PCP Question

[eidolon]

As some of you know I'm considering selling the MR2 and whilst I haven't actually formally advertised it yet I've had one person contact me through the owners club who is very interested in buying it. If I decide to let it go and if he buys it then I guess I should think about what the replacement is gonna be.
Top of my list is the VX220 turbo but I'm also considering an Elise 111R (if I test drive it and find that it's quick enough). Whilst surfing I noticed that my local LOTUS dealership are doing a pretty good deal on an Elise at the moment, a 3.9% APR PCP deal.



I was planning to just buy the car outright with my savings however it seems to make more sense to finance it at 3.9% and keep my savings in my account earning 5% for the next 3 years.

If I go for the Elise would that the sensible way to do it or am I missing something blindingly obvious and over simplifying it?

 

[eidolon]

Pay outright and you can usually get quite a substancial saving off list price.

Just the man I was hoping for! I've got a question about discounts.
With a £5k Fiesta, a full tank of petrol and a set of mats might be the only discount you get but what should you push for with more expensive cars, say £20k or £30k cars?

If you have the cash, pay for it. I’d doubt though that the dealer is excited about a cash deal though. They make profits from selling the HP agreements etc, cash is not the deal he’d want. So I’d pay cash just to pee them off…

That's what I always thought but Maz above seems to think otherwise (and he sells cars for a living I believe). When I bought the Type-R I paid cash as they couldn't care less if I took out their finance or not.

Also, if you have the money in the bank,, you might be tempted to dip into it, as you then have your motor, and you think, hmm fancy a new 42” plasma now.

Nahh, I'm really boring I'm afraid. My savings account gives a bonus every month if you don't touch it so I don't The money would be safe in there.

 

[eidolon]

You can try the Genuinely can't afford it method - Where you go in and you tell them you want to buy one there and then but you can't afford to pay the asking price - You decide how much discount you want and see if you can get it.

Ok then, as an example I've seen an 05 plate VX220 turbo in a Vauxhall dealers for £19,995 (it's been there a few months now). What sort of price is realistic to offer then? £19k? or will they laugh and tell me where to go?

A 111R is not worth double the price of a second hand VXT imho.

I don't disagree but I'm just weighing up my options. I prefer the looks of the LOTUS, the fact that air con is available and the amount of tuning products available but I'm still a sucker for a turbo engine so I can't make my mind up. I'm gonna try and test drive the 111R at the weekend to see how quick (or not) it is.