Cars buying vs leasing

[Gavster]

I've never leased a car, always bought second-hand vehicles with CASH and I am beginning to wonder if I'm looking at car ownership completely wrong.

I've always had the philosophy that buying a s/h car with cash and selling it a few years later represents the lowest overall financial cost, ergo is the best value and therefore the best choice. That's obviously only considering it from a financial perspective.

However, I really value consistency and reliability, and from my six cars in the last decade, four of those have experienced a long trail of mechanical issues, which completely drives me nuts and can end up costing loads in repairs. I have zero space or inclination to do spannering myself, so my cars go into the garage for repairs for a guaranteed few hundred quid of repairs each time.

My mileage is low (probably 6-8k a year) and a decent new car should avoid that trail of breakdowns and repairs costs. I would happily pay a little extra for the reliability. I'm guessing a 24 month lease car in theory, should be a more reliable option, in exchange for a slightly higher cost over, say, a 24 month period.

I guess what I'm asking is, whether you've found a lease to be the best choice for consistency and reliability, as opposed to buying s/h on the premise that it simply saves money.

[dinny_g]

Leasing is the best option for us. Guaranteed reliability, fixed budget, a new car regularly, the ability to change (I've always fancied a Convertible, I've taken up Mountain Biking, an Estate would be handy etc.)

[Rich B]

i went through this a few years ago. i always bought cars with cash, admittedly i never really had any major issues, but i wanted to test the idea of paying a monthly sum instead.

i leased the golf for 2 years, it was an easy and predictable process (much like the car). the hand back inspection was a little tense (when they tried to charge hundreds for scratches on the plastic inside the boot, and a tiny scratch by the door scuff plate, but i told them they were fair wear and tear and i heard no more).

the M2 is on a PCP, which again has been no hassle, but i plan to pay for the car off rather than handing it back.

it took a bit of internal convincing to go from handing over lots of money in one hit and owning outright, to handing over money every month instead to not own the car, but it really wasn’t any hassle.

[Gavster]

That honestly sounds so rereshing to hear especially with the winter coming in and my car use increasing as a result.

My only fear is as Rich says the handover at the end of the lease. Being a London driver and parking on-street will make things a bit twitchy as cars easily pick up scuffs even when parked.

ETA: Any recommended lease deal websites?!?

[16vCento]

I've never leased a car and always bought cash, but I'm looking into leasing an MG as looking at residuals it's a lot cheaper.

It's a similar cost a month as I'm paying for the Jag in warranty and tax for the entire car, and it's only a local run around.

220 quid a month for 435hp isn't bad, even if the car itself might be a bit pants

[Mito Man]

Just looking at this now for one of the cheapest cars. A base model Dacia Sandero, 8000 miles per annum, 24 month contract.

Initial rental: £1361
Monthly: £227

So the first year would cost £4085 and that’s with one of the cheapest cars on sale.
I’ve never spent that much maintaining a car ever so not worth it for me.

[Rich B]

Just looking at this now for one of the cheapest cars. A base model Dacia Sandero, 8000 miles per annum, 24 month contract.

Initial rental: £1361
Monthly: £227

So the first year would cost £4085 and that’s with one of the cheapest cars on sale.
I’ve never spent that much maintaining a car ever so not worth it for me.

why are you comparing the cost to one year though?

[Jobbo]

Leasing works if the deal is good. I had two lease cars, each for 24 months on 3+23 deals:
- Audi A6 Allroad in 2016, £337/month though I specced sports seats which added £30 a month - the deal was still excellent at £367 a month with £1100 down for a car retailing at well over £50k. I enjoyed it and was very sad to see it go.
- Volvo V90 Cross Country which was £395/month in 2018. There weren't so many deals around when the Audi lease came to an end so I had to sign up for something slightly more expensive but it still looked decent value. Poorer fuel economy was a much bigger financial hit.

There's not a lot of flexibility though. I needed to do far more mileage from April 2018, which was 3 months before the end of the Volvo lease; fortunately COVID coming along meant I was able to terminate the lease a few months early with no real penalty.
I was sort of bumped into the Volvo deal because it was the only reasonable one around at the time.
And deals now just don't look anywhere near as good - Mito's Dacia one for instance compares very poorly with mine above. However, keep an eye on the special offers - Leasing.com is an aggregator site which is a good starting point and they have a special offers page: https://leasing.com/special-offers/ - is there cheaper motoring than a new Astra for £150 per month? Do fiddle with the initial payment, term and mileage - and bear in mind the cost of additional miles because it is often cheaper to go for a lower mileage limit and pay the extra. Certainly more flexible because you don't get money back for handing the car back with less miles than expected.

[Rich B]

as per Jobbos post - don’t lease a car if you want to add options! the ENTIRE cost of the option is spread across the term. my GTI was a run out special with all the options included as standard.

the inspection at the end was VERY thorough. my car was immaculate - but the guy still took 45 minutes inspecting it. the tiny scratch inside the door was an inch long, couldn’t be seen from most angles, but could be felt with your fingernail. i went and grabbed some t cut and took the edge off it in front of the guy and he accepted it.

edit : the scratch in question. ffs.

[Gavster]

Just looking at this now for one of the cheapest cars. A base model Dacia Sandero, 8000 miles per annum, 24 month contract.

Initial rental: £1361
Monthly: £227

So the first year would cost £4085 and that’s with one of the cheapest cars on sale.
I’ve never spent that much maintaining a car ever so not worth it for me.

That cost should be maintenance and depreciation over two years. Besides, from my brief research there seem to be far nicer cars available on deals around £250 a month.

[Mito Man]

Just looking at this now for one of the cheapest cars. A base model Dacia Sandero, 8000 miles per annum, 24 month contract.

