Vehicle finance recommendations

[LGP Eddie]

5 minutes ago, doobin said:

I'd never buy a new vehicle, the hit in depreciation is huge. Way more than something like a digger.

A lot depends on your business model, if you only go 30 mile from home you will put up with a lot more than if you need to travel distance reliably.

 

Best thing I ever did was switch to new Defenders, depreciation was negligible and did everything I wanted.

 

I’m running an AWD Transit now, wish I’d had one 10 years ago in many ways, but you can’t find them in the newer shape anywhere from fleets yet, so I keep looking at 4x4 sprinters.

 

If you haven’t a reliable vehicle in the morning, it makes everything harder.

 

 

Eddie.

[Big J]

1 hour ago, LGP Eddie said:

A lot depends on your business model, if you only go 30 mile from home you will put up with a lot more than if you need to travel distance reliably.

 

Best thing I ever did was switch to new Defenders, depreciation was negligible and did everything I wanted.

 

I’m running an AWD Transit now, wish I’d had one 10 years ago in many ways, but you can’t find them in the newer shape anywhere from fleets yet, so I keep looking at 4x4 sprinters.

 

If you haven’t a reliable vehicle in the morning, it makes everything harder.

 

 

Eddie.

My 4x4 Sprinter is for sale Eddie. It's 7 years old, but it's had every conceivable mechanical niggle addressed as well a whole host of upgrades. 122k, 313CDI 4x4 but remapped to 160bhp, full Bott racking system in the back. Drives beautifully, but I'm just not using it now. All my sites start with a loading bay, so by their nature, they are 2 wheel drive drivable. I've bought a V10 Touareg for the odd bit of towing I do.

 

 

[Big J]

1 hour ago, doobin said:

I'd never buy a new vehicle, the hit in depreciation is huge. Way more than something like a digger.

That's a fair point, but vehicles all cost money. You lose on old vehicles on repairs and down time, you lose on new vehicles on depreciation. A digger has a lot less to go wrong, and a new digger is unusable if your old vehicle has let you down and not got you to site.

[doobin]

17 minutes ago, Big J said:

That's a fair point, but vehicles all cost money. You lose on old vehicles on repairs and down time, you lose on new vehicles on depreciation. A digger has a lot less to go wrong, and a new digger is unusable if your old vehicle has let you down and not got you to site.

My corsa van I bought for 2k at 70k miles, it’s cost me probably £1k over four years and is on 112k now. Similar story with my ranger but scaled up a little. tipper truck probably best value of them all, doubt I’ve spent more than a grand on it in three years and it only cost 2k. 
 

Flip side is probably image, but I like to think three new diggers and new saws make up for it. 
 

And as eddy says, it would be a different story if I travelled for work. Horses for courses. 

Edited December 18, 2019 by doobin

[LeeGray]

10 hours ago, GA Groundcare said:

Not these days! RRC seem to of gone up lately. If you can find a road worthy not rotten example for 1k let me know! ?

 

3dr classics are mental prices now.

 

When starting up 5 years ago I bought a 2002 Disco 2 TD5 Commercial for 2k. It was spot on. 

Not talking classics, wouldn’t fancy running that as a work truck much as I’d fancy one as an appreciating toy. Early L322 can be had with decent mot for £1000 now. No one wants them.

[Big J]

3 minutes ago, doobin said:

My corsa van I bought for 2k at 70k miles, it’s cost me probably £1k over four years and is on 112k now. Similar story with my ranger but scaled up a little. tipper truck probably best value of them all, doubt I’ve spent more than a grand on it in three years and it only cost 2k. 
 

Flip side is probably image, but I like to think three new diggers and new saws make up for it. 
 

And as eddy says, it would be a different story if I travelled for work. Horses for courses. 

That's fair enough. I don't have the option of being able to drive a Corsa, as I don't fit in them. Being my height restricts your choice somewhat. The cab on the Berlingo is really spacious, with a lot more room behind the wheel than in any pickup. 

