Octavia Hatch SE L waiting time

[Bobolus]

 

Ordered the car from a good dealership and I was told there is a 50 week wait. To save myself going mad during the wait, I constructed a table of the car going through the status procedure. 

I was surprised I got an unconfirmed build week and thought this was early. I just wonder if Skoda are seeing production improvements. I know this date is going to change but at least something is happening.

[TheWanderer]

Things should have improved for ICE cars, don't know about hybrid cars though. 

[nick348]

Don't want to talk it up but maybe, just maybe there is some good news with forecasted delivery times. In April (23) I ordered my Octavia SE L DSG Estate in Graphite grey with travel assist and a spare wheel as the only extras and I've been told its now built, on its way to the docks and should be good to go for a mid November delivery.

 

Fingers crossed for no further delays!

[Bobolus]

On 05/10/2023 at 13:47, nick348 said:

Don't want to talk it up but maybe, just maybe there is some good news with forecasted delivery times. In April (23) I ordered my Octavia SE L DSG Estate in Graphite grey with travel assist and a spare wheel as the only extras and I've been told its now built, on its way to the docks and should be good to go for a mid November delivery.

 

Fingers crossed for no further delays!

Sounds very good. Definitely an improvement in production lines

[30yearsacustomer]

Been buying (solely) skoda since 1993, about twenty new cars in that time. and currently with my 5th octavia estate technology 25/10/2022. I can't afford to buy pre-used, it is cheaper to have new on pcp and change every 12-18months, but never get off that merry-go-round.

 

The brochures for those models 2021 onwards ALL show internal electric boot lid release button as standard fitment to the driver's door panel, but I have never found any in this country with that button. I phoned dealers all over the uk but none had the button.

 

A bit of to and fro with skoda uk and eventually a refund to me of 1690UKP was made.

 

Looking at the current car configurator on the website, I have see Tailgate/trunk lid release shows as standard equipment, is this the same as the button that never was? I think we should be told.

 

If you are counting on it in the delivery of your new car then be prepared for a battle if it doesn't have it.

 

Reminds me of 2012 when I wanted to order my second octavia estate, but always with a factrory fit tow bar, only to be told it was not an available option that year, so I had to have the new model yeti instead. Funny thing was, Caravan Club (I think it was) declared it towing car of the year. Perhaps it was strong string on the bumper🙂

[Bobolus]

8 hours ago, 30yearsacustomer said:

Been buying (solely) skoda since 1993, about twenty new cars in that time. and currently with my 5th octavia estate technology 25/10/2022. I can't afford to buy pre-used, it is cheaper to have new on pcp and change every 12-18months, but never get off that merry-go-round.

 

The brochures for those models 2021 onwards ALL show internal electric boot lid release button as standard fitment to the driver's door panel, but I have never found any in this country with that button. I phoned dealers all over the uk but none had the button.

 

A bit of to and fro with skoda uk and eventually a refund to me of 1690UKP was made.

 

Looking at the current car configurator on the website, I have see Tailgate/trunk lid release shows as standard equipment, is this the same as the button that never was? I think we should be told.

 

If you are counting on it in the delivery of your new car then be prepared for a battle if it doesn't have it.

 

Reminds me of 2012 when I wanted to order my second octavia estate, but always with a factrory fit tow bar, only to be told it was not an available option that year, so I had to have the new model yeti instead. Funny thing was, Caravan Club (I think it was) declared it towing car of the year. Perhaps it was strong string on the bumper🙂

Some good advice there. I have seen the boot release button in advertisement videos, and it seems strange they are not included in the UK. 

Personally it wouldn't bother me but I will check the price. I had a superb a few years ago with electronic boot, and I could not get used to it. Yeah its ok to open from a distance, but as soon as your feet find the closing signal when you are messing inside the boot, the boot lid comes down until it touches your back. 

With my next car I just want a normal boot.

[PoloGaz]

My SEL took 18 months but it is the phev version. From getting a build week to it actually being built took about 6 months (given a build week for September during April ‘23, and car was delivered in October. The build week was pretty accurate all the way and didn’t move around much

 

i was surprised when mine arrived with a manual boot release but I also don’t miss having an electric one

 

 

[J.R.]

9 hours ago, 30yearsacustomer said:

I can't afford to buy pre-used, it is cheaper to have new on pcp and change every 12-18months, but never get off that merry-go-round.

