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[Kate]

Hi everyone.

I was thinking about getting a car on Motability which I am eligible for due to several health issues.

I'm not sure what to do though as there is so much choice. One possibilty would be to go for an all electric vehicle as I have space on my drive for the car and charger. My drive can hold 3 cars.

I obviously want to keep the costs down as I'm on a low income. I live in rural Cornwall now so do a lot of miles. Important points to note are:

*To get a charging point installed costs around £500 I think
*I have 2 old cars I could sell which might raise about £800
*Not many manufacturers install a charging point for free
*Running a non electric vehicle is expensive
*A motability car costs about £65 per week
*Many motability cars require an advance payment
*I'd prefer a large vehicle
*Many costs are covered by the weekly fee with a Motability car.

What should I do?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[Broomies Mate]

I think anyone who is eligible, should take full advantage of the scheme.   

You may need to make compromises on the car you actually 'lease' but, as you say, the cost difference compared to buying/leasing a new car without the Motability Scheme is huge!!!

Something like the MG ZS Electric car (Automatic) is free of the PIP advanced payment.  Would I buy one?  Hell no.  Would I have one for a small monthly charge, knowing that anything and everything that could/would go wrong with it would be fixed and I would never be without a car?  Of course.

Get yourself a Motability Scheme Pack, and read it carefully.  You'll probably get the Charging Point installed FOC, if you have the driveway, and the installation is 'basic'.  (By basic, I mean, they don't have to run cabling under 100m of landscaped garden for example).

[Kate]

I thought about the MG but was worried about build quality due to the fact that they are now made by a Chinese manufacturer that I know nothing about.

It would be highly inconvenient breaking down on some of the roads where I live as some are just 'tracks' that are hemmed in by large bushes.

Has anyone had any experience of the Nissan Leaf as that looks like a possible option for me?

[Doctor Gollum]

If money is tight, then only lease what you can afford.

Any manufacturer will provide you with a 'motability' car, but they expect you to pay the difference between the motability benefit and retail leasing costs.

Running a big, thirsty uneconomical shitter isn't conducive to cheap motoring if you do alot of miles unless you can afford the fuel/upkeep.

If living where you are demands a higher mileage, then perhaps you need to look at that before you start shopping for a car.

What I mean by that is that whilst you might pay more to live somewhere with convenient amenities or a reliable bus service, you could save a higher amount by not buying so much fuel. If your rent is £200 more but you save £300 on fuel, you're actually £100 up.

If you can make that saving higher, then you can save your first lease deposit more quickly. Not having car tax could save you £25 a month, likewise insurance, and not paying fuel or maintenance could save you £2-300 a month, so that's potentially £350 a month without owning a car.

Expect to charge a Leaf every 60-80 miles. And if you qualify for mobility and other benefits, then there's got to be some assistance for a charging point.

Also consider a lower mileage older Yaris Petrol as an alternative to a motability lease

[ronnyd]

I thought about the MG but was worried about build quality due to the fact that they are now made by a Chinese manufacturer that I know nothing about.

It would be highly inconvenient breaking down on some of the roads where I live as some are just 'tracks' that are hemmed in by large bushes.

Has anyone had any experience of the Nissan Leaf as that looks like a possible option for me?

Can it be any worse than British Leyland in it's prime. 

[btc]

https://www.motability.co.uk/products/search/

This will give you a list of what is available what the deposits will be   

[deviator]

Personally if you are on a tight budget, I'd take the money and buy my own car. Done correctly, it will cost you less than an eternal lease.

What cars do you have now? What's wrong with them? Is there another reason(s) that you are looking at PCP/Lease?

[Kate]

At the moment I've got a 2006 Peugeot 206 and a Citroen C4 Grand Picasso. Both cars need work and the Citroen has no mot.

If I go ahead and lease a car I can save on insurance, maintenance, repairs etc. so I think it is worthwhile. I went to see a car today which I like very much, the Skoda Karoq. The salesman was very helpful and showed me around the car and let me sit in it, start the engine etc. while he waited in the showroom.  I wasn't allowed a test drive though. After contacting many dealers the Skoda guy has been the only helpful person. The deposit on it is only £295 so I can go ahead with it if I want to.

The Motability scheme is a bit weird with pricing as you can end paying the same for cars of greatly different value. For example, the Renault Zoe costs around £28000 and the Skoda Karoq is about £22000 but the monthly cost is the same. It's a bit mad really.

[biggriffin]

I thought about the MG but was worried about build quality due to the fact that they are now made by a Chinese manufacturer that I know nothing about.

It would be highly inconvenient breaking down on some of the roads where I live as some are just 'tracks' that are hemmed in by large bushes.

Has anyone had any experience of the Nissan Leaf as that looks like a possible option for me?

A friend has the mummy taxi, very well specd, leather,air con,full dab/satnav, etc, well built, 1.5 petrol getting 40+ mpg

[henryd]

At the moment I've got a 2006 Peugeot 206 and a Citroen C4 Grand Picasso. Both cars need work and the Citroen has no mot.

If I go ahead and lease a car I can save on insurance, maintenance, repairs etc. so I think it is worthwhile. I went to see a car today which I like very much, the Skoda Karoq. The salesman was very helpful and showed me around the car and let me sit in it, start the engine etc. while he waited in the showroom.  I wasn't allowed a test drive though. After contacting many dealers the Skoda guy has been the only helpful person. The deposit on it is only £295 so I can go ahead with it if I want to.

The Motability scheme is a bit weird with pricing as you can end paying the same for cars of greatly different value. For example, the Renault Zoe costs around £28000 and the Skoda Karoq is about £22000 but the monthly cost is the same. It's a bit mad really.

My son has a 2019 Karoq 1.6 diesel and he is very happy with it,goes well enough and late 40s mpg running around down here in the lanes

[Sir Tigger KC]

Motability used to have mileage limits and I think the excess mileage charges were quite steep.   

Something to be aware of if you do a lot of miles. 

[Kate]

I think I'm going to go with the Karoq as I was very impressed with it today. I like the way it looks and the build quality is good. Reviews are pretty positive too.

Thanks for the advice and comments.

[New POD]

I thought about the MG but was worried about build quality

It will be under warranty for the duration of the lease.  If something.goes wrong you get a.courtesy car and get to.ravk up.miles without eating into.your mileage limit.
Win win I'd say.
Plus I hear good things about the electric mg - it has a good range.

[Darius]

A thought is that, if you buy your own electric vehicle, you get free car tax as it's electric.  If you go Motability, the PIP free tax is "used up" on the new car (though maybe not for an electric car?).

So, you can keep one of your cars "on the road" with your PIP free tax and take out day insurance if you ever need to use it.  It's running cost is then small (though day insure rates are pretty high).

It is interesting that getting a Motability car allows other drivers (eg family members) to drive the car under the Motability scheme.  However, strictly speaking, free PIP car tax on your own car only allows other people to drive it if you are in the car or if they are doing an errand etc for you.  Your husband getting your shopping is OK but your husband going to a rugby match on his own is not.

I wish someone would bring a test court case and sort it out.

[Viral_Jim]

As a thought, just because you have an EV, you don't need a charging point. I ran an e-golf for about 18m without a charge point.

It charged from a 3 pin plug in about 12h from nearly empty. So as long as you don't need to go further than the car's range in a day, (which for a Zoe is 200 miles plus), you don't need the fast charger.

I don't know what a spark would charge you to fit an external 3 pin socket, but I can't imagine it would be more than about £100. Would keep your costs down.