Berkeley Leasing

Goodbye Fiesta, Hello Audi!

These days there are a lot of choices when it comes to getting a new set of wheels. All my life I have just used the simple logic of, if I want something I will save for something and then buy it. Surely that is the most straight forward cost effective way of doing things. I have long been suspicious of finance deals etc maybe that is down to ignorance! And I must admit it is starting to get a little bit annoying when my brother, who earns less than me has a personal car lease Audi A3, and I’m stuck in a Fiesta that’s almost the same age as him!

The Fiesta is on its last legs, and all my mates are telling me to enter the new era of finance, pcps, contract hire and a bunch of other suggestions that I don’t understand! The second they start discussing contract lengths and terms and conditions and the technicalities of them I immediately get bored, irritable and subsequently switch off. I guess now is the time for me to learn and get over my suspicion of knobby salesmen in suits making promises to me that sound too good to be true! But again, it would appear that this suspicion is entirely down to my own ignorance on the topic. My mate Jon was telling me I could drive the same car as my brother for less than £300 per month. Sure enough he got his phone out and searched Audi A3 personal contact hire, I couldn’t believe just how affordable it was!

The top result was a manual Audi A3 Sportback 1.0 TFSI Sport 5 door that I could be driving, for just £237 Per Month! There is an initial cost which is a bit of a sting of £1,422, however that is a lot more manageable than the other option I had considered; buying a car outright worth around £10k. The savings I had already made would more than cover the initial rental, and the following £237 a month wouldn’t exactly break the bank! However there is a part of me that hates the fact that I would be paying out all this money and have nothing to show for myself at the end of it. But maybe that is the attitude I need to break away from! I mean what do I have to show for myself after 10 years in this damn Fiesta? A bunch of service receipts, countless break downs, and a couple of grand in resale value!? Maybe I should look at it like I’m not just paying to rent a car, I’m buying luxury, I’m buying status, I’m buying desirability (a girl genuinely ran a mile when she saw my Fiesta once), but most importantly I’m buying the knowledge that I’m never going to get hit with huge service bills and the comfort in the fact that I’m never going to own a depreciating item with out of date tech.

I’m not a maniac, so I didn’t go for the first deal I saw on Jon’s phone, but I will definitely consider this route. I am also waiting to hear back from an interview I had last week whereby you can get a contract hire Audi A3 as a company car! I would have usually refused and accepted a car allowance instead but an Audi A3 business car lease sounds much more appealing, not to mention free (kind of!)!