Work Car Options
Discussion
My husband has recently started a new job that comes with a car allowance.
He needs to drive a 4 door business car that is less than 4 years old or has a full warranty.
His daily commute is 100 mile round trip with a 600 mile round trip thrown in once or twice a month to sites.
He currently drive an 11 plate golf so we need to upgrade.
We are thinking that saloon is the best shape to go for but would ideally like a hatchback over a boot - not a dealbreaker but it's handy being able to move furniture etc from time to time.
He is currently between a BMW 3 series and a VW Insignia - would rather the beemer but is it worth the extra £££?
Any other recommendations to look at?
Would you steer clear of consider Kia/MG/Nissan cars which come with long warranties?
Neither of us have ever had a PCP and prefer to own - I know so many people that do them happily but have always been brought up thinking that you are throwing money away by 'renting'. Given the age and the mileage, should we be considering this??
He needs to drive a 4 door business car that is less than 4 years old or has a full warranty.
His daily commute is 100 mile round trip with a 600 mile round trip thrown in once or twice a month to sites.
He currently drive an 11 plate golf so we need to upgrade.
We are thinking that saloon is the best shape to go for but would ideally like a hatchback over a boot - not a dealbreaker but it's handy being able to move furniture etc from time to time.
He is currently between a BMW 3 series and a VW Insignia - would rather the beemer but is it worth the extra £££?
Any other recommendations to look at?
Would you steer clear of consider Kia/MG/Nissan cars which come with long warranties?
Neither of us have ever had a PCP and prefer to own - I know so many people that do them happily but have always been brought up thinking that you are throwing money away by 'renting'. Given the age and the mileage, should we be considering this??
Dasher789 said:
My husband has recently started a new job that comes with a car allowance.
He needs to drive a 4 door business car that is less than 4 years old or has a full warranty.
His daily commute is 100 mile round trip with a 600 mile round trip thrown in once or twice a month to sites.
He currently drive an 11 plate golf so we need to upgrade.
We are thinking that saloon is the best shape to go for but would ideally like a hatchback over a boot - not a dealbreaker but it's handy being able to move furniture etc from time to time.
He is currently between a BMW 3 series and a VW Insignia - would rather the beemer but is it worth the extra £££?
Any other recommendations to look at?
Would you steer clear of consider Kia/MG/Nissan cars which come with long warranties?
Neither of us have ever had a PCP and prefer to own - I know so many people that do them happily but have always been brought up thinking that you are throwing money away by 'renting'. Given the age and the mileage, should we be considering this??
Kia and Nissan are quality products. BMW seem overpriced in their segments, generally. Don't rule out the various VAG variants. Skoda Octavia and Superbs are great, I have a SEAT Leon estate and I'd be happy to do the miles you're talking about in it. The extra space is often useful, too. He needs to drive a 4 door business car that is less than 4 years old or has a full warranty.
His daily commute is 100 mile round trip with a 600 mile round trip thrown in once or twice a month to sites.
He currently drive an 11 plate golf so we need to upgrade.
We are thinking that saloon is the best shape to go for but would ideally like a hatchback over a boot - not a dealbreaker but it's handy being able to move furniture etc from time to time.
He is currently between a BMW 3 series and a VW Insignia - would rather the beemer but is it worth the extra £££?
Any other recommendations to look at?
Would you steer clear of consider Kia/MG/Nissan cars which come with long warranties?
Neither of us have ever had a PCP and prefer to own - I know so many people that do them happily but have always been brought up thinking that you are throwing money away by 'renting'. Given the age and the mileage, should we be considering this??
Most manufacturer websites have a company car section with configurators and company car tax calculators so you can see what it will cost.
Does his company have a fleet manager? Might help to have chat with them.
If you're looking at 3 year old used vehicles rather than new and don't care about the badge, the Hyundai i30 is not a bad car for the money...and you get the remainder of the 5 year/unlimited mileage warranty.
I have 2 BMWs (a Z4M and a 320D Touring), and I was pleasantly surprised when I had a CRDi version as a hire car for a couple of weeks (both of my own cars were out of action).
£10k will probably get you a 3 year old 'approved used' petrol (the cheaper option) or diesel (more expensive option) model from a Hyundai dealer with less than 30,000 miles on it.
For example, this 120ps petrol model or this 120ps diesel one.
I have 2 BMWs (a Z4M and a 320D Touring), and I was pleasantly surprised when I had a CRDi version as a hire car for a couple of weeks (both of my own cars were out of action).
£10k will probably get you a 3 year old 'approved used' petrol (the cheaper option) or diesel (more expensive option) model from a Hyundai dealer with less than 30,000 miles on it.
For example, this 120ps petrol model or this 120ps diesel one.
Edited by mmm-five on Wednesday 28th April 15:33
Have a read of this, it may answer a few questions;
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
The hyundai tucson is the only car that we have test driven so far as we live close to a hyundai garage. We found the seats to be pretty uncomfortable but maybe i30 would be better. We did actually see an i30 and asked to have a look at it but they had taken the battery out for the showroom so they could only open one door seemingly??! maybe we will need to dress a bit smarter if we go back...
thanks for the link on the leasing. the costs do seem quite a bit less than pcp even with the added milage
thanks for the link on the leasing. the costs do seem quite a bit less than pcp even with the added milage
100miles/day across 46 weeks of the year (52 weeks less standard ~6 weeks holiday inc bank holidays) is 23,000 miles.
1-2 600mile trips per month (averaged at 1.5 trips) comes in at another 10,800 miles.