Initial rental: £1361
Monthly: £227

So the first year would cost £4085 and that’s with one of the cheapest cars on sale.
I’ve never spent that much maintaining a car ever so not worth it for me.

why are you comparing the cost to one year though?

Totals to £6809 over 2 years.

Makes a Ferrari FF gearbox repair look good value for money.

I’m sure someone will now post some lease deal where an RS4 costs less

[Rich B]

Just looking at this now for one of the cheapest cars. A base model Dacia Sandero, 8000 miles per annum, 24 month contract.

Initial rental: £1361
Monthly: £227

So the first year would cost £4085 and that’s with one of the cheapest cars on sale.
I’ve never spent that much maintaining a car ever so not worth it for me.

why are you comparing the cost to one year though?

Totals to £6809 over 2 years.

Makes a Ferrari FF gearbox repair look good value for money.

I’m sure someone will now post some lease deal where an RS4 costs less

Cars cost money to buy as well as run though (for the rest of us). if you’re given cars for free and are only comparing the running costs of those cars, then yes - £3.5k a year seems a lot.

[Holley]

VW Buzz from £119.99 per month...
https://centralukvehicleleasing.co.uk/c ... 6-seatcomf

[Gavster]

Just looking at this now for one of the cheapest cars. A base model Dacia Sandero, 8000 miles per annum, 24 month contract.

Initial rental: £1361
Monthly: £227

So the first year would cost £4085 and that’s with one of the cheapest cars on sale.
I’ve never spent that much maintaining a car ever so not worth it for me.

why are you comparing the cost to one year though?

Totals to £6809 over 2 years.

Makes a Ferrari FF gearbox repair look good value for money.

I’m sure someone will now post some lease deal where an RS4 costs less

Correct me if I'm wrong, however I get the impression you often buy cars brand new? I'm guessing that's a very different experience to buying second-hand cars around 3 to 6 years old, which have had several years of prior ownership, (ab)use and vague maintenance.

Buying a 2 year old, second hand Sandero could lose around £3.5k or so in depreciation over two years, because they're really not known for their residutals, so immediately the difference is down to just £1600 a year. Tyres might need changing, plus you'll need to start taking it for MOTs, so that's another few hundred quid off. Add in any mechanical fault beyond simple stuff like brake pads and the difference quickly drops even further.

[V8Granite]

It depends on what you are buying, the newest thing we have in the family that I chose personally is a 2016 car and everything has been bang on reliable. The worst was my ML but that’s down to 2 small faults that I was stubborn with and wanted the dealer to fix. Must be getting on for 300,000 miles ver them all.

For long term ownership that works well. For shorter term like you are after then leasing is a pretty sensible guaranteed cost.

Dave!

[Mito Man]

I did apply the scenario to myself - said scenario being which is the best from a financial perspective.
Obviously you don’t get a new car in return but 2 of my cars I bought with over 70,000 miles. But regardless I’ve never spent £2500 on mechanical repairs in a 24 month period on any of them.
Also if I were to look at reliability I’d say the number of breakdowns I’ve had in old cars with no warranty vs cars within their warranty period is probably equal too.

[Gavster]

Leasing works if the deal is good. I had two lease cars, each for 24 months on 3+23 deals:
- Audi A6 Allroad in 2016, £337/month though I specced sports seats which added £30 a month - the deal was still excellent at £367 a month with £1100 down for a car retailing at well over £50k. I enjoyed it and was very sad to see it go.
- Volvo V90 Cross Country which was £395/month in 2018. There weren't so many deals around when the Audi lease came to an end so I had to sign up for something slightly more expensive but it still looked decent value. Poorer fuel economy was a much bigger financial hit.

There's not a lot of flexibility though. I needed to do far more mileage from April 2018, which was 3 months before the end of the Volvo lease; fortunately COVID coming along meant I was able to terminate the lease a few months early with no real penalty.
I was sort of bumped into the Volvo deal because it was the only reasonable one around at the time.
And deals now just don't look anywhere near as good - Mito's Dacia one for instance compares very poorly with mine above. However, keep an eye on the special offers - Leasing.com is an aggregator site which is a good starting point and they have a special offers page: https://leasing.com/special-offers/ - is there cheaper motoring than a new Astra for £150 per month? Do fiddle with the initial payment, term and mileage - and bear in mind the cost of additional miles because it is often cheaper to go for a lower mileage limit and pay the extra. Certainly more flexible because you don't get money back for handing the car back with less miles than expected.

Thanks Jobbo, that's all super useful

[Rich B]

VW Buzz from £119.99 per month...
https://centralukvehicleleasing.co.uk/c ... 6-seatcomf

Estimated Delivery: 30 - 40 weeks

[Rich B]

I did apply the scenario to myself - said scenario being which is the best from a financial perspective.
Obviously you don’t get a new car in return but 2 of my cars I bought with over 70,000 miles. But regardless I’ve never spent £2500 on mechanical repairs in a 24 month period on any of them.
Also if I were to look at reliability I’d say the number of breakdowns I’ve had in old cars with no warranty vs cars within their warranty period is probably equal too.

how much do you pay for these over 70k mile cars?

[Swervin_Mervin]

I did apply the scenario to myself - said scenario being which is the best from a financial perspective.
Obviously you don’t get a new car in return but 2 of my cars I bought with over 70,000 miles. But regardless I’ve never spent £2500 on mechanical repairs in a 24 month period on any of them.
Also if I were to look at reliability I’d say the number of breakdowns I’ve had in old cars with no warranty vs cars within their warranty period is probably equal too.

I'd say similar. My E91 has occasionally given me a big bill, but they're very few and far between. And I wouldn't trust anything modern to be any more reliable.