[Markos01]

Originally Posted by DSK

Most people can't afford to 'buy' the cars they drive but, are happy to pay monthly for them, even if they have to cut back elsewhere. As a result, knowing that this is the state of the market, if cars were cheaper some market share would be lost to outright purchases. Higher prices mean the lease/PCP market stays strong, forcing people down that path no matter what.

I have done the lease thing on a 3 cars, 1 Astra GTC, 2x Mercedes E350. At the end of this, the PCP, lease etc thing was not for me, and I personally have no idea why anyone would choose this option, as you're still paying thousands a year for something that is not yours. Largely, I'm unimpressed with the true quality of new cars where the gadgets and tech hide the true cheapness of the build on most new cars. I'd happily spend £10-20K on a proper classic like Mercedes 190 Cosworth, BMW E34 M5 but, nothing modern that's for sure!

Its quite funny to see the large number of people with new cars, either their own or on lease/pcp etc that cannot afford tyres and are always begging far in advance if we can save them a pair or two of good quality part worns.

The used market has also shot up quite drastically over the past few years where people are asking daft money for some mundane old used cars. Interestingly even AutoTrader and dealers are by default showing monthly payment prices and seeing some modern used stuff, lets say a 3 series BMW for example, a couple of years old is more expensive on monthly payment examples compared to a new one....

Enjoyed reading this thread. When I've previously done the maths for leasing a car I've wondered what I'm missing as I make it a very expensive way to 'buy' a car, yet everyone seems to do it. Not for me though. That 'part-worn' tyres comment above is a killer...