Car advice - new to Switzerland
Discussion
Looks like i will be moving to the Vaud area soon...
Shifting the family over ( Wife and 2 eyar old).
My question is - is it easy to buy a decent second hand car for around 12-15 CHF. Is it less hassle just to lease? Would a 1K CHF per month get me something decent ( Including insurance, service etc.)
My company has mentioned that they have discounts with manufacturers on new cars as well.
I know this is a how long is a piece of string but just some general pointers would be nice...
Shifting the family over ( Wife and 2 eyar old).
My question is - is it easy to buy a decent second hand car for around 12-15 CHF. Is it less hassle just to lease? Would a 1K CHF per month get me something decent ( Including insurance, service etc.)
My company has mentioned that they have discounts with manufacturers on new cars as well.
I know this is a how long is a piece of string but just some general pointers would be nice...
Can't comment on leasing, as I've only ever bought cars outright here.
It really depends what sort of car you have in mind for your 12-15K budget- how old, how common, how many KM etc.
Start by having a look on https://www.autoscout24.ch and you'll see what you can get for your money.
Other things to bear in mind:
2nd hand cars are likely to be a fair bit more expensive than they are in the UK
But they are likely to be in much better condition. If not- walk away!
Likely to be a huge variation in price, based on how many KMs the car has done- again, huge variation for garage queens vs autobahn mile munchers...
Forget about finding an incredibly good value shed that is loved on PH and in Readers cars- there are no ridiculous bargains here!
Insurance is a lot more expensive, but you get what you pay for; insurance may be more i fyou lease vs own; likewise, lease vs own can have a bearing on your income tax declaration...
Ditto road tax. Road tax is calculated differently in different cantons; typically by weight, plus CO2 emissions in some cantons and/or by power output in some cantons. I seem to recall that Vaud is pretty expensive if you have something powerful; e.g. my 996 was about 550 CHF per year to tax where I live, but would have been 1100 in canton VD. Worth checking on the English Forum Switzerland (be warned- not a lot of petrolheads on there!)
It really depends what sort of car you have in mind for your 12-15K budget- how old, how common, how many KM etc.
Start by having a look on https://www.autoscout24.ch and you'll see what you can get for your money.
Other things to bear in mind:
2nd hand cars are likely to be a fair bit more expensive than they are in the UK
But they are likely to be in much better condition. If not- walk away!
Likely to be a huge variation in price, based on how many KMs the car has done- again, huge variation for garage queens vs autobahn mile munchers...
Forget about finding an incredibly good value shed that is loved on PH and in Readers cars- there are no ridiculous bargains here!
Insurance is a lot more expensive, but you get what you pay for; insurance may be more i fyou lease vs own; likewise, lease vs own can have a bearing on your income tax declaration...
Ditto road tax. Road tax is calculated differently in different cantons; typically by weight, plus CO2 emissions in some cantons and/or by power output in some cantons. I seem to recall that Vaud is pretty expensive if you have something powerful; e.g. my 996 was about 550 CHF per year to tax where I live, but would have been 1100 in canton VD. Worth checking on the English Forum Switzerland (be warned- not a lot of petrolheads on there!)
Whitean3 said:
Can't comment on leasing, as I've only ever bought cars outright here.
It really depends what sort of car you have in mind for your 12-15K budget- how old, how common, how many KM etc.
Start by having a look on https://www.autoscout24.ch and you'll see what you can get for your money.
Other things to bear in mind:
2nd hand cars are likely to be a fair bit more expensive than they are in the UK
But they are likely to be in much better condition. If not- walk away!
Likely to be a huge variation in price, based on how many KMs the car has done- again, huge variation for garage queens vs autobahn mile munchers...
Forget about finding an incredibly good value shed that is loved on PH and in Readers cars- there are no ridiculous bargains here!
Insurance is a lot more expensive, but you get what you pay for; insurance may be more i fyou lease vs own; likewise, lease vs own can have a bearing on your income tax declaration...
Ditto road tax. Road tax is calculated differently in different cantons; typically by weight, plus CO2 emissions in some cantons and/or by power output in some cantons. I seem to recall that Vaud is pretty expensive if you have something powerful; e.g. my 996 was about 550 CHF per year to tax where I live, but would have been 1100 in canton VD. Worth checking on the English Forum Switzerland (be warned- not a lot of petrolheads on there!)
