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I do not think it matters to Motability if customers leave the scheme. If I remember correctly, about 2 years ago, the motability numbers just passed 700K, and now its something like 900K. The more customers the more support staff they have to employ and the overheads grow. Now the company is not profitable, they will cut costs, less customers, less overheads, and a ton of cars being sold off that will generate income. Motability did send me a customer satisfaction survey, I told them the truth The car is outstanding, the scheme is brilliant, it’s so easy. Then I said I was looking to leave the scheme because of affordability and looking at alternative leasing options for my next vehicle I do not think they will care, the scheme has grown too big to be manageable. Hopefully it will improve over the next 6 months, and the AP,S become reasonable, I will not hold my breath..
Motability are still (and have always been) profitable. The ‘losses’ reported over the last 2 financial years weren’t losses as we’d understand them. They were primarily down to asset write downs as a result of the post Covid re-balancing of residual values (when they were era high due to problems with new vehicle supply) and their increased exposure to EV residual values, which remain severely depressed. On an operating level they were still profitable and continue to make a profit of many hundreds of pounds per lease, hence the bonuses that they still paid out.
I agree that Motability won’t bat an eyelid when individually we call them to say that we want to leave (I will find out for myself in a few months when we do the same), but they will probably be anxious about the Timms review next year. If (and it’s a big if), the review succumbs to the calls from Reform UK, the Conservatives and some within Labour (as well as most of the media and general public – if you believe the online commentary) and restricts access to the scheme to those with physical disabilities only, then the scheme will gradually revert to the size that it was a few years back before mental health conditions were reclassified as disabilities. However, the scheme was still very profitable then and will be again.
There are two areas where I don’t share your optimism. Firstly, I’m not convinced that Motability will trim the fat (if scheme members fall) for two reasons. They’ve never attempted to be more disciplined with things like pay and remuneration before and, for as long as they have been able to get away with charging the APs that they do, they have maintained their gold plated pay and benefits packages at all levels within the organisation (way above other call centre operations). Also, I’m pretty sure that they haven’t increased staff numbers in line with the growth in scheme members in recent years, so I don’t think that it necessarily follows that they will need to cut staff if customer numbers gradually fall over time. They may just do what many businesses do and just gradually reduce numbers through natural turnover.
Secondly, you most certainly don’t want to be holding your breath for APs to fall over the next 6 months, as you will definitely suffocate 😂 The simple reason is that the Labour government’s decision to charge Motability customers VAT on APs and Insurance Premium Tax on the whole lease comes into effect in July. Motability have already gone on the record to state that these changes will add around £300-400 per lease.
@HammerHead As I said earlier, with the way that the scheme is declining (and with worse to come from July), if people have a car that they are happy with, and Motability will allow an extension, then it’s a sensible idea, as it also defers all the forthcoming adverse changes for another 2 years.
However, you have paid £15,500 to travel those 3,900 miles (a whopping £4 a mile) and the next 2 years will cost you another £8,000 on top of that. I wouldn’t call that trouble free motoring! Maybe some air fresheners that smell like a new car could be a solution, and be around £23,495 cheaper 😉😂
I’m conscious that I’m in the price range of a Range Rover, and I love the look of the Defender, Velar and full fat RR (I’m less keen on the new RR Sport), but the interiors (full size RR aside) are a little too minimalistic for my liking. My financial advisor has a RR Sport and after just a couple of months was complaining about the ludicrous prices that LR dealers wanted for things and he’s already having issues. I just can’t move beyond the point that they are always bottom of every reliability survey and on the rare ocassions that you see a car broken down at the roadside these days, there’s a high chance that it’s a Jaguar Land Rover product! I’d take my chances with a BMW V8 over any RR product! They do say that LR / RR owners are advised to have two of them, so that they are always mobile when one of them is in the garage for repair!
I wouldn’t be prepared to chance my hard earned money on a Chinese car either, as their long term reliability is as yet unproven and, more importantly, they just don’t appeal to me, but there’s no doubting that, price wise, they are attractive. That being said, I was drawn to the Tucson due to the comparative value for money due to the high standard equipment level but, as I have since learned, that is just one part of the equation.
