Just read this very interesting article on What Car. I think many of us thought there might be something in this, but WC have done some rough calculations on the point and the results are very eye opening Assuming they are a bit out with their figures, the point made is still pretty valid I think.

Heres the linky to the first page

And heres a linky to the examples page if you cant be bother to read the whole article

Edited 27 October, 201015 yr by Lady Elanore

It's a shame they got the picture of the Corsa and Polo the wrong way round

They should also do one on small vs larger engines!

On an average mixed route journey I am sure that my 2.0TDI would beat the likes of a 1.2 corsa or Polo. The amount i pass on the motorway everyday makes me wonder...

Assuming they are a bit out with their figures, the point made is still pretty valid I think.

Although if you're buying finance then the interest on the more expensive car is going to be higher (in absolute terms) which could diminish the difference...

Love the way the Laguna model is an "init" as in "its a Laguna init"

Although if you're buying finance then the interest on the more expensive car is going to be higher (in absolute terms) which could diminish the difference...

It’s not the decimal point accuracy that interested me, it was the fact that the final figures are pretty close. I will lose a shed load of money with my A4 I am sure and I think we can all come up with examples of a different outcome to the What Car one, but it is nice to know that sometimes, 'more can be less'

Not quite sure where you can get a 21% discount on a Mercedes C class estate and yet only get 18% off a Renault Laguna Estate!

Also, I can't see the Merc retaining only 38% of it's list price after 3 years.

Although I agree in principle with what they're saying (and I've proved it myself in the past) they really should try a bit harder to get the facts right.

Not quite sure where you can get a 21% discount on a Mercedes C class estate and yet only get 18% off a Renault Laguna Estate!

Also, I can't see the Merc retaining only 38% of it's list price after 3 years.

Although I agree in principle with what they're saying (and I've proved it myself in the past) they really should try a bit harder to get the facts right.

There is no fast rule to car discounts. I have always managed to beat their quoted Target Price. Mind you there are terrific discounts available on Audi/Merc/BMWs if you haggle hard

With Skoda throwing so much 'discount' at their cars it makes their resale value a lot worse, but luckily some of their models are so hard to get a hold of it buoys their value up again. Perhaps you can have your cake and eat it.

Personally I think their target prices for the cheap cars are not that great, since there is no way you'd pay almost the same price for a new corsa as for a new polo.

That then skews the other results.

The Jag vs Saab is another good example, where the Saab has a target price that is RRP, the jag has a good discount of RRP, and yet they say that the Jag will depreciate less. I think that may be unlikely.

I still think that What Car has a point and I have found it to be true if you manage to pick wisely. Mind you, even with a bit of inside knowledge, I don’t think you can get it right every time :( My 123D actually worked out cheaper overall than my Octy II, even though its list price was 10K more.

IMy 123D actually worked out cheaper overall than my Octy II, even though its list price was 10K more.

Although if you'd bought another Octy instead of the 123D and invested the £10k saving in some good shares you could've made enough to buy to another Octy.

Although if you'd bought another Octy instead of the 123D and invested the £10k saving in some good shares you could've made enough to buy to another Octy.

One was more than enough!!!

Only kidding. I wonder how Willberpog is doing these days?

One was more than enough!!!

Well, my point was that if you have the choice of a £20k car and a £30k car, if you're looking to get the most from your money you'd be best investing the £10k difference than buying the more expensive car just 'cos it depreciates less - something which they don't seem to have highlighted in the whatcar article.

Only kidding. I wonder how Willberpog is doing these days?

Probably better than my Octy.

Edited 28 October, 201015 yr by robmawer

Well, my point was that if you have the choice of a £20k car and a £30k car, if you're looking to get the most from your money you'd be best investing the £10k difference than buying the more expensive car just 'cos it depreciates less - something which they don't seem to have highlighted in the whatcar article.

Ah but I did get the most from my money. I am a petrol head, not an investement banker I made enough on the PCP to help get the A4 and the servicing was cheaper, even though the 123D used pretty expensive oil. Oh and I forgot the free muffins

If you're a petrolhead, what did you buy a 123D for?

Sorry

There is no fast rule to car discounts. I have always managed to beat their quoted Target Price. Mind you there are terrific discounts available on Audi/Merc/BMWs if you haggle hard

With Skoda throwing so much 'discount' at their cars it makes their resale value a lot worse, but luckily some of their models are so hard to get a hold of it buoys their value up again. Perhaps you can have your cake and eat it.

But a quick check at DtD shows that there's a 12% discount on the Mercedes and a 28% discount on the Renault, which I would guess is pretty representative of the maximum discounts available.

Put those figures into the equation (and all other things being equal) then the Merc costs £22,450 over the 3 years and the Renault costs £18,342 over the three years. Though I doubt the Mercedes retained value of only £12,050 is accurate.

As for Skoda residuals the discounts only make it worse for those buyers who pay list (which with the current offers is almost impossible to do). My last vRS, sold in June at three years old, retained 54% of its purchase (not list) price which I don't think's too bad.

If you're a petrolhead, what did you buy a 123D for?

Sorry

It's far to pedantic to keep posting Derv head. Besides the 123Ds engine is the closest to a petrol (with all the traditional advantages of diesel) that I have driven

But a quick check at DtD shows that there's a 12% discount on the Mercedes and a 28% discount on the Renault, which I would guess is pretty representative of the maximum discounts available.

Put those figures into the equation (and all other things being equal) then the Merc costs £22,450 over the 3 years and the Renault costs £18,342 over the three years. Though I doubt the Mercedes retained value of only £12,050 is accurate.

As for Skoda residuals the discounts only make it worse for those buyers who pay list (which with the current offers is almost impossible to do). My last vRS, sold in June at three years old, retained 54% of its purchase (not list) price which I don't think's too bad.

As Merc took all the franchise dealers back and BMW have put a stop on DtD selling their cars, I still think you can get a much better deal face to face with a dealer.

As for Skodas, well the number of people who forget they have bought a heavily discounted car when they sell it on, is legion

I should have added that I haggled around 20% off my BMW

I should have added that I haggled around 20% off my BMW

Still nowhere near the 28% off the Renault though!

Obviously catching the right dealer at the right time with the right car will illicit all manner of deals, but I don't think that the What Car article was specifically referring to those occasions.

I'm still in general agreement with the overall message of the article, it's just that the figures given for some the examples stated simply don't add up when subjected to fairly basic scrutiny, which I think is pretty poor motoring journalism and could be misleading.

Still nowhere near the 28% off the Renault though!

I can't recall Renault offering anything like as much of Lagunas etc at the time though.

It also depends how you work the figures out. I have seen figures worked out the wrong way round before. ie £8 is a 20% discount from £10 but it could be said that You are saving 25% if you do the sum the other way round. Anyhoo, as I said somewhere near the beginning, the figures may not be too accurate but it is food for thought. Now if someone can lend me £100K for the Ferrari I want........

Edited 28 October, 201015 yr by Lady Elanore