Thank you thats greatIt really depends what sort of car you have in mind for your 12-15K budget- how old, how common, how many KM etc.
Start by having a look on https://www.autoscout24.ch and you'll see what you can get for your money.
Other things to bear in mind:
2nd hand cars are likely to be a fair bit more expensive than they are in the UK
But they are likely to be in much better condition. If not- walk away!
Likely to be a huge variation in price, based on how many KMs the car has done- again, huge variation for garage queens vs autobahn mile munchers...
Forget about finding an incredibly good value shed that is loved on PH and in Readers cars- there are no ridiculous bargains here!
Insurance is a lot more expensive, but you get what you pay for; insurance may be more i fyou lease vs own; likewise, lease vs own can have a bearing on your income tax declaration...
Ditto road tax. Road tax is calculated differently in different cantons; typically by weight, plus CO2 emissions in some cantons and/or by power output in some cantons. I seem to recall that Vaud is pretty expensive if you have something powerful; e.g. my 996 was about 550 CHF per year to tax where I live, but would have been 1100 in canton VD. Worth checking on the English Forum Switzerland (be warned- not a lot of petrolheads on there!)
Have been reading up a lot on EF CH - while its a great resource i have found they sometimes get their knickers in twist when it comes to asking for sepcific examples..
Even when trying to figure out what a 'decent' moving package was - it seems their standard response is 'look at old posts dating back to 2006' and dont ask the question - fair enough once should always make an effort to do their ground work but sometimes they get a real bee in their bonnet especially when someonce brings up higher slaries or specific cars.
Would you know if main dealers offer competitive terms on loans for used cars?
Essentially i have these options...
I lease a brand new car - ( though i understand leasing in Switzeralnd is the equivalentof PCP here with balooon payments etc).
I purchase a used car 3- 5years old from a main dealer financed by a loan
I purchase outright with a budget of upto 15k CHF although I have always wanted a C63 so would be tempted to extend my budget to one of these.
I dont mind buying an older used car but my concern is how easy is it to sell afterwards.
fizz47 said:
Thank you thats great
Have been reading up a lot on EF CH - while its a great resource i have found they sometimes get their knickers in twist when it comes to asking for sepcific examples..
Bang on!Have been reading up a lot on EF CH - while its a great resource i have found they sometimes get their knickers in twist when it comes to asking for sepcific examples..
fizz47 said:
Even when trying to figure out what a 'decent' moving package was - it seems their standard response is 'look at old posts dating back to 2006' and dont ask the question - fair enough once should always make an effort to do their ground work but sometimes they get a real bee in their bonnet especially when someonce brings up higher slaries or specific cars.
You just can't compare going back so long- I moved here in 2006. Exchange rate was 2.3 CHF to the pound. It's now 1.3...But it's definitely worth doing your homework here, as salaries are much higher than the UK.
fizz47 said:
Would you know if main dealers offer competitive terms on loans for used cars?
Unlikely to get a decent rate I think. You can get loans/finance from banks etc.- you'll probably see ads linked from autoscout to get a feel for interest rates etc.fizz47 said:
Essentially i have these options...
I lease a brand new car - ( though i understand leasing in Switzeralnd is the equivalentof PCP here with balooon payments etc).
I purchase a used car 3- 5years old from a main dealer financed by a loan
I purchase outright with a budget of upto 15k CHF although I have always wanted a C63 so would be tempted to extend my budget to one of these.
I don't mind buying an older used car but my concern is how easy is it to sell afterwards.
You're always going to have your pants pulled down trading in a used car, no matter how old/new. Selling privately is also challenging, even if it's a car that should sell instantly (e.g. it took us 3 months to sell a Golf GTI ed30 that was priced well). People are fairly risk averse (so conversely, buying privately can get you a good deal!)I lease a brand new car - ( though i understand leasing in Switzeralnd is the equivalentof PCP here with balooon payments etc).
I purchase a used car 3- 5years old from a main dealer financed by a loan
I purchase outright with a budget of upto 15k CHF although I have always wanted a C63 so would be tempted to extend my budget to one of these.