If the second X5 test drive doesn’t convince me, I’m going to look at a Porsche Cayenne and, possibly, Audi. Their styling is less polarising than the latest generation BMWs. I suppose I should take another look at Range Rover but would only keep it for as long as the warranty lasts 😂
The mpg must have included elements of battery usage, given that the two operate together (how can it be separated over the same miles?) and I know from user reviews that the now discontinued 40i (which had the B58 engine but wasn’t blighted by the extra weight of the PHEV) returned high 20s mpg.
The sports seat issue won’t be helped by the fact that I get sciatica anyway but also I am, shall we say, of generous build, so it’s probably self inflicted 😂 I found the sports seats fine in the X1 though, oddly.
You’re right about the noise of ‘nice sounding’ cars has been somewhat stifled due to killjoy legislation, plus the addition of the MHEV technology. That being said, one of the things that I want to establish with the M60i is that the V8 soundtrack won’t become tiresome over time when the novelty has worn off, so it might have done me a favour.
I cannot lie that the size when parking in standard spaces is an issue. The M60i has four wheel steering as standard, which I have some reservations about, but reviews suggest that it makes parking and manoeuvring easier. We shall see.
I agree about the V8 post warranty, and @BigDave really useful feedback about the air suspension (which I would add) makes me think that I’d probably only keep the car 3 years until the warranty ends. It makes sense financially as well, due to being able to get a VAT free vehicle purchase every 3 years and, as stated, the net cost over the 3 years, allowing for all the discounts combined, makes it no more expensive than a modest car through Motability.
If your daughter isn’t a full time wheelchair user, and you don’t need ‘substantial and permanent adaptations’ then, as you say, you wouldn’t get the VAT off, which makes buying used a much better option. I like the previous generation X3, and if we didn’t qualify for the VAT exemption I would have looked at the M40i, but I’ve sat in a new M50 and watched reviews and I just don’t like the styling, plus it seems cheap and plasticky inside compared to the X5. I contemplated waiting for the new Neu Classe X5, but I fear that will go the same way. Also, discounts won’t be as huge when it first launches but, if I want to stick with an X5 then I may be persuaded next time. Who knows. I may not even go ahead this time if the next test drive doesn’t blow me away!
Without VAT exemption, if buying used I agree that the diesel is the sensible choice. The V8 came out of the blue when I discovered the bigger discounts being offered and the much larger VED avoided (plus, of course, the even bigger VAT discount). As well as being a choice from the heart, the finances could even make it a choice from the head as well. There’s also the exclusivity factor. Less than 3% of the X5s on our roads are V8s, and that includes the full fat X5M. Let’s see what the next test drive brings.
Morning @kezo My Tucson definitely ‘bings’ at times other than speed warnings and even when the sat nav is not in use. Many of the ‘alerts’ seem to be when the speed limit changes, but others are for no obvious reason whatsoever. There is no accompanying message to help inform the driver what the car is alerting you to, so it just becomes an irritating distraction 🤬 Maybe I need to revisit all the menus and see if I have something enabled that I can turn off?
As, like me, you are looking to leave the Motability scheme and also considering a BMW X5, I’m very happy to share my detailed findings as a result of my 48 hour test drive in the hope that it might be of use to you. I’ll split the feedback into 3 sections. Positives, negatives (for X5s in general) and 50e PHEV specific negatives.
Positives
– Especially in M Sport Pro trim, the car looks good from all angles
– It doesn’t feel like a big car at all when driving it
– All round visibility is superb. High driving position, big glass area and no blind spots
– Usual BMW levels of quality, refinement and driver engagement
– The 489hp 50e is incredibly fast, in fact one of the fastest cars I’ve ever driven (and I’ve driven hundreds)
– Sprint mode is a hoot (hold the paddle for a few seconds and you get a short boost from the mild hybrid battery)
– One irritant of the X5 (the protruding side sills which soil the back of your trousers when getting in or out) can be avoided by dropping the air suspension (std on the 50e) to the lowest setting when you park.
