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Head vs heart decision!


eldavo69
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If one of our employees dings/donks/scrapes their car, they get the first insurance excess paid for as accidents happen.  If it happens again then they pay the excess (£500) and get a telling off.

 

I don't think just because it's a company vehicle that you should have no responsibility towards accident damage.

Edited by Biscuits
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No tax hit on BMW autos - other than the tax on the cost of the 'box itself - emissions are untouched.

 

Insane not to allow autos - I've always wondered why autos aren't stipulated as standard by fleet managers, as they generally mean the car is less likely to be abused by idiots. (can't over-rev them, no clutch to burn out etc)

 

A few reasons for this.

 

1) Autos were insanely crap in 3 spd guise.

2) The MPG on them was utterly woeful - as was performance

3) Your 'traditional' fleet manager won't have registered the new tech

4) Limitted uptake from drivers due to the above

5) Even 4 & 5 speed models were a bit poor on emissions

6) Resale on autos traditionally never recovered the additional purchase option cost.

7) Fleet managers don't care about afterwards, as long as the resale value is as expected.

 

Eldavo will need to do allsorts to try to get autos on the list and that'll take years!

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If one of our employees dings/donks/scrapes their car, they get the first insurance excess paid for as accidents happen.  If it happens again then they pay the excess (£500) and get a telling off.

 

I don't think just because it's a company vehicle that you should have no responsibility towards accident damage.

 

I wish we had this policy with our IT stuff!

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Been to look at a V60 R-design.

Very nice place to be and some great ideas, power child locks on the rear doors and integrated booster seats in the rear too. Arranging a test drive for this week too.

Not massively keen on the central dash display and the centre console is very button-tastic but the main dials binnacle is excellent. Rear space is better than the BMW but worse than the Skoda. The boot was quite a surprise as although it is quite deep it is very shallow due to the sloping roof line and high boot floor. Although I'm sure it has plenty of capacity, the useable space is impacted upon.

I will say this though, it did feel like a more quality product than the Octavia but I'm a sucker for quirky design elements. However, the spec is nowhere near that of the Octavia and to bring it anywhere close is silly money.

It all comes down to the drive I think. If the Volvo is a good drive and ticks most boxes then it may well be the winner. If the drive lets it down then the higher spec and lower cost of the Skoda along with my £100 per month Porsche contribution will be hard to ignore.

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Hmmmm . . . Is that a famous MrMe prediction?

(I've just specced the V60 up to the same spec as the Skoda, it's almost exactly £100 more per month)

 

This is where I think there is a problem.

 

They're not comparable cars - but you're comparing price.

 

One is clearly a far better finished and built car than the other.

 

So, is it not better to set/decide on what you want to spend first (no different from buying a car privately), and then choose within that budget?+++

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Different class of car, too.

The Octavia is a Golf with big boot, so it has the wheelbase and therefore cabin space of a Golf, but has a huge rear overhang to create and oversized boot.

The V60 is Passat class, so has more interior space, although the V60 doesn't have the traditional big Volvo estate boot, its more A4 Avant shaped.

Whilst the Skoda may have lots of kit, the quality is horrible compared with the Volvo or a BMW, or even a Golf... But I obviously traded spec. For quality whey I ordered my car, so your views may be different.

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In my head my budget is up to £250 per month.

The equipment level per se is not a huge draw but there are a few fundamentals I want (Xenons, leather, heated seats, parking sensors, tinted rear windows).

Yup, I'll admit that the Skoda is not as well built as the Volvo but I don't care if it's knackered and worth 30p in 3 years time as it goes back and isn't my problem.

As for it being seen to be more sporty, not bothered about that either - how it actually drives is more important, the current steed has set a high benchmark.

Every fibre of my being is telling me to not go for the Skoda, but when it becomes a transactional choice rather than an emotive one the facts stack up in favour of the Skoda very well.

I've got some major plans for the 944 that will cost a few grand and tracking it makes me immensely happy - compromising on a company car that I'm no longer that arsed about but still ticks all the boxes is a great way of doing that.

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I was sure the V60 came with rear parking sensors as standard.

Leather.... The R design is half leather, with suede centres.

Heated seats are int he winter pack, aren't they? I recall that was quite cheap to add.

Which leaves xenons... Any reason why you really need them?

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If the Skoda ends up being the choice have a good hard look at your suggested Meteor Grey.

 

I spec'ed and in the sun it looked quite nice along with the small green/purpleish hues of colour changing. However as soon as I saw it on an overcast day I just thought it looked drab and mundane. I had a chance to change the car and did ... including speccing a different colour.

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Just get the adequate company car and save your £££ for what really matters to you. You can put up with the failings of a slightly inferior company car knowing you've got spare cash to enjoy the Porka.

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I've got some major plans for the 944 that will cost a few grand and tracking it makes me immensely happy - compromising on a company car that I'm no longer that arsed about but still ticks all the boxes is a great way of doing that.

 

Well that changes everything.

 

Stop looking at every model and buy the Octavia - but not the vRS.  Buy the model below it, or whatever, with even lower tax but spec it up or whatever.

 

In other words, go for maximum economy and comfort (ride).

 

Nothing else matters if it is a mile crunching car and you're going to get enjoyment out of the 944.  That makes complete sense.

 

There is no head v heart.  It is a head based purchase in the knowledge every penny you save can be poured into a minute more enjoyment from the 944.  Perfect sense.

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Just get the adequate company car and save your £££ for what really matters to you. You can put up with the failings of a slightly inferior company car knowing you've got spare cash to enjoy the Porka.

 

Faultless logic +++

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Lol, my car allowance is actually very good (I could take a reasonable spec 320d saloon for no extra payment) but the real "cost" is my company car tax burden which would be £200-ish in that scenario.

The vRS comes out so low as it involves cash my way for taking a car below my grade :)

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