Nearly new cars offer good value for money

Don’t have a car which qualifies for the Government’s Scrappage Scheme? Don’t fret, if you opt to part exchange your old vehicle and buy a nearly new vehicle instead you can save loads more.

While a nice £2,000 deduction from the RRP price of a car sounds good, new cars plummet in value as soon as they hit the tarmac losing on average half of the value of the vehicle within three years. Most dealers would expect to make generous discounts off the list price and research has already shown the scheme in some cases is not the best deal for consumers.

With the Scrappage Scheme money expected to run out long before the official close in March, many customers could find that they are back in the real world, buying cars without Government cash.

In fact it has been suggested that the funding for the scheme could run out as early as October, shortly after the new 59 plate comes out, a prime time for buying new cars.

Even with smaller cars, which are the most likely to make economic sense to buy under the scheme, it can still work out a better deal to sell your used car and buy a pre-registered or nearly new one instead, leading car deals website, SaveMoneyOnCars.co.uk advises. Taking an example, one of the most popular cars bought under the Scrappage Scheme is the Kia Picanto. This car is available for £4,495 under scheme. However if you opted to buy used a 2006 registration Kia Picanto with a measly 16,000 miles on the clock is available from £2,999!

Or take the Ford Fiesta, available to Scrappage customers for £8,595 for the basic model, but available on SaveMoneyOnCars.co.uk for just £7,999 for the top of the range Zetec, 2008 registration with 23,512 miles on the clock.

As a final example the Vauxhall Astra Life 1.4 I available for £8,495 under the Government Scheme. Alternatively you could opt for a 2007 registration Astra Energy 5dr with 34,000 miles on the clock for £6,999.

On top of this, factor in the trade-in value for your old car and savvy car buyers who forego the Government cash could be laughing all the way to the bank.

Marketing Manager, Richard Lawton says: “Consumers should research the market thoroughly rather than assume that the Scrappage Scheme offers the best route to buy their next car. They could find better deals by opting to buy a nearly new car instead.

“Using a website like SaveMoneyOnCars.co.uk allows car buyers to check thousands of cars from main dealers, brokers and car supermarkets in one fell swoop.”