Cutting The Cost Of Your New Car By 40%
By: tukshad
| Posted: 13th March 2006
UNDERSTANDING THE UK CAR MARKET - Traditionally, purchasing a new car in the UK
has always been an expensive pursuit. Manufacturers have been able to restrict
the means by which we buy new cars in the UK - they have been able to dictate
who can sell a particular brand of car to you and where they can be sold.
While in recent times the prices of new cars in the UK have been falling, they
remain well above those in other European countries - this means that it's
possible to save a lot of money on cars if you're prepared to do some research
and buy your car from a source outside the UK. This may seem like a hassle, but
with several thousands of pounds to save it can prove to be more than worthwhile
- and if you have a thing for travelling then buying from abroad can help
satisfy your wanderlust while saving money on your new vehicle.
WAYS OF CUTTING THE COST OF YOUR NEW CAR - As we saw above, we can really save
some cash by purchasing our new car from Europe - an option that we'll
investigate in more detail shortly. However, first we'll take a look at ways to
cut the cost of your new car within the UK itself.
Research - Approach the purchase of your new car as you would if it were a home.
If you were going to buy a new home you would probably consider several
different ones, perhaps in different areas before making your choice. Similarly,
you may have a preferred make and model but do not stop yourself from
considering other models. If you are on a budget ask yourself what t is that
you're looking for from your auto - is space important because you have a
family? Whatever your requirements write them down and then list all the makes &
models that fit your criteria. You'll probably notice that there may be savings
of a couple of thousand between 2 different cars that both fit your
requirements.
When researching which is the cheapest & best possible option for you, this
process of identifying close substitutes to your preferred choice is vital. You
will need to investigate the car's "platform", compare to its rivals and then
make a choice based on this.
So what do we mean by looking at the cars "platform"? Simply a platform is the
very basic structure upon which the car is structured - the core upon which the
fittings and body are structured. Many different cars are actually derived from
the same platform. For example Ford uses the Mondeo and Fiesta platforms to
produce a wide variety of individual cars from the Puma to the Probe and much
more. So lets say you really like the look of the Ford Galaxy - you should then
investigate other similar cars built on the same platform.
Once you have done this look at the offerings of your rivals - get hold of some
car magazines and see which cars are listed next to your preferred choice. There
may be some big price differences that you can expose to your advantage.
Tip - Avoid paying high prices for "special editions" - this is rarely little
more than different seat covers or some other small changes. What you're
actually paying for here is the "exclusive" factor.
Buy An "Ex Fleet" Car And Make Some Serious Savings - The Ex Fleet market in the
UK is huge and certainly worth considering if you wish to make some significant
savings. Ex fleet cars are commonly sold at
http://www.global-ebooks.com/UKGovAuctions.htm , car supermarkets, and used car
dealerships. Typically, the mass sellers such as Ford, Vauxhall, Nissan, Peugeot
and others all sell to the ex fleet market.
Buy A Pre Registered Car & Save Money - Pre registered cars are classed as
"sold" by manufacturers, mostly to make their sales figures look better. Usually
the cars have only a few miles on the clock but because they are classed as
"second hand" they tend to be much lower in price. In effect you will enjoy a
car that is practically new at a seriously reduced cost. Franchise dealerships
and car supermarkets are the places to find these gems. A lot of pre registered
cars also come with a manufacturers warranty which makes the deal all the more
sweet.
Buy A Car From A UK Auction - Thousands of cars are sold at very low prices
through auctions that are held in the UK. This includes liquidation sales for
companies that have gone bust as well as government held auctions where all
kinds of items including cars are sold off at very low prices. For more details
on auctions try the http://www.global-ebooks.com/UKGovAuctions.htm
CUTTING THE COST OF CARS BY PURCHASING OVERSEAS - Importing cars from overseas
has never been a more viable option - and it's a great way of saving a lot of
money on a brand new car without having to compromise on features or status.
It's possible to either do this yourself or use an agent. Using an agent does
cost slightly more of course but is a good option if you can't spare the time to
actually go abroad yourself.
DIY Importing - There are several factors you need to consider if you wish to
import a car yourself - for a start you need to ensure the car you purchase fits
British specification. Finding a dealer that will sell to you can also be an
issue though this is less of a problem than it used to be.
Some Factors To Consider - Remember that you'll need to factor in a longer
delivery time for your purchase. The deposits required from European dealers
also tend to be much higher than in the UK (up to 30%) and be wary of foreign
exchange fluctuations in currency that can alter the final price of your car.
You will also have to insure the car for delivery to the UK - phone some UK
insurers or the dealership itself and see what your options are.
A survey of http://europa.eu.int/comm/competition/car_sector/can be very useful
and this site also links to various manufacturers that will sell directly to the
UK.
Using An Agent - Agents that specialise in providing discounts for UK buyers are
becoming more and more common. Typically these services will tailor the extent
of service you require - from giving you a list of foreign names to actually
handling all the paperwork & delivery of the car. Try the following sites that
offer discounted cars:
http://www.broadspeed.com/
http://www.broadspeed.com/
http://www.virgincars.com/default.asp
http://www.jamjar.com/
Shop around to see where you can get the lowest agency fees although they do
tend to be fairly static.
More Tips, Tricks, Strategies, Contacts & Websites - We'll now look at other
ways that you can try and hunt down some auto bargains. Lets start off with car
supermarkets - these are absolutely huge dealerships, generally located at
motorway junctions outside major cities. These supermarkets have huge amounts of
stock and operate on wafer thin margins which means you can save a significant
amount by shopping about a little. A list of good car supermarkets is given
below:
http://www.autolink.co.uk/
http://www.carland.co.uk/
http://www.gtccar.co.uk/
http://www.motornation.co.uk/
http://www.motorpoint.co.uk/
http://www.trade-sales.co.uk/
Car supermarkets sell both pre-registered and ex fleet cars so the chances of
hunting down a bargain are fairly good, particularly for more mainstream brands
such as Ford and Vauxhall. Remember in the car industry a lot of premium goes
toward the badge that a car has - so if you're not too fussed about the make you
can save thousands of pounds simply by taking advantage of this. The other thing
about car supermarkets is that unlike dealerships there is very little pressure
or badgering from salespeople.
Niche Operators - The second hand car market has plenty of niche operators -
smaller lots who specialise in selling very cheap cars for example. If you have
a good knowledge on cars you can probably pick up a bargain by going to various
niche operators.
Buying Online - Purchasing online is becoming increasingly popular although some
would argue that buying an auto online is only for the very brave-hearted. Along
with online options we have already talked about (such as Jamjar, Virgin etc)
there are other online sources to buy from including http://www.autobytel.com/
and http://www.autotrader.co.uk/ .
The car market is certainly more open and competitive now than it has ever been.
As the internet and online options to buy continues to grow so will your chances
to purchase your dream car for less. As always, being prepared and doing
research will go a long way toward getting the car you want at a much lower
price.
Find hundreds of dirt cheap car wholesalers & government auctions at
http://www.my-online-powerpack.com
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Tags: budget, hassle, models, saving money, europe, european countries, new cars, car market, preferred choice, purchasing a new car, wanderlust, uk car