Cheapest "monthly" way to get into a newish 5 Series / A6 / E class?

[mccarf]

A friend of mine really wants to get one of these three cars, preferably a 5 series. He wants it to be newish, automatic and diesel since he does a lot of miles (about 35k a year). He's talking about leasing at the moment, but I was just wondering if this was the best method? He would have no (or a very small) deposit to put down, which probably makes a huge difference. I was looking online and saw some prices for around £500-600 a month, but the mileage on the site I looked at only went up to 20k. How much (roughly) should he be looking to pay per month?

I've never had any real experience with PCP/HP/leasing so I'm just looking to help him make the best decision.

 

[mccarf]

Thanks for all the advice. I will share this thread with him and see what he thinks.

 

[mccarf]

My car is 10k per annum and around 314 a month. If I took that to 30k per annum it would add circa 100 a month. I put 3k down. E220 AMG

I suppose the big thing is the 3k deposit there. He would probably have less than a grand deposit to put down at the start.

I've talked to him and I think he might go down a cheaper road than brand new premium cars. It's his choice at the end of the day, but I think stuff like a kia optima or skoda superb would still be an upgrade over his seat exeo while being much more affordable.

 

[mccarf]

Yeah, I'm trying to sway him into the nicer cars from "lesser" brands now so hopefully he'll find something he likes for a monthly budget that suits him.

 

[mccarf]

Skoda Superb's are nice. Don't know how much they are to lease but they do a good bit of depreciating if you can get a used one

Yeah he did mention he really likes these so it will probably be an option for him. I've ridden as a passenger in a couple and I was really impressed with the ride quality.

Bank loan plus something like the below:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201901224182861?minimum-badge-engine-size=2.4&fuel-type=Diesel&make=VOLVO&postcode=sg137dr&radius=1500&onesearchad=Used&onesearchad=Nearly New&onesearchad=New&model=S80&advertising-location=at_cars&sort=price-asc&transmission=Automatic&page=5

Accept that you will basically lose the money and spend on a nicer car when you don't do 35K a year?

I do 23K odd a year in a V70, very comfortable. The D5 is pretty decent, mines the twin turbo later one but you would need 2010+ for that.

Yeah I think he will have to rethink what's possible with his mileage. I know he did used to own an s60 d5 and absolutely loved it so a v70 could be on the cards too!

2 year old 5 series (G30) are still nice cars and I doubt many people would be able to tell they aren't almost new.

Combine that with some kind of finance, and that is a far less crazy of an idea than buying a new car and putting 70K miles on it in 2 years.

Yeah I think this is one of the things he is looking into at the moment. I'm trying to get him to hold off until he gets promoted but he's unpredictable when it comes to cars and he could turn up in a new one tomorrow.

 

[mccarf]

Can't scrape more than a grand together.

Wants to drive brand new 5 series.

Really? What's wrong with living within your means?

I get both sides of the coin here really.
I understand people who do this. They see something nice and want it. Most people are the same. With finance acting as a "gateway" to cars people cannot truly afford it's easier to get into these sort of cars with lower income than it used to be. The monthly cost is what lots of people look at rather than the total cost and some of these cars look like a bargain. For only x amount I can get a 5 series rather than a Mondeo etc.

On the flip side, I drive a civic that I bought for £1500 2 years ago and I'm fine with it. I occasionally get the upgrade itch when I see cool cars but I understand it's not financially reasonable to do so while I'm a student. I think some of it is just about life experiences teaching lessons really. I had an absolute turd of a 350z which was starting to catastrophically fail. Although I could afford to put fuel in it and pay for normal consumables I didn't really factor in any sort of engine rebuilds or major repairs and I had to move it on because of the serious amount of money it was costing and would potentially cost me. Paying an outrageous % of monthly income into cars is not fun at all and that's why I started this thread and am trying to guide my friend into a nice car without him going through the same sort of financial issues.