the warranty preriod will be shorter but you wont have that big slug of depreciation. you'll also have more flexability in terms of when you swap and hoe many miles PA you do. Pal of mine had a PCP deal, time/miles seemed good, more then enough but then she moved house, annual miles sky rocket...

With Mercedes Agility PCP you can increase the miles so you don't get a big shock at the end of the deal with excess mileage charges but if, like me, you find you are doing less miles than previously agreed Mercedes will not let you decrease the mileage.

 

[gIzzE]

Given that the bulk of depreciation on a car occurs over the first 3 years I'd be surprised if PCP over 3 years/30k miles on a new car was cheaper than buying good used example and keeping that for 5 years/50k miles.

Yes the used car will cost more in maintnance and the warranty preriod will be shorter but you wont have that big slug of depreciation. you'll also have more flexability in terms of when you swap and hoe many miles PA you do. Pal of mine had a PCP deal, time/miles seemed good, more then enough but then she moved house, annual miles sky rocket...

Not so sure that is true any more, with the discounts you can get on new I think you need to be at 5-6 years old and 80k miles on the clock before it starts to get cheaper.

Contract hire is the cheapest, and as most people who buy new swap cars every 2-3 years in the UK I am surprised more people don't chose that option.

A customer of mine has just got a new 7 Series, he was well pleased as he got £14,000 off it, £63500 list and he is paying just under £50k for it, which is a decent discount.
However, that car will trade for around £25k in 3 years time, so will lose £25,000,

He can hire a new one for for £19k over the same period.

If he were to buy an old shape at 3 years old for £30k now that would be worth around £12k at 6 years old with 70k miles on it, so hardly any cheaper than hiring a brand new one, plus you have more maintainance on the older car, and no warranty, that would be another £2k over 3 years with BMW.

I use that example as I looked it up today after speaking to him.

https://www.contracthireandleasing....dent-brokers/lease-99/bmw/7-series/117726373/



But it is the same with Mercedes, new S Class for £349 a month plus vat with 9 months down. So same price as the BMW.

https://www.contracthireandleasing....e-uk-limited/mercedes-benz/s-class/116442116/

That is a £72,000 S Class for £420 a month after deposit of £3700.
If you paid cash you would lose twice that even with a 20% discount on new.

Same with E Classes, 5 Series etc.

Buying 3 year old cars are, imho, the ones that make less sense these days, either buy new or 5-6 years old.

 

[Paddcomp]

gIzzE
I'm convinced your right too.

I've bought new or nearly new Mercs for the last 11 years, always paying cash upfront. Then enjoying not having that monthly DD, but secretly ignoring the depreciation.

For my current car I thought an old E class, W211 estate in E320 cdi form would be a cheap runner. 2007 and 106k miles one owner and FSH, paid £8995 from an independent garage, but the cheapest one I could find in good condition and history.
Fast forward 2 years, 118k, serviced by a reputable indie, it now worth under £5k, and I've spent £2k on maintenance.

So it's fair to say it's cost me £3k pa, now the turbo's failing, and the suspension is still knocking. Both of which the garage has no clue exactly what it is.

In July I ordered a new Audi A6, base model SE Executive S-TRONIC on personal lease. This arrives next Friday, £300 per month Incl deposit. Then no £26 p/m road tax, lower fuel costs, lower servicing as it's not annual like MB and best of all full warranty.

So a new car is similar priced to an 8 to 10 year old one, with less risk.

I'll miss MB but look forward to my new A6 and fixed cost motoring.

Even if I move jobs, which is on the cards, increasing my mileage by 5k pa over 3 years is only £900.

 

[gIzzE]

Yeah it was similar for me, I bought a 4 year old, facelift, S211 E320cdi, it had 60k miles on it and it was the cheapest one out there at £18k. I sold it after 2 years and 50k miles and got £10k for it. Plus I had suspension work done at £800 and a few other niggly things, all in all it cost me around £375 a month.

When I bought my S212 E350 cdi estate, it was 12 months old and it was £29000, a nice £13000 on new.
I didn't get on with it and moved it on after 10 months, and the best main dealer bid was £19k, in the end I sold it for £22k. I did think at the time if I kept it another 2 years I bet I wouldn't lose much more, but when I looked again 2 years later they were retailing at around £14k, so it would have lost £17k easily in 3 years, and close to £25k in 4 years including discounts. That is £470 best case scenario or £520 if new. You could contract hire one for £280 a month plus vat with £3k down.

 

[Rory]

You could contract hire one for £280 a month plus vat with £3k down.

Not doing 25K/yr you couldn't!

I got a great deal on my car - £23,500 at 5mths old vs £36K list. But I reckon over the following 10yrs it still lost a couple of £K per year and cost money in service, maint and warranty. There really wouldn't have been much in it if I'd leased.

It seems incredible that it's still probably losing £1K/yr and I've spend over £1K on service and maint this year.