 

Thats very interesting, if you don't mind me asking what has it been costing you per month in recent years and are you having to add an additional down payment on each vehicle? If so approx how much.

 

I hadn't realised that people could change at a short interval, I thought they were fixed duration contracts.

[Bobolus]

14 minutes ago, PoloGaz said:

My SEL took 18 months but it is the phev version. From getting a build week to it actually being built took about 6 months (given a build week for September during April ‘23, and car was delivered in October. The build week was pretty accurate all the way and didn’t move around much

 

i was surprised when mine arrived with a manual boot release but I also don’t miss having an electric one

 

 

18 months is a very long time when waiting for a new car. That would drive me crazy.

[Bobolus]

8 hours ago, PoloGaz said:

My SEL took 18 months but it is the phev version. From getting a build week to it actually being built took about 6 months (given a build week for September during April ‘23, and car was delivered in October. The build week was pretty accurate all the way and didn’t move around much

 

i was surprised when mine arrived with a manual boot release but I also don’t miss having an electric one

 

 

I have since found out that Skoda stopped taking orders for this model in December 2022 as the backlog was getting too big. No wonder you had to wait 18 months. Even so that kind of wait would have driven me crazy. Hope you are enjoying the car. 

[PoloGaz]

I spent a long time looking for something that would arrive sooner but i was tied to getting a new car or a stock car with delivery miles as its a company car order. If I was a private buyer I would not have waited so long. Probably would have just waited it out with the car I already had. Annoyingly I Had to buy the wife a replacement car last autumn while everything was still tight and had to pay an inflated price for it (mk7 golf) 

 

I am enjoying it. It’s good to be back in a car after nearly 5 years in an SUV. I never really became fond of my old Kodiaq. It was a good car but underpowered and thirsty

Edited 4 November, 2023 by PoloGaz

[30yearsacustomer]

On 04/11/2023 at 08:56, J.R. said:

Thats very interesting, if you don't mind me asking what has it been costing you per month in recent years and are you having to add an additional down payment on each vehicle? If so approx how much.

 

My experience all started in 2012 when I went on holiday to Cornwall in my Fabia estate and trailer, rainy day, looked at Skoda in Carrs, Indian Queens, saw Octavia estate 1.6 mpi and they agreed to prep, complete with tow bar, before my journey home.

True to their word, it was done, but for the first time as a customer, I used PCP, and moved away from the mindset that I must own my car outright and let it rust on my drive, and be responsible for batteries, tyres, MOTs, road fund tax, RAC/AA, servicing, etc, all at my own expense.

Plus, of course, the 25% “folklore” immediate depreciation factor when you drive the car off the dealer's forecourt.

How much have they cost me? Since 2012 I've bought five octavia estates and three yetis, always stipulated to the dealer “I don't want to put any more of my own money into the purchase than I absolutely have to” and, apart from the last two Octavias, I have kept it down to P/X plus (so far as I can recall) about £500 – 750 each time. In 2012 I think I was paying about £140 – 150 per month, and finally just over £300 per month.

My big mistake – inheritance, leading to paying off my balance and getting off the PCP roundabout. Stay on the PCP until the year before you're going to stop driving, the “balloon” payment scheduled to VWFS is a guaranteed minimum value, and set that against your last car, e.g. Citigo.

That there is your depreciation for all the cars you've had when you add on the few hundred each time you change.

BEWARE.

I've yet to meet anybody who agrees with my logic, let alone my wife, who buys her own cars with her own money, outright, but asks me to negotiate her a deal!, and I then end up being accused by her dealer as the owner of her vauxhall any time they phone to arrange a service. Damned cheek, haven't they heard about emancipation and equal rights!

On 04/11/2023 at 08:56, J.R. said:

I hadn't realised that people could change at a short interval, I thought they were fixed duration contracts.

You are party to two totally separate contracts here, one with the dealer to supply a new car, and one with the (VWFS) finance company to lend you the money for a period of time, while paying them interest.

My understanding is that neither contracting party is interested in the other's contract, insofar as the dealer's contract was fulfilled when you took possession of the car, it is yours, registered in your name, whereas the finance company are interested only in that you repay the sum on the due dates, at the agreed amount, with the agreed interest until the contract is completed, as firstly agreed in the contract, or by agreement before the end of the firstly agreed date.

If you wish to complete your side of the contract ahead of time – e.g. because you're buying your next Skoda on a PCP – my experience is that they find it most acceptable in that they will be entering a new contract with you for a more pricey model where they lend you more money payable with the interest current at that time, and there has never been any suggestion of any penalty due. You must have performed your side of the previous contract properly, of course.

