Nice car but I can't afford the motor tax

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Mawner

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Hi,

First post so go easy!

I own my car which is worth about €5k but the problem is the motor tax is €1,200 per year which is a rip off.

Would i be better off buying something with cheaper tax and buying on finance (pay about €100 per month to finance company instead of the government)?

Thanks,

Peter
 
Mawner said:
Hi,

First post so go easy!

I own my car which is worth about €5k but the problem is the motor tax is €1,200 per year which is a rip off.

Would i be better off buying something with cheaper tax and buying on finance (pay about €100 per month to finance company instead of the government)?

Thanks,

Peter
Click to expand...
Impossible question to answer in isolation from more info about your overall financial and personal situation.
 
I think this is a case of Pimp my ride versus money makeover.

The financial side is one thing. The car, usage and mileage would also be worth sharing.

While the car tax is high it shouldn't be the only factor in choosing to keep or change a vehicle.
 
It sounds like a lovely car. You would probably get at least €5000 for it in today's market.
But if the tax is €1200 per annum you must have some petrol or diesel bill depending upon how much driving you do.
 
Its a 2009 Mercedes CLK 2.0 automatic petrol. Spending about 150-200 per month on petrol, insurance is 700, tax 1,200. I'm thinking a diesel might be more cost efficient.

The good news is I've been offered what i paid for it (5k).

Thanks for advice so far!
 
I drive an old car, 20 year old, 2.4 petrol engine and pay €1200 yearly tax.. And, have to say, love the oul beast.

There is nothing on the market to touch the acceleration of power when needed, level of comfort and quit frankly, its looks, without paying an extortionate amount to equal it.

Maintenance costs are quite low, but it being a Japanese car, I'm not that surprised..

Personally, Id find it difficult to upgrade to a yellow pack car, paying a premium for it, just to achieve cheaper running costs.
 
It's a tough one, in most cases the cheapest car you can own is the one you have already. However, the motor tax being so high would annoy me.
If I was offered the price you paid for it I would be inclined to take it and go for a boring reliable yellow pack car with low €190 motor tax.
 
Mawner said:
I own my car which is worth about €5k but the problem is the motor tax is €1,200 per year which is a rip off.
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It's not a ripoff, it's designed to change behaviour e.g. in this case to reduce the number of cars with high carbon emmissions that are on the road.
Your car is 200g/km so it is in the 2nd highest motor tax band. The next band up is €2400 per year :oops:
 
To the OP's original question about paying €1200 per year to finance company instead of tax.
On a 5 year finance deal that would only be €6000 which would only buy you a second hand car which might not be as reliable as the car you already have.
Your fuel costs per year are not too high so not sure if a diesel car would suit you.
 
People forget to factor in depreciation when calculating the cost of owning a car.
I buy a 5 year old car every 5 years. My current car cost €18k and in a normal market I'd expect to lose a little over €2000 a year in depreciation. Taking everything into account (depreciation, fuel, tax, insurance and servicing) it costs around €130 a week to own and run it.

If I bought a new car for €45k I'd lose more than that in depreciation each week.
I also don't like owning expensive cars as I've found they own me as much as I own them in that every scratch and ding from a shopping trolley is a big deal.

So @Mawner, I'd hold onto it if it's not costing too much to keep it on the road and you like it.
Oh, and for anyone with an old car; join the AA.
 
Thanks jpd,

Aren't you just so funny?

What I mean is on the assumption that you need a car, what's best for the environment? My question is to do with the carbon footprint in making a new(er) car combined with the lower carbon output when in use versus the higher carbon output of the old car?

How much carbon footprint does a new car use versus an oul one over a year for say 15000km and how much carbon footprint is used making a new car?

I suspect the person who is capable of answering this will understand the gist of the question and help me out with the lingo!!
 
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Keeping an old car going is environmentally more friendly, if you aren't doing much mileage. Assuming it's maintained property not got heavy black smoke pouring out of the exhaust.

If you are doing a of mileage and i think 15k a year or €200 a month on fuel to are past that tipping point, then you've have to think about what your exhausting into the environment as perhaps the bigger issue.
 
Keeping an old car going is environmentally more friendly, if you aren't doing much mileage. Assuming it's maintained property not got heavy black smoke pouring out of the exhaust.

If you are doing a of mileage and i think 15k a year or €200 a month on fuel to are past that tipping point, then you've have to think about what your exhausting into the environment as perhaps the bigger issue.

The you have to balance economy with comfort and safety if doing a lot of journeys. Also you might be don't a lot pf short journeys, or a few very long journeys. Mostly at slow speed in traffic or mostly high speed on motorways.
 
JimmyB99 said:
Thanks jpd,

Aren't you just so funny?

What I mean is on the assumption that you need a car, what's best for the environment? My question is to do with the carbon footprint in making a new(er) car combined with the lower carbon output when in use versus the higher carbon output of the old car?

How much carbon footprint does a new car use versus an oul one over a year for say 15000km and how much carbon footprint is used making a new car?

I suspect the person who is capable of answering this will understand the gist of the question and help me out with the lingo!!
Click to expand...

jpd has made a very valid contribution and IMHO wasnt being sarky as you seem to suggest.
Most of us have cars and need to use the car for some journeys and also use the car for convenience.
One of the biggest changes any of us can make to the environmental impact of our car is to avoid using it if there is a viable alternative for that journey. This is true regardless of the emissions of your car.
 
LS400 said:
I drive an old car, 20 year old, 2.4 petrol engine and pay €1200 yearly tax.. And, have to say, love the oul beast.

There is nothing on the market to touch the acceleration of power when needed, level of comfort and quit frankly, its looks, without paying an extortionate amount to equal it.

Maintenance costs are quite low, but it being a Japanese car, I'm not that surprised..

Personally, Id find it difficult to upgrade to a yellow pack car, paying a premium for it, just to achieve cheaper running costs.
Click to expand...
My car is 18 yrs old and still doesn't use oil everything works, it never failed a NCT, it's only worth about €1000. If anyone runs into it I lost next to nothing, I have the savings for a new car but why change it, if someone writes that off I'll be in tears
 
roker said:
My car is 18 yrs old and still doesn't use oil everything works, it never failed a NCT, it's only worth about €1000. If anyone runs into it I lost next to nothing, I have the savings for a new car but why change it, if someone writes that off I'll be in tears
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True, but you also have to consider safety. My son was a passenger in his friend’s dad’s car which was involved in a heavy collision with another car traveling in the opposite direction.

Both cars were less than a year old and were extensively damaged to a degree that they were both written off. All the occupants walked away without a scratch but the assessor said that if the cars had been 10 years old or more, there would have been injuries.

Food for thought.
 
JimmyB99 said:
What is the environmentally responsible thing to do when one has an old car?
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Keep driving it is the better option when compared to buying a brand new car.
Your old car has embedded energy in it, the longer it is being driven by you or by another the more that embedded energy is diluted & by extension it's relative impact is reduced.
 
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