– Speed limit warnings are barely audible (so I left them on), but a simple one steering wheel button press to mute. There are NO other bings or bongs. It was a sheer joy to drive compared to the infuriating nanny state Hyundai.
– Apps in the iDrive can be rearranged (like an iPhone) so your most used ones can be at top
– Servicing requirements are negligible (Oil @ 16k or 2 yrs, Brake Fluid @ 3 yrs, Vehicle Check @ 37k or 4 yrs, Gas Pressure Spring for bonnet? @ 5 yrs). So much so that I don’t think I’d bother buying the 5 year service pack.Negatives (X5 in general)
– Standard Sport Seats were firm on the base & gave me sciatic pain in my left buttock. I’m trying the optional Comfort Seats on the M60i and hope that they will be better. If not, it’s a show stopper.
– Air Suspension was nothing special. Certainly not the magic carpet ride I was expecting. This could be due to the extra weight of the PHEV (one review I watched suggested that it wasn’t as good on the PHEV as the ICE models for this reason)
– The air suspension lowering button on the tailgate (for loading) seemed to be hit and miss in operation.
– Lane change warning & blind spot warnings were also hit & miss. I will check this again on the M60i
– Auto Parking was very aggressive (too quick for comfort). I wouldn’t use it as a result.
– The indicator was very quiet (so much so I inadvertently left it on a few times)
– You definitely realise that it’s a big car when parking in a car park. If we didn’t have a blue badge (so can use wider spaces) I think this would be a show stopper, as it would be a hassle.Negatives (50e Specific)
– It took 12 hours to fully charge and gave me just 48 miles EV range as a result (claimed range 62 miles). The positive was that, unlike the Hyundai, I did get the full 48 EV miles and there was none of the ‘last 10 miles disappearing in 5 miles’ nonsense that I get in the Tucson.
– The fuel computer stated that the car had averaged 38.5mpg over first 5,000 miles. If that works the same as the Tucson (where mpg is wildly overstated, as it includes the miles travelled in EV mode whilst ignoring the charging costs), then it suggests that the car isn’t terribly economical in return for the faff of having to charge it
– The sound when driving was unimpressive (inside & outside) other than the initial mile following a cold start (surprising given that it has the superb B58 3.0 litre straight six), but you don’t get the BMW sports exhaust system on the 50e that you get on the M Sport Pro diesels and M60i
– No obvious indication that the petrol engine is on
– Iconic sounds (artificial EV noises) barely noticeable compared to the two iX1s that I test drove
– Sport mode noisy (holds on to revs) – to be fair, I find this in all cars, hence why I never use it on any car
– Slight lag before rapid acceleration kicks in
– Regeneration very noticeable when traffic ahead or approaching junction / roundabout, plus when the battery depleted (as it insists on recharging). I could not find a way to disable it and, as with the EVs I’ve driven, I dislike the sensation of it. I only want the car to brake when I press the brake pedal!So, in summary, I’m very glad that I have the M60i for another prolonged test in 2 weeks time, as if the 50e was the only engine option in the X5 I would not be interested in one. I’ve got my wife to concede that we should consider a diesel, but I’d get the 40d. The 30d is more than sufficient, and gets rave reviews, but the 40d would only cost me £3k more and I’d get the majority of that difference back at resale. However, the M60i V8 would only cost me £3.5k more than the 40d (even though the retail price is £11.5k more), which is very tempting. The M60i would cost me £900 a year more to fuel than the 40d, but I’ve done some work on resale values and the M60i is likely to be worth £6k more than the 40d at 2 years old and £4k more at 3 years, which completely wipes out the upfront cost premium and in fact covers most of the additional running costs as well. Now that’s very tempting!