Best to confirm all of that with your dealer, of course. I'm not a qualified financial advisor/solicitor or whatever, I'm only a customer, albeit for the last thirty years.

Apart from Capital outlay, now the revenue expenses.

Let's say 12 month ownership on a 48 month PCP agreement.

Tax - included in PCP

RAC/AA - included in PCP

Towbar extra on PCP 20ukp per month (960ukp divided by 48 months).

Servicing – zero, not met the intervals.

Tyres – zero, still well legal.

MoT – zero.

Battery – zero.

add on any other extras you may lust after and pay only 12 months of their cost

Original octavia mpi 1.6 claimed mpg 42 achieved 38, but current ocvtavia claimed mpg 53 regularly achieves 59 means I get half as far again on each gallon today as I did in 2012.

I look at the gov.uk web site for MoT on each of the cars I have owned since 2007 and see the amount of failure/advisory notes, and think to myself, it could have been me paying for those items and for preventive servicing, but it's not.

I can put my socks on in the morning and think – I'll go to John o' Groats tonight, Lands End tomorrow night, and home in the west mids for lunch the next day (hypothetically, of course), and know it's achievable.

What set me on this course?

A neighbour with his immaculate 2002 merc 220 kompressor asking me in 2012 “why do you keep changing your car”, and then telling me that his 10 year old car had been valued at only 5000ukp.

2000 ukp per annum depreciation, plus having to buy all and sundry, while I was paying 1800 ukp all in.

The real question should have been from me, “how can anyone afford to run a good used car?”

Please read this extremely critically, I won't be held responsible if it doesn't work for other people.

[J.R.]

I'm afraid you will have to cut out all the superfluous stuff for me to be able to follow it.

 

You didnt say how much you put down initially or if you PX'd a vehicle worth ?, you say you add another £500 to £700 at each change of vehicle, I understand that, that your monthly payment has gone from £150 to £300, I understand that, then you say that the baloon payment that I thought was for you to pay is the depreciation on all the vehicles, that I cannot get my head around.

 

If you said that you have put in X as down payments (and initial PX) over the 11 years (the initial plus all the others) that you have made Y in monthly repayments over the same time, if you walked away now without a vehicle would you have to pay a baloon payment? If so then call it Z.

 

Then in my simple it has cost you X+Y+Z for 11 years of motoring plus servicing costs, that is the figure I was hoping to know, I dont see that depreciation comes into it if you walk away with nothing.

 

I wont be doing it because I live in France and if such a system exists it will be very disadvantageous plus I have no intention of driving a later vehicle than the one I have.

[Ootohere]

Leasing a car from Motability in the UK for 3 years with the current £71 a week PIP signed over is £11,000, without any Advance Payment.

That is exempt from VED, no Insurance or Servicing to pay or even Adblue with a diesel.

 

So £3,692 a year minimum.  The PIP goes up with inflation, so that £71 a week increases.   

 

That is surely as cheap as renting a car gets.  It could be from around a £15,000 RRP to over £35,000 and no Advance payments. 

[J.R.]

That I understand thanks!

 

I presume thats a better deal than M. Tout le Monde gets? Servicing included sounds good, what happens if something breaks outside of warranty say a cam belt on an ICE or your battery pack taking on water, who gets the bill, you or Motability?

 

Can you exit before the term without penalty to get a new car every couple of years or even every year like 30year........ has done?

 

I paid £3200 for my vehicle 3 years ago, all in with the repairs it stood me in at £4K so after a year I was ahead of the game, short of having an accident I intend to run it forever.

Edited 6 November, 2023 by J.R.

[Stonekeeper]

5 hours ago, 30yearsacustomer said:

 

My experience all started in 2012 when I went on holiday to Cornwall in my Fabia estate and trailer, rainy day, looked at Skoda in Carrs, Indian Queens, saw Octavia estate 1.6 mpi and they agreed to prep, complete with tow bar, before my journey home.

True to their word, it was done, but for the first time as a customer, I used PCP, and moved away from the mindset that I must own my car outright and let it rust on my drive, and be responsible for batteries, tyres, MOTs, road fund tax, RAC/AA, servicing, etc, all at my own expense.

Plus, of course, the 25% “folklore” immediate depreciation factor when you drive the car off the dealer's forecourt.