I don't mind buying an older used car but my concern is how easy is it to sell afterwards.
As a further suggestion, assuming you have 15k savings, don't buy a car immediately, try to live frugally and save for 6 months- then you may find you have the budget for your c63. Public transport is so good that you won't necessarily need a car initially (plenty of hiring and Mobility options too).
I suppose depends how long you want to stay in Switzerland. Some friends took over their UK cars for 3-6 months to see if they liked it, if they did then sold their cars back in UK and bough something in Switzerland.
We bought a 2nd 330xi estate from BMW main dealer (around 25k chf), pretty good service and chucked in a set of winter tyres and alloys, pretty much all cars should have this if not we bought a set of 2nd hand ones in Germany and saved a fortune.
We traded in that BMW for a Golf R32 and had a good trade in deal as it was a main BMW dealer. The Golf R32 we sold pretty cheaply to another ex-pat on EF within a couple of weeks which was a bit of luck. See if there are any cars for sale on EF as sometimes you can get a bargain especially if people are leaving the country and want a quick sale. Other friends have been utterly ripped off selling cars to dealers, especially if leaving the country so be careful. Same with leases you are stuck with the car for the majority of the lease, lots of EF posts asking if people will take on the lease deal etc.
We bought a 2nd 330xi estate from BMW main dealer (around 25k chf), pretty good service and chucked in a set of winter tyres and alloys, pretty much all cars should have this if not we bought a set of 2nd hand ones in Germany and saved a fortune.
We traded in that BMW for a Golf R32 and had a good trade in deal as it was a main BMW dealer. The Golf R32 we sold pretty cheaply to another ex-pat on EF within a couple of weeks which was a bit of luck. See if there are any cars for sale on EF as sometimes you can get a bargain especially if people are leaving the country and want a quick sale. Other friends have been utterly ripped off selling cars to dealers, especially if leaving the country so be careful. Same with leases you are stuck with the car for the majority of the lease, lots of EF posts asking if people will take on the lease deal etc.
Whitean3 said:
Public transport is so good that you won't necessarily need a car initially (plenty of hiring and Mobility options too).
As in https://www.mobility.ch/en/I used these a lot in Geneva before I bought a car here. Depends where you are though as the middle of towns have a lot more vehicles than out in the sticks, as you would expect.
CG
chris_gilmartin said:
Whitean3 said:
Public transport is so good that you won't necessarily need a car initially (plenty of hiring and Mobility options too).
As in https://www.mobility.ch/en/I used these a lot in Geneva before I bought a car here. Depends where you are though as the middle of towns have a lot more vehicles than out in the sticks, as you would expect.
CG
there is soo much to see and explore on the wknds
gva is hellish on the wknd
Thanks for the reponses..
While I would love to go car free - i think we want one as a) will be staying in a smaller town like Morges or Nyon in Vaud and b) want a car for weekend trips exploring switzerland and grocery shopping excursions over the border in france.
It seems winter tyres is the norm - where do people store their summer and winter tyres? Likely we will be living in a flat with no garage...
Going to carry on keeping an eye out on EF for a good used car..
While I would love to go car free - i think we want one as a) will be staying in a smaller town like Morges or Nyon in Vaud and b) want a car for weekend trips exploring switzerland and grocery shopping excursions over the border in france.
It seems winter tyres is the norm - where do people store their summer and winter tyres? Likely we will be living in a flat with no garage...
Going to carry on keeping an eye out on EF for a good used car..
fizz47 said:
Thanks for the reponses..
While I would love to go car free - i think we want one as a) will be staying in a smaller town like Morges or Nyon in Vaud and b) want a car for weekend trips exploring switzerland and grocery shopping excursions over the border in france.
It seems winter tyres is the norm - where do people store their summer and winter tyres? Likely we will be living in a flat with no garage...
Going to carry on keeping an eye out on EF for a good used car..
leave them in your cave aka cellarWhile I would love to go car free - i think we want one as a) will be staying in a smaller town like Morges or Nyon in Vaud and b) want a car for weekend trips exploring switzerland and grocery shopping excursions over the border in france.
It seems winter tyres is the norm - where do people store their summer and winter tyres? Likely we will be living in a flat with no garage...