On the subject of residual values, based on trade in prices only (not private sale or retail prices) of used X5s, due to the fact that we can get 100% VAT and VED exemption, plus the size of discount I am negotiating (thanks to Drive the Deal), the M60i may only cost me £8k in depreciation over 3 years (likely change date, as the warranty expires then and we would be eligible to buy another VAT free car). Insurance is only £658 Pa (pretty good for a top end Group 50 car) and, as mentioned, servicing requirements are neglible. In totality, I could be in the ridiculous situation where running a new BMW X5 M60i V8 for 3 years costs me about the same as running the Tucson through Motability! Admittedly I’d lose the interest on the large chunk of savings used to buy the car in the first place, but interest doesn’t put a smile on my face, whereas a 530hp V8 X5 might 😂
@kezo Having just spent 48 hours driving a new BMW X5, I can confirm that all the incessant bings and bongs that drive both of us demented with our Tucson’s are not down to EU directives, but Hyundai’s interpretation and implementation of them.
The only warning noise that I had was the speed limit warning, and it’s three very quiet and soft gentle tones that frankly, with the radio on even at low volume, were barely audible, so much so that I didn’t bother to mute them as it was so unobtrusive.
Today I’m back in the Tucson and the contrast is stark. Even with the annoying and loud (even on lowest setting) speed limit warning muted, the ruddy thing was still binging at me for reasons that I simply could not fathom. It’s beyond irritating and clearly down to what Hyundai deems to be necessary, but it’s completely put me off getting another, as I have told our supplying dealer.
Her chair is a £4K, folding, airline-approve chair, and we couldn’t afford to pay it outright. It’s £32/week off her PIP, which isn’t great, but also isn’t all of it.
Understood. So they are charging your wife £5k for a £4k chair, which is fair enough if it saves to having to find the money up front, but presumably they let her keep it at the end of the 3 years? If not that’s a dreadful deal and I’d expect better of Motability.
If the Skoda PHEV is anything like our Tucson, to answer your question you will be relying on finding someone who manually works out the true mpg equivalent by adding the charging costs to the petrol costs and dividing the total cost by the miles. The fuel computer in our Tucson overstates mpg massively as it assumes that all miles driven on electric are free! The computer usually stages between 75 and 100 mpg but when you work it out accurately it’s the equivalent of 40mpg, which is some difference. It’s actually worse than our previous 2.0i petrol BMW X1 4WD auto (although that was a surprisingly economical car).
I think that you will find them to be quite understanding and I would expect them to agree to an early change. You’d pay a £250 early termination fee but would get a pro rata refund on the AP.
As for your wife’s PIP, is the power wheelchair worth sacrificing £12k of benefits for? That seems like a fortune to me!
Thanks @BigDave I am extremely grateful for you taking the time to provide such a comprehensive reply. It’s all really helpful info although, as you rightly predict, our usage is very different!
The Air Suspension feedback is extremely interesting. It’s standard on the 50e (which I’m testing this week) but thankfully the M60i that I’m testing doesn’t have it as an optional extra, so I can see what the difference is like, as both have 22” wheels with standard tyres. There were several reasons that I fancied it. Firstly, I’m concerned that the M-Sport (and in particular M60i) suspension may be too firm. Secondly, all the reviews I’ve watched rave about it. Finally (and most importantly) as I have to hoist my wife in and out of the car (something that we can’t test) and I have to lift her wheelchair in and out of the boot, I figured that the ability to lower the car might be useful and make life a little easier.
As for the wheels, like you I’ve tended to steer away from huge wheels (20” is the biggest I’ve had) due to the greater risk of kerbing them, but the review comment about tyre noise with the run flats concerned me and to avoid them you have to jump to 22”. Annoyingly, neither test car has run flats but, as mentioned, I’ve had them on quite a few BMWs previously and never had an issue with them.
Unfortunately, as for the tech pack, our last two cars had Head-up display, and so I would miss it. I also regretted not getting Harmon Kardon on my last 2 BMWs. I agree that the extra parking stuff is superfluous. The Bowers & Wilkins system is an extra £3.5k over the Harman Kardon, which I’m just not prepared to pay, especially as a lot of my in car listening isn’t actually music!
Once again, sincere thanks. I’ve watched every review going and the 2 x 48 hour test drives will hopefully nail most of this for me, but first hand owner experience is always invaluable.
I wonder how many of those 500k EVs were Motability or fleet related sales?