How much have they cost me? Since 2012 I've bought five octavia estates and three yetis, always stipulated to the dealer “I don't want to put any more of my own money into the purchase than I absolutely have to” and, apart from the last two Octavias, I have kept it down to P/X plus (so far as I can recall) about £500 – 750 each time. In 2012 I think I was paying about £140 – 150 per month, and finally just over £300 per month.

My big mistake – inheritance, leading to paying off my balance and getting off the PCP roundabout. Stay on the PCP until the year before you're going to stop driving, the “balloon” payment scheduled to VWFS is a guaranteed minimum value, and set that against your last car, e.g. Citigo.

That there is your depreciation for all the cars you've had when you add on the few hundred each time you change.

BEWARE.

I've yet to meet anybody who agrees with my logic, let alone my wife, who buys her own cars with her own money, outright, but asks me to negotiate her a deal!, and I then end up being accused by her dealer as the owner of her vauxhall any time they phone to arrange a service. Damned cheek, haven't they heard about emancipation and equal rights!

You are party to two totally separate contracts here, one with the dealer to supply a new car, and one with the (VWFS) finance company to lend you the money for a period of time, while paying them interest.

My understanding is that neither contracting party is interested in the other's contract, insofar as the dealer's contract was fulfilled when you took possession of the car, it is yours, registered in your name, whereas the finance company are interested only in that you repay the sum on the due dates, at the agreed amount, with the agreed interest until the contract is completed, as firstly agreed in the contract, or by agreement before the end of the firstly agreed date.

If you wish to complete your side of the contract ahead of time – e.g. because you're buying your next Skoda on a PCP – my experience is that they find it most acceptable in that they will be entering a new contract with you for a more pricey model where they lend you more money payable with the interest current at that time, and there has never been any suggestion of any penalty due. You must have performed your side of the previous contract properly, of course.

Best to confirm all of that with your dealer, of course. I'm not a qualified financial advisor/solicitor or whatever, I'm only a customer, albeit for the last thirty years.

Apart from Capital outlay, now the revenue expenses.

Let's say 12 month ownership on a 48 month PCP agreement.

Tax - included in PCP

RAC/AA - included in PCP

Towbar extra on PCP 20ukp per month (960ukp divided by 48 months).

Servicing – zero, not met the intervals.

Tyres – zero, still well legal.

MoT – zero.

Battery – zero.

add on any other extras you may lust after and pay only 12 months of their cost

Original octavia mpi 1.6 claimed mpg 42 achieved 38, but current ocvtavia claimed mpg 53 regularly achieves 59 means I get half as far again on each gallon today as I did in 2012.

I look at the gov.uk web site for MoT on each of the cars I have owned since 2007 and see the amount of failure/advisory notes, and think to myself, it could have been me paying for those items and for preventive servicing, but it's not.

I can put my socks on in the morning and think – I'll go to John o' Groats tonight, Lands End tomorrow night, and home in the west mids for lunch the next day (hypothetically, of course), and know it's achievable.

What set me on this course?

A neighbour with his immaculate 2002 merc 220 kompressor asking me in 2012 “why do you keep changing your car”, and then telling me that his 10 year old car had been valued at only 5000ukp.

2000 ukp per annum depreciation, plus having to buy all and sundry, while I was paying 1800 ukp all in.

The real question should have been from me, “how can anyone afford to run a good used car?”

Please read this extremely critically, I won't be held responsible if it doesn't work for other people.

 

A few questions:

What is the tax you say is included?

 

Which pcp include the rac?

 

Which car requires no servicing for over three years?

 

Here is a Skoda PCP plan for A Skoda Octavia SEL

 

 

The car is effectively £26,680 (£2,000 off for taking their plan)

 

You pay                       £20,944

and can buy it for      £10,989.10 at the end

                                        £31,933.10

 

Or give it back and have nothing

 

As regards your comment "folklore" depreciation driving off the forecourt

 

The above example £28,860 price

 

As soon as it is purchased it becomes worth £24,050  because VAT is only payable when purchased new.

[Stonekeeper]

1 hour ago, J.R. said:

That I understand thanks!

 

I presume thats a better deal than M. Tout le Monde gets? Servicing included sounds good, what happens if something breaks outside of warranty say a cam belt on an ICE or your battery pack taking on water, who gets the bill, you or Motability?

 

Can you exit before the term without penalty to get a new car every couple of years or even every year like 30year........ has done?

