Oct
1
As I’m looking to change our car at the moment, I’ve been trying out a few cars such as the Toyota Prius, Ford S-Max and the new Ford Mondeo.
The Prius, as good as it is, seems too expensive for the hybrid technology at the moment. The S-Max, which seemed to tick all the boxes with space and seating for a family with two children, suffered from very bad road noise at speeds above 55 mph. So that leaves the Ford Mondeo as the best contender