Going to carry on keeping an eye out on EF for a good used car..
thats what i do then get them changed out at your local pnues centre each yr for 60 chf ...u can store them for 200chf + each year ....but trust me you dont want to start spending cash where you dont need to ...it all adds up here !!!!!!
Would you be commuting in a car? If not I'd definitely consider not having one. We just hired one for weekends when we went away. Hertz and Europcar are (relatively) competitive and easy to use. We didn't have one problem with them. Mobility is good for small trips. Trains and buses are really effective, and once you've got yourself a 1/2 price card again pretty reasonable.
Are you looking to be somewhere quiet? There was little enough going on in Lausanne, but Morges and Nyon are well connected enough if you want to be out of the city I guess.
Are you looking to be somewhere quiet? There was little enough going on in Lausanne, but Morges and Nyon are well connected enough if you want to be out of the city I guess.
fizz47 said:
Going to carry on keeping an eye out on EF for a good used car..
That's a long term strategy. EF membership is concentrated in the Swiss German cantons.Often posts advertising a car on EF gets shredded by other members, usually because they are expats trying to pass on their crappy lease deals.
There's a thriving Geneva / Vaud community on glocals.com and lots of adverts for cars and other stuff.
And online retail platforms www.anibis.ch, and ricardo.ch have many cars for sale.
Also, facebook marketplace. As usual, buyer beware.
Thanks again....
What’s the consensus on diesel vs petrol in Switzerland?
I have only ever owned 1 diesel and I gave it up after 6 months..
Vowed I would never do diesel again however the choice of cars seems heavily weighted towards diesel ..
Is there likely to a ban on them?
The car will be used for both short and long trips (weekends in Europe or even occasionally driving back to the UK)..
Also discussed with wife last week and our cash budget has gone up to 35k CHF which now puts us into the possibilities of Cayennes / X5 but my sensible head say go for 5 Series Touring instead.
What’s the consensus on diesel vs petrol in Switzerland?
I have only ever owned 1 diesel and I gave it up after 6 months..
Vowed I would never do diesel again however the choice of cars seems heavily weighted towards diesel ..
Is there likely to a ban on them?
The car will be used for both short and long trips (weekends in Europe or even occasionally driving back to the UK)..
Also discussed with wife last week and our cash budget has gone up to 35k CHF which now puts us into the possibilities of Cayennes / X5 but my sensible head say go for 5 Series Touring instead.
There is far less of a bias towards diesel cars in Switzerland than in the U.K.
35k should buy you a 6 year old Cayenne, with hopefully less than 100km and an up to date 'expertise'. If you're not planning to stay in Switzerland permanently, buy a car that you can easily sell quickly, without owing a lot of finance on.
In Vaud, tax on cars I is based on the cars weight and power, KW. A 2010, 2.6 tonne Cayenne with 240kw will cost chf 1100 a year tax.
An awd Mazda with a spare set of winter wheels / tyres / roof bars serves us well since we came here 8 years ago. It's the family bus that takes my daughters every winter weekend to the Jura or French alps with their classmates.
I'm unaware of plans to prohibit diesel cars. Some diesel models of Audi and VW were prohibited for a time after the emissions scandal came to light.
35k should buy you a 6 year old Cayenne, with hopefully less than 100km and an up to date 'expertise'. If you're not planning to stay in Switzerland permanently, buy a car that you can easily sell quickly, without owing a lot of finance on.
In Vaud, tax on cars I is based on the cars weight and power, KW. A 2010, 2.6 tonne Cayenne with 240kw will cost chf 1100 a year tax.
An awd Mazda with a spare set of winter wheels / tyres / roof bars serves us well since we came here 8 years ago. It's the family bus that takes my daughters every winter weekend to the Jura or French alps with their classmates.
I'm unaware of plans to prohibit diesel cars. Some diesel models of Audi and VW were prohibited for a time after the emissions scandal came to light.
Edited by HIAO on Sunday 24th March 14:14
HIAO said:
There is far less of a bias towards diesel cars in Switzerland than in the U.K.
35k should buy you a 6 year old Cayenne, with hopefully less than 100km and an up to date 'expertise'. If you're not planning to stay in Switzerland permanently, buy a car that you can easily sell quickly, without owing a lot of finance on.