 

I paid £3200 for my vehicle 3 years ago, all in with the repairs it stood me in at £4K so after a year I was ahead of the game, short of having an accident I intend to run it forever.

 

 

I don't know of a car manufacturer that doesn't warranty for 3 years

[J.R.]

Good point.

[Ootohere]

@StonekeeperHe said he changes every 12-18 months.  That is long before 3 years and a first MOT. 

 

Other than UK there are EU / European countries whee Skoda Warranties are 2 years.

Edited 6 November, 2023 by Rooted

[J.R.]

36 minutes ago, Stonekeeper said:

 

A few questions:

What is the tax you say is included?

 

Which pcp include the rac?

 

Which car requires no servicing for over three years?

 

Here is a Skoda PCP plan for A Skoda Octavia SEL

 

 

The car is effectively £26,680 (£2,000 off for taking their plan)

 

You pay                       £20,944

and can buy it for      £10,989.10 at the end

                                        £31,933.10

 

Or give it back and have nothing

 

As regards your comment "folklore" depreciation driving off the forecourt

 

The above example £28,860 price

 

As soon as it is purchased it becomes worth £24,050  because VAT is only payable when purchased new.

So if the above is a more realistic example at the end of the 48 months if you want another new vehicle you have to stump up another deposit of say £6K and pay whatever the new monthly fees are, in the meantime you have rented a vehicle for 48 months at £435/month = £20920, is servicing and tyres etc extra?

 

I cannot see how 30yearsacustomer can have done the same for £300 per month and have had 8 new vehicles during a 12 year period paying an additional deposit of £500-750 each time, something does not add up.

 

I wont have had a new vehicle every 18 months but I wont have to pay an additional £10k to keep my old Scnorrer next year when I will have had it for 4 years or be without a vehicle.

[30yearsacustomer]

Quite a few questions from you all, and that's good, because I'd rather it is clear to everybody interested enough that it works for me, but you have to suit yourself as to whether I'm talking through my neck, or not.

All PCP on basis of max term, min miles, the payment level you can afford and is reasonable in your mind as reflecting acceptable cost of motoring, but always change for the next car after (preferably) a year or so, thus 1st year tax is within the PCP agreement i.e. you don't "pay" it, recovery service is always present within the PCP, no MOT is ever reached, all service parts are within their usual lifespan

 

2011 - put  couple or three hundred plus fab estate in p/x for octavia. Cash outlay around 2-300 ukp Octavia WL11FU*

2012 - WL11FU* in p/x with c.500 ukp for octavia BV62YX*

2013 - BV62 in p/x with c.3 - 500 ukp for yeti BD63WD*

2015 - BD 63 in p/x with c.500 ukp for yeti BD15***

2016 - BD15 in p/x with ?c. 750 - 1000? (can't remember) for yeti BD16UU*

2018 - BD16 in p/x with ?c. 750 for octavia BU18GH*

2019 - BU18 in p/x with, say, c.750 for octavia BV69VY*

Rounding it all upwards I reckon I've paid cash somewhere between ukp 4 - 5K over 7 cars by way of depreciation.

 

Then I made the mistake of jumping off the PCP into outright ownership by p/x BV69 and paying cash 10K ukp and bought 2022 ym in Oct 2022,

 

The car which should have had the internal electric boot lid release according to the brochures, and as also accepted in emails with Skoda UK, and for the lack of which Skoda UK made me a payment of 1690 ukp

 

Hope this explanation  makes sense, even if the logic is flawed.

 

 

[Stonekeeper]

@30yearsacustomer If it works for you and it makes sense to you then that is all that matters.

 

I take it that after your original  P/x of your own car the subsequent p/xs are actually the equity remaining in the "leased"  vehicle over and above the remaining  money to pay.

 

For me it means you are committing to pay over £300 a month forever and never own anything, but i can see where the "logic" is, in that you always have access to a "new" car.

[30yearsacustomer]

6 minutes ago, Stonekeeper said:

@30yearsacustomer If it works for you and it makes sense to you then that is all that matters.

 

I take it that after your original  P/x of your own car the subsequent p/xs are actually the equity remaining in the "leased"  vehicle over and above the remaining  money to pay.

 

For me it means you are committing to pay over £300 a month forever and never own anything, but i can see where the "logic" is, in that you always have access to a "new" car.

You've got it.

thank you.

