We may talk about buying a van until the cows come home, but unless your business has a healthy bottom line, then making do with older vans or leasing is the only option. The decision to lease or not may have a lot to do with the costs of running the van and the image it presents of your business. Older vans means no monthly payments and yes we know some of these vehicles just keep on going and going. But when it comes to fuel economy, one the highest motoring costs and how you represent yourself to the world, then van leasing is probably the way to go.
Van manufacturers have got themselves together recently when it comes to fuel economy with engines that do series miles per gallon. Also the day of taking a car design then adding a van body also seems to have changed on the smaller vans. Modern van manufacturers now design from scratch based on business needs and requirements. Leasing a van also keeps money in the business to use on other things such as surviving or marketing etc, you get the picture. Of course the downside is how well you look after these vans. employees car sometimes not treat a new van as if it were theirs, so residual values may change when it comes to handing the vehicle back. So if you are a business looking for new transport, then at last consider the possibilities, to reducing motoring costs and delivering a better message.
Mercedes have brought a new 4×4 option to the market: The GLK 350
The car which look a little like the Toyota Highlander has been described as Powerful, luxurious and solid.
Powerful: The Engine is a 3.5 litre V6. It produces 268 horsepower and 258lb-ft of torque. It has an automatic gearbox with the option of touch shift if you need a manual.
Luxurious: It isn’t an SL or GL however, it is significantly better comfort wise than most of its competitors. There are the usual range of Mercedes comforts such as armrest and there is a choice of optional extras.
Solid: Equipped with for 4 wheel drive (referred to as 4matic by Mercedes) the car can handle even rough conditions. It is essentially a luxurious SUV so it does have some off-road ability. It does have good traction though and the suspension can handle rough terrain. Grip is further improved by the use of a 4 way electronic traction system called 4-ETS. This will keep you going even if only one wheel has traction.
Seating wise it comfortable accommodate 4 adults. There is plenty of boot space and the rear seats fold down to increase it further. It’s price tag puts it out of most of the SUV market but it will attract those who are fond of the Mercedes badge.
Unfortunately the car scrappage scheme was not aimed at the car lease purchaser, so you could not trade in you 10 year old banger for something you would lease rather than buy. Not that many would of course, with the exception of trading in the second car to gain your £2k. But there may have been positive kickbacks, as used car values increased die to most owners of 10 year old cars believing they were worth at lease £2k and the shortage of new purchasers did mean used cars went up in value.
High residual values meant that monthly premiums went down, as car lease is pretty much based on how much a car depreciates in value. But now as we head into the new tax year of 2010, the scrappage scheme has come to an end, and it is not up to the manufacturers to deliver the discounts to get people to buy their cars. We are not yet sure whether this to be a positive or negative to the car lease market. Will used prices now plummet as your car is worth what someone will pay, rather than a government grant, or will they soar even further as the new car market slows down. The availability of finance appears to be better although, interest rates of 8% plus are not uncommon. Manufacturers are almost racing to create engines that run on gasses and then some, so CO2 emissions are coming down and so are the road tax and benefit in kind you will have to pay as a company vehicle owner, so 2010 is an all change, lets hope things work out sort of year, where it will take more than some optimism to kick start not only the car lease market but the new car market also.