 

I suppose the biggest thing for me is the mobile office aspect of it. I can dial people by voice activation, I can read text messages on the main infotainment screen and with 160bhp, I can get to site quite briskly. It's got 'Grip Control' (traction control for gentle offroading) along with underbody guarding and and increased ride height. It has a couple of reversing cameras (mostly for the wife) but also one on the passenger side mirror, so when you come to a junction at 45 degrees, you can see up the lane, without having to square yourself to the junction. That's really handy down here on these daft lanes. You'd never find a 2nd hand vehicle with that combination of options, hence the need to go new. 

 

I know that new vehicles aren't for everyone, but they work well for me. Unless they are D40 Navaras, in which case, not so much.

[LeeGray]

You lads running new stuff must have had much better service than me, had 3 new Nissan vans all had problems and the service was poor and ridiculously expensive. New Isuzu pick same, new Land Rover 110 the same. All seemed to think they had you over a barrel as they new it was financed and you need to keep everything right for warranty and re sale. Ironically the new stuff all had more problems than any second hand vehicle I’ve had since. 
 

The service at Land Rover was appalling from start to finish, Couldn’t help but laugh when the reason the £32,000 one day old 110 wouldnt pull the trailer above 40mph was the turbo was hanging off. Rang Land Rover dealer who did the deal literally the day before “ if you bring it in, we’ll have a look at it” was the response! Should have trailered it the 65 miles back or set it on fire that day and saved myself years of problems, arguments and cash.

 

 

[Big J]

48 minutes ago, LeeGray said:

You lads running new stuff must have had much better service than me, had 3 new Nissan vans all had problems and the service was poor and ridiculously expensive. New Isuzu pick same, new Land Rover 110 the same. All seemed to think they had you over a barrel as they new it was financed and you need to keep everything right for warranty and re sale. Ironically the new stuff all had more problems than any second hand vehicle I’ve had since. 
 

The service at Land Rover was appalling from start to finish, Couldn’t help but laugh when the reason the £32,000 one day old 110 wouldnt pull the trailer above 40mph was the turbo was hanging off. Rang Land Rover dealer who did the deal literally the day before “ if you bring it in, we’ll have a look at it” was the response! Should have trailered it the 65 miles back or set it on fire that day and saved myself years of problems, arguments and cash.

 

 

Nissan were terrible with my D40 Navara. Not so much in terms of getting the vehicle in promptly and fixing it, but more that they kept fixing the same things, and the courtesy vehicles offered were wholely inappropriate. 

Conversely, Citroen have always been brilliant, especially the Exeter dealership. I've got a recall on the Berlingo looming for a dodgy passenger seatbelt mount. After being unable to source a suitable courtesy vehicle (only basic 2wd vans and pickups without a locking load cover), they are paying me to use my Sprinter instead. For quite a long time too. 

[benedmonds]

1 hour ago, Big J said:

That's a fair point, but vehicles all cost money. You lose on old vehicles on repairs and down time, you lose on new vehicles on depreciation. 

My preferred option would be 2-3 years old and Japanese. The major depreciation is done and they are still reliable. 

With leased vehicles becoming popular, you can get a tidy vehicle that has been regularly maintained as part of the lease. 

 

Unfortunately the UK market lacks most of the small mazda, honda and toyota vans ..

[Big J]

18 minutes ago, benedmonds said:

My preferred option would be 2-3 years old and Japanese. The major depreciation is done and they are still reliable. 

With leased vehicles becoming popular, you can get a tidy vehicle that has been regularly maintained as part of the lease. 

 

Unfortunately the UK market lacks most of the small mazda, honda and toyota vans ..

Japanese vehicles are always very tight on space for me. Driving a Hilux is an exercise in bodily contortion. And having been badly burned by the Navara, I'm not convinced about their quality. 

Edited December 18, 2019 by Big J