The vast majority, I should imagine. Of the rest, I should think that the majority are in multi-car households where the EV isn’t the sole car.
I know that a few folk on here think that I’m anti EV because I have legitimate concerns about how suitable they would be for us, and I don’t prioritise cheap running costs when choosing a car, but I do feel that for those able to charge at home, and don’t do regular long journeys, they are definitely the smartest choice for Motability customers. If we were to stay on the scheme then I’d definitely look seriously next time, as the choice is better than it is for ICE cars and, as mentioned, all the biggest risks of EV ownership (crippling depreciation, high insurance & repair costs, cost of charger installation etc) are all removed from us.
What I find interesting though is that I have a very wide circle of family and friends, all of whom live in properties where they could charge at home. They are all private car owners, rather than Motability or business users. Whenever the subject comes up, not a single one of them is interested in buying an EV. As a result, I’m not at all surprised that EV registrations fell well below the ZEV mandate target last year and, with the government announcing the 3p per mile surcharge (which will obviously increase – people aren’t stupid), I can see the gap between idealism and reality widening as each year goes by. The only question in my mind is how much longer can the government maintain this farce of the 2030/35 cut off dates when consumers aren’t playing ball, the EU is moving back to 2040 and Reform UK and the Conservatives have said that if they are elected they will scrap them!
@Tillyman Would I be correct in thinking that the range that you would actually get would be less than what the computer states, especially in these temperatures? I guess that EV drivers don’t ever plan to run the battery right down, so never really establish the true range, but with my PHEV the EV range shown on the computer is never achieved. As an example, I left a location yesterday that was 28 miles from home. The computer said that I had 25 miles EV range remaining but, in reality, those ‘25 miles’ were completely gone after 15 miles!
Thanks @kezo Yes, I realised that the USA fuels (and ratings) are different. When I get the cars on test I’ve made a note to look inside the fuel flaps to see what the label states, but the U.K. owners manual for the X5 implies;
50e Super Unleaded E5 (RON 98) is best, but Unleaded E10 (RON 95) is OK.
M60i Super Plus – Shell V-Power (99 RON) best, but Super Unleaded E5 (RON 98) OK.
Diesels – Minimum Grade B10 but Optimal Grade B7T Are you selling the 40d X6? What are you replacing it with?
@glos-guy Yes, it is being part exchanged for exactly the same – a new X6 40d – just with a few different ticks on the options list this time. My current X6 actually goes on Wednesday as they already have a buyer lined up for it. So I will be trucking around in just the Grenadier for the next month or two, which isn’t really a bad thing up here in winter. The deal was too good to miss. Particularly as my sister is also buying a new X5 and my nephew is joining me in buying a new X6 40d. So together we rather mugged the dealership who didn’t want to lose out on the sale of 3 new vehicles and the PX on my X60. All told we didn’t fair too badly. If they thought normal Yorkshire folk were tough to deal with, they didn’t bank on three members of the same Yorkshire farming family at the same time!
@BigDave As you are the only person I know who has a comparable car to the one I’m considering, can I please pick your brains about the best options to get, and any to avoid? Your comment that you have selected different options made me think that there might be options you’d say are essential, others you regretted getting, or regretted not getting!Options I am considering are;
– Air suspension (was standard prior to the facelift, but now only std on the 50e). £1200 option on M60i (and £2,000 on the diesels!)
– Acoustic Glass & Sun Protection Glass
– Comfort Pack (I only really want the heated steering wheel, but it’s not a stand alone option)
– Technology Pack (Harman Kardon / HUD / Parking Professional Pack / Augmented Sat Nav)
– 21” alloys with run flats (std on M60i) or 22” alloys with std tyres. I’ve had BMWs with run-flats before and had no issue with them (smaller wheels though), but both demonstrators that I’m borrowing have 22” alloys, so I can’t test run flats on the X5. One review (only) of the dozens I’ve watched on the X5 mentioned road noise from the run flats on the 21” wheels
I can test all of the above (apart from the 21” alloys) over the two test drives, as the other options are fitted to one or both cars.