Leasing at 34,000 miles is not often friendly on the pocket but below are two options that aren't too eyewatering:
Passat SEL [Amortised at £434/month over 4 years or £495/month over 3 years]
https://www.leaseloco.com/car-leasing/volkswagen/p...
A4 [Amortised at £521/month over 4 years or £600/month over 3 years]
https://www.leaseloco.com/car-leasing/audi/a4-salo...
If your partner is a higher rate tax payer, once the tax and NI has been taken out of your £600 you're left with £348 towards the running, maintenance and insurance of the car. That really doesn't go far and I'd be hoping to have the option of going for a company car instead - Is this an option or is it purely a car allowance?
1-2 600mile trips per month (averaged at 1.5 trips) comes in at another 10,800 miles.
Leasing at 34,000 miles is not often friendly on the pocket but below are two options that aren't too eyewatering:
Passat SEL [Amortised at £434/month over 4 years or £495/month over 3 years]
https://www.leaseloco.com/car-leasing/volkswagen/p...
A4 [Amortised at £521/month over 4 years or £600/month over 3 years]
https://www.leaseloco.com/car-leasing/audi/a4-salo...
If your partner is a higher rate tax payer, once the tax and NI has been taken out of your £600 you're left with £348 towards the running, maintenance and insurance of the car. That really doesn't go far and I'd be hoping to have the option of going for a company car instead - Is this an option or is it purely a car allowance?
Dasher789 said:
The hyundai tucson is the only car that we have test driven so far as we live close to a hyundai garage. We found the seats to be pretty uncomfortable but maybe i30 would be better. We did actually see an i30 and asked to have a look at it but they had taken the battery out for the showroom so they could only open one door seemingly??! maybe we will need to dress a bit smarter if we go back...
thanks for the link on the leasing. the costs do seem quite a bit less than pcp even with the added milage
The facelifted i30 would likely be a good option - They're cheap, well equipped and really quite comfortable. The fastback shape is also much more premium looking than the badge would suggest IMO.thanks for the link on the leasing. the costs do seem quite a bit less than pcp even with the added milage
Dasher789 said:
yes, he is a higher rate tax payer. his car allowance is £700pm and there is no option of a company car.
Would a Telsa Model 3 work for you? Electric cars are currently 0% BIK, rising to 1% next year and 2% the year after?https://www.leaseloco.com/car-leasing/tesla/model-...
Mammasaid said:
Dasher789 said:
yes, he is a higher rate tax payer. his car allowance is £700pm and there is no option of a company car.
Would a Telsa Model 3 work for you? Electric cars are currently 0% BIK, rising to 1% next year and 2% the year after?https://www.leaseloco.com/car-leasing/tesla/model-...
not sure a Tesla would work because of the charging. When he goes to sites, they tend to be in the middle of nowhere so it might be a bit of a risk. i plugged in some figures and i think its a bit expensive too.
just to clarify, the £700pm is before tax.
is the insignia a no go?
will go back to the hyundai garage grudgingly lol and try the i30.
just to clarify, the £700pm is before tax.
is the insignia a no go?
will go back to the hyundai garage grudgingly lol and try the i30.
The thing with Teslas is that for a 600 mile round journey, he's going to have to stop for a break during the journey, and most service stations have Superchargers to top up.
https://www.tesla.com/en_GB/findus?v=2&bounds=...
https://www.tesla.com/en_GB/findus?v=2&bounds=...
we would have space for a charging point no problem.
now i am thinking of it, maybe the lack of petrol costs would offset the higher price and as long as he could charge once when away, he should get home...
Sorry, i meant to say as well, there is no fleet manager at his company.
the waiting list would be an issue if it is 12 months.
does anyone know as well whilst on the subject of a tesla - my husband will get a fuel card and can claim his business mileage (not the commute but say 1.5 trips per month - 900miles). if you have an electric car, can you claim the electricity costs or is it not worth it?
thanks for all of these suggestions, really appreciate it
now i am thinking of it, maybe the lack of petrol costs would offset the higher price and as long as he could charge once when away, he should get home...
Sorry, i meant to say as well, there is no fleet manager at his company.
the waiting list would be an issue if it is 12 months.
does anyone know as well whilst on the subject of a tesla - my husband will get a fuel card and can claim his business mileage (not the commute but say 1.5 trips per month - 900miles). if you have an electric car, can you claim the electricity costs or is it not worth it?
thanks for all of these suggestions, really appreciate it
The one I've linked to is a stock vehicle, so could be available in as little as 2 weeks.
Tesla claims that you can refill a car from 10% – 80% charge in under 40 minutes, and that you can half-fill the car (i.e. reach 50% charge) in as little as 20 minutes.
These are both achievable, but they represent the optimum outcome and there are various factors that affect speed.
What are the costs?
A charge costs ~£0.26 per kWh. To top up from empty to 100% in a 75D / Model 3 LR it would cost you ~£15-£20 but in reality, you probably won’t be arriving at a supercharger with an empty battery and won’t leave with 100% state of charge so this will be less.
Tesla claims that you can refill a car from 10% – 80% charge in under 40 minutes, and that you can half-fill the car (i.e. reach 50% charge) in as little as 20 minutes.
These are both achievable, but they represent the optimum outcome and there are various factors that affect speed.
What are the costs?
A charge costs ~£0.26 per kWh. To top up from empty to 100% in a 75D / Model 3 LR it would cost you ~£15-£20 but in reality, you probably won’t be arriving at a supercharger with an empty battery and won’t leave with 100% state of charge so this will be less.
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