Purchasing your car overall
If you have the funds to spare, purchasing a automobile overall can be a practical option as you won’t be making any interest payments – the retail price you bargain for is the price you pay. You also have the benefit of owning the car outright from the start but it will be a substantial capital outlay with no long term security.
Hire purchase HP
This has long been the classic way of financing a motor vehicle and is often organized through a dealer. You can, of course approach car finance companies direct and it will certainly be helpful to get a broad range of loan quotes. In principle you are simply speaking leasing a car which comes with a “right to buy” – but consider you do not personally own the motor vehicle until every repayment is made. HP contracts can be quite adaptable and the terms relatively competitively priced but not as good as a personal loan from the bank and the monthly payments will be more expensive than a PCP. Of course if you do not keep up with the monthly payments then the car can be taken back.
Personal (car loan)
Essentially you already have the funding for a vehicle loaned to you by a bank or building society before you venture forth to the car dealer. You buy the motor vehicle outright and the repayments are made to the loan company. Of course it pays to look around. One of the positive aspects is that the loan is not guaranteed against the vehicle so it‟s yours to sell when you wish and generally personal loan rates are quite favourable. If, however, your credit rating is not so good the monthly payments may be quite high.
Car leasing
With a car lease you will usually pay a month-to-month sum over a two to four year term and at the end of the deal you simply just give the automobile back. Think of it as a (very) extended car hire as the car never belongs to you despite the fact that some leasing some leasing companies will give you the option to buy the car at the end of the term. This option generally only requires a small downpayment and at the end of the lease you just walk away (usually into another new car). Some people today however, may not like the notion of never acquiring possession and there will be a mileage limit on the lease with charges levied for going above it.
Personal Contract Plans PCP
A Personal Contract Plan (or PCP), is a similar process to hire purchase but you don‟t buy the car at the end
of the term. Instead the manufacturer/dealer works out how much the car will be worth at the end of the term and you pay off the difference, plus interest, known as the “balloon payment” Minimum Guaranteed Future Value (MGFV). At the end of the term you can decide to buy the car outright, walk away or use the difference as a downpayment on your next motor vehicle. PCP‟s offer lower monthly payments with maintenance charges often integrated and they also have some flexibleness in that if the car is worth more than the predicted value you can sell it on; if it‟s worth less you can hand it back to the auto finance company. Again there will be a mileage limit that needs to be honored and although the monthly payments will be lower a PCP can work out more pricey than HP over the full life span of the loan.
Some other important things to remember:
Always demand for the “total amount payable” to be made clear. This is the total cost to acquire the car after all interest payments and additional fees are included. Also be aware of additional charges – such as
administration and paperwork fees that can be added to the total arrangement and improve the car finance company‟s profits.
Most importantly be careful of taking on more credit than you can actually find the money for. It is never a good idea to extend your mortgage to finance a automobile as you will end up paying far more in the long term. Always think about what you can comfortably manage on your budget. Most car dealers and finance companies will provide an on-line car loan calculator so you can work out the affordability and it‟s always best to build in a comfortable “affordability cushion” in case your situation change.


