In Vaud, tax on cars I is based on the cars weight and power, KW. A 2010, 2.6 tonne Cayenne with 240kw will cost chf 1100 a year tax.
An awd Mazda with a spare set of winter wheels / tyres / roof bars serves us well since we came here 8 years ago. It's the family bus that takes my daughters every winter weekend to the Jura or French alps with their classmates.
I'm unaware of plans to prohibit diesel cars. Some diesel models of Audi and VW were prohibited for a time after the emissions scandal came to light.
Thats very helpful...35k should buy you a 6 year old Cayenne, with hopefully less than 100km and an up to date 'expertise'. If you're not planning to stay in Switzerland permanently, buy a car that you can easily sell quickly, without owing a lot of finance on.
In Vaud, tax on cars I is based on the cars weight and power, KW. A 2010, 2.6 tonne Cayenne with 240kw will cost chf 1100 a year tax.
An awd Mazda with a spare set of winter wheels / tyres / roof bars serves us well since we came here 8 years ago. It's the family bus that takes my daughters every winter weekend to the Jura or French alps with their classmates.
I'm unaware of plans to prohibit diesel cars. Some diesel models of Audi and VW were prohibited for a time after the emissions scandal came to light.
Edited by HIAO on Sunday 24th March 14:14
Although would love a Cayenne my sensible head says dont do it ...
We have decided we definitely dont want to finance now as I dont know if I will be here for 2 years or 10 years..
Currently thinking a 2014/2015 BMW 3 Series X drive touring would be happy medium.
Any particular cars more popular than others?
fizz47 said:
HIAO said:
There is far less of a bias towards diesel cars in Switzerland than in the U.K.
35k should buy you a 6 year old Cayenne, with hopefully less than 100km and an up to date 'expertise'. If you're not planning to stay in Switzerland permanently, buy a car that you can easily sell quickly, without owing a lot of finance on.
In Vaud, tax on cars I is based on the cars weight and power, KW. A 2010, 2.6 tonne Cayenne with 240kw will cost chf 1100 a year tax.
An awd Mazda with a spare set of winter wheels / tyres / roof bars serves us well since we came here 8 years ago. It's the family bus that takes my daughters every winter weekend to the Jura or French alps with their classmates.
I'm unaware of plans to prohibit diesel cars. Some diesel models of Audi and VW were prohibited for a time after the emissions scandal came to light.
Thats very helpful...35k should buy you a 6 year old Cayenne, with hopefully less than 100km and an up to date 'expertise'. If you're not planning to stay in Switzerland permanently, buy a car that you can easily sell quickly, without owing a lot of finance on.
In Vaud, tax on cars I is based on the cars weight and power, KW. A 2010, 2.6 tonne Cayenne with 240kw will cost chf 1100 a year tax.
An awd Mazda with a spare set of winter wheels / tyres / roof bars serves us well since we came here 8 years ago. It's the family bus that takes my daughters every winter weekend to the Jura or French alps with their classmates.
I'm unaware of plans to prohibit diesel cars. Some diesel models of Audi and VW were prohibited for a time after the emissions scandal came to light.
Edited by HIAO on Sunday 24th March 14:14
Although would love a Cayenne my sensible head says dont do it ...
We have decided we definitely dont want to finance now as I dont know if I will be here for 2 years or 10 years..
Currently thinking a 2014/2015 BMW 3 Series X drive touring would be happy medium.
Any particular cars more popular than others?
literally just past its expertise (mot) today
lemme know if u want details
fizz47 said:
housen said:
My colleague is leaving Geneva very soon and has his cayenne to sell will come cheap
literally just past its expertise (mot) today
lemme know if u want details
ahh - a well priced Cayenne is very tempting literally just past its expertise (mot) today
lemme know if u want details
despite my earlier postThat is very kind - maybe a PM is easiest?
housen said:
fizz47 said:
housen said:
My colleague is leaving Geneva very soon and has his cayenne to sell will come cheap
literally just past its expertise (mot) today
lemme know if u want details
ahh - a well priced Cayenne is very tempting literally just past its expertise (mot) today
lemme know if u want details
despite my earlier postThat is very kind - maybe a PM is easiest?
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