Ref your tough negotiating, I’ve gone in armed with the current Drive the Deal discounts, including options, which range from £11,250 on the 30d to £16,150 on the M60i. Do you think I should be pushing them further if I decide to get one?
Finally, I haven’t properly considered diesel as my wife is against one, but if I like the car and the choice boils down to purely engine choice, there is a slight irritant that the 50e needs Premium Unleaded and the M60i the next one up again (Shell V-Power recommended), neither of which is available at my local village petrol station (I can get them both 5 minutes drive away though). Do you run the 40d on regular diesel and, if so, has that been OK?
Sorry for all the questions, but it’s the biggest car buying decision I’ve ever made and the second biggest purchase after a house!
Thanks @kezo I’ll let you know how it compares to our Tucson’s bings and bongs . As I’ve said before, if it just binged once I’d leave it on, as it would be useful. It’s Hyundai’s insistence on having four bings every single time that really grinds my gears and makes me turn it off 🤬. I don’t mind lane assist, but usually forget to turn it on (unlike the speed thing, mine defaults to off, which seems wierd).
Not impressed with the mpg, spent a couple of days at our caravan, a journey from the West Midlands to north Wales with a good mix of urban, motorway, 70mph A roads, 60mph A roads and up and down hills. The car display said 42.6 mpg, I filled the car up before leaving and again on return, 24.17 litres for 216.6 miles, so 216.6 miles divided by 5.32 gallons equals 40.71 mpg so the car display is not faulty as I at first thought it was.
I’m sorry to hear about your disappointment @Marc but have to say that I’m not surprised. Hyundai don’t seem to have this hybrid malarkey nailed in the way that some other manufacturers have. As I mentioned some time back, I had a Tucson self charging hybrid on a 24 hour test and was surprised that on regular runs that I make it was delivering worse mpg than our BMW X1 2.0i 4WD Auto, which had no hybrid technology at all (but was incredibly economical for a quick car – and the engine was super smooth and whisper quiet compared to the Hyundai).
I spent the first 6 months manually calculating the MPG on our PHEV. Many PHEV drivers quote the mpg on the dashboard, which is incorrect as it takes no account of the cost of the miles driven in EV mode (an issue that you don’t have with yours). It depressed me as it was so disappointing, especially on longer runs mostly on petrol, so I stopped doing it and have felt better since!
Even when VAT is added to the AP from July, and IPT is also added, Motability should still be the cheapest leasing option, as the core lease is (and will remain) VAT free. There’s something very wrong if a commercial lease, which will include VAT on the whole lease, works out cheaper (or even the same).
We are looking to leave the scheme but won’t be leasing. We will buy outright, so won’t be worrying about being tied to any conditions (not that we would be overly worried, as we only do about 10k miles a year). It’s also a lot cheaper than leasing if you have the means to do it, which thankfully we do.
Our main motivation for looking to leave is that the scheme no longer offers a single car that even remotely appeals to us. Every single one would be a compromise in one way or another. EV’s don’t appeal (even though we could charge at home) and the choice of ICE SUVs is woeful and, with the removal of the few premium brands, won’t get any better. Any car that we buy will be something that isn’t on the scheme and never will be.
Also, if I’m being completely honest, all the negativity about Motability and Motability customers in recent months has created a stigma about being a scheme customer which has left a bit of a nasty taste in the mouth. With Labour, the Conservatives and Reform all being very critical of the scheme and the ‘benefits culture’ comments directed at customers, I don’t see this getting any better – and it could get a whole lot worse.
Thanks @BigDave I have two 48 hour test drives over the coming weeks (a 50e X5 this week and an M60i X5 in two weeks time) and it’s on my list to see how many bings and bongs there are and how easy they are to turn off (I believe that a press of the ‘Set’ button on the steering wheel mutes the speed limit bongs).
Are you selling the 40d X6? What are you replacing it with?