 

Road fund tax - paid in PCP (therefore not extra that you would notice)

servicing - get rid of car before any servicing required (i.e. before stipulated service interval)

rac/aa (or whatever recovery company they use) - three years membership included in PCP (therefore not noticed)

service parts (i.e. tyres, batteries etc) are good for the time you own the car - therefore not applicable

 

16 hours ago, Stonekeeper said:

The car is effectively £26,680 (£2,000 off for taking their plan)

 

You pay                       £20,944

and can buy it for      £10,989.10 at the end

                                        £31,933.10

 

Or give it back and have nothing

 

As regards your comment "folklore" depreciation driving off the forecourt

 

The above example £28,860 price

 

As soon as it is purchased it becomes worth £24,050  because VAT is only payable when purchased new.

I pay (say) 12 months at 316 ukp, and the car is mine, lock, stock, and barrel I own it for the duration, albeit with a large PCP debt to VWFS, for which I am liable in the event of default. BUT, my total cost of owning that brand new reliable car with all its add-ons is less than 4000 ukp  for that one year. The dealership totally clears any outstanding debt as part of each new deal, so the Balloon Payment/ lump sum (10989 ukp) never arises until the very last car you ever buy on PCP.

 

That is when you buy your e.g. citigo so that the final total of depreciation over all the years is e.g.10989 ukp plus the few hundred ukp top ups each deal

 

BTW, I see from your example that PCP is chargeable at 7.85%, and you pay that within the 316 every month over 48 monthst, BUT because you have that particular PCP agreement with VWFS and use it for only 12 months of the term, they calculate the element of your monthly payment covering 36/48ths which was interest and in the past they have refunded me the corrected interest balance because of the 36/48ths you're not using. (this does not apply if the PCP is at 0% promotion). It has been a very useable refund, too.

 

My original interest in my first post was the "internal tailgate release button on the drivers door panel" and the fact that despite the advertising representing the car as having this across the entire oct. estate range, excluding the vrs, mine does not, and I see that it is advertised again, as before, it is STANDARD EQUIPMENT. Has anybody any information on truth of the statement.

[Stonekeeper]

55 minutes ago, 30yearsacustomer said:

You've got it.

thank you.

 

 

 

BTW, I see from your example that PCP is chargeable at 7.85%, and you pay that within the 316 every month over 48 monthst, BUT because you have that particular PCP agreement with VWFS and use it for only 12 months of the term, they calculate the element of your monthly payment covering 36/48ths which was interest and in the past they have refunded me the corrected interest balance because of the 36/48ths you're not using. (this does not apply if the PCP is at 0% promotion). It has been a very useable refund, too.

 

 

 

 

My example is for what is the only car i class as "new" and that is one selected and ordered from the factory for me.

 

The way you have described your purchases i doubt any have been Brand new.?

 

They are more probably "stock new " pre-registered" or even the dreaded "newly registered"

 

There is no such thing as "free" finance (or in fact free anything, someone pays)

 

If a car has "free" finance there is a reason.

 

https://www.drivingcleanercars.com/blog/why-0-used-car-finance-isn-t-always-the-best-deal

Edited 7 November, 2023 by Stonekeeper

[30yearsacustomer]

apart from my 22my car, all have been factory ordered by me - needed because I always specify factory fit towbar (waiting time for delivery not a problem, it comes when it comes).

my 2022 MY is from stock (new), me first owner, not pre reg, newly reg'd, etc etc  All my Skodas for the 30 years have been brand new factory orders, with the exception of 2022MY which is new, unregitered from stock - "shown as immediately available"

 

Suggestion:-

• go to dealer, ask what deal is poss which meets your budgetary requirements in terms of monthly repayment covering all your motoring needs.
• ask hypothetical question "if within (say) two years I come back to p/x this one for the next one on PCP, do I have to pay the optional final plus optional purchase, or do you clear it all off as part of the new deal?"
• "if I repeat this every year or two, when do I get caught for the optional final payment and option to buy payment?"

My experience is his reply should be something like "when you want to p/x or sell the last ever car you bought on PCP and you're no longer looking to buy another on PCP"

 

I still hold the view that I don't want to own anything which is showing its age to the point that its value is visibly disappearing, or is rusting on my driveway.

Also, do have a look at any of your previous vehicle's MOT histories, and note how many failures/advisories you would have had to rectify at your expense.

 

I have found this an interesting exercise, and thank all those who've responded. I've yet to find anyone convinced of my logic, but I think I have put just as much out here as I can be bothered with, maybe too much.

Cheers everybody