Enjoy the test drives @mitch I have two 48 hour test drives arranged myself over the next 2 weeks and am really looking forward to them. Usually I have my heart set on a car, but then after a couple of days driving them I start to see the things that I don’t like, or would irritate me and I’m back to square one again 😂
I have no first hand experience of any of the cars on your shortlist, but based solely on looks and what I’ve read about them from owners experiences, I’d probably say that the Qashqai e-Power would be top of my list as well.
@mitch If I understand the above figures correctly, 168 miles at a cost of £22 equates to 13p per mile. That, of course, assumes that the car achieves its stated range which, as was pointed out by others, is unlikely, especially in the winter, so that cost per mile will be higher. On that basis, if you have to rely on the public chargers at Dobbies, the Mini is likely to cost you more to run than the ICE cars on your list, whereas it would be cheaper for those who can charge at home. This is why, as pretty much everyone is saying (including EV owners), they only make financial sense if you can charge at home although, of course, running costs is only one consideration.
@chastw If you are considering buying a new Audi, I strongly advise configuring the car on Drive the Deal and seeing what discount is offered for main dealer factory ordered brand new cars to your exact specification (Audi is one of just half a dozen manufacturers that they work with). You can then go to your local Audi dealer and ask them to match it (or get very close). I am currently discussing a possible new vehicle purchase with my BMW dealer and, having adopted this approach, I am discussing discounts between £12-16k (albeit it’s a more expensive car than a Q3).
I don’t know the detail of your daughters disability, but if she is a full time wheelchair user and she also needs a ‘permanent and substantial’ adaptation (for example, we have to have a person hoist to get my wife in and out of the car) then, in addition to any negotiated discount, you can also get VAT exemption on the full retail price of the vehicle, including optional extras. This VAT exemption continues throughout the time you have the car for things like servicing and maintenance. Also, as you are eligible for a Motability car, you don’t pay Vehicle Excise Duty (road tax), including the exorbitant first year rate (showroom tax) or the over £40k premium (luxury car tax).
As a combined result of all of the above things, I am looking at a potential cost saving (versus a retail customer with no VAT / VED exemption and not having negotiated a discount) of up to 35%. Added to the £12k sacrificed benefits (plus AP) that we currently pay to Motability, the first 3 years depreciation is pretty much wiped out, by which time we can either start again with another new car, or keep the car that we already own outright.
I too had a email offering an extension just after the MOT (less than 5000 miles total) ”We’re inviting a small number of selected customers to apply for a lease extension on your current Motability Scheme vehicle.” They then rang me yesterday desperately trying to persuade me extend now, even if I go on to order a new vehicle before current lease ends in March. They were very keen so must be profitable for them on very low mileage cars.
It’s always worth accepting an extension, even if you are thinking of changing the car. The good thing about Motability extensions is that you aren’t tied into a fixed period. You can extend today and still order a new car at any time within the extension period, including the day after you extend! With all the negative changes coming our way from July, you would also be able (if you wished) to defer the hit for up to two years.
However, I don’t know your circumstances or where you live, but doing just 5,000 miles in 3 years would make me seriously question whether having a Motability car was a sensible use of money. Even if your car had zero AP, its cost you almost £2.50 a mile to run it. Add in an AP and that cost goes up even more.
@Fastbike1000 Ah yes, I remember the tanker driver strike around 2000. Thankfully I managed to get through it and was lucky enough to be passing a petrol station when they had just reopened. They limited fuel to (from memory) something like £30, but after putting that in I simply joined the queue again 😂 Thankfully that was a one off, although I appreciate that it could happen again. That being said, all the power cuts of the 1970s (which I also remember) wouldn’t have been too clever had EVs existed back then!
Im so glad i no longer have to queue at a petrol station for fuel. Driving an EV is so relaxing not listening for some strange rattle from the engine bay…wondering if my DPF is going to get stuffed.
Maybe I’m just lucky, but in almost 45 years of driving ICE cars I’ve never queued for more than a few minutes (usually not at all) and it’s always taken way less time than recharging an EV! I’ve also never had strange rattles or dpf issues, but I’m only going on my experience having driven well over half a million miles 🤔
Never mind cars @Abercol your wife is truly amazing. You must be very proud of her. What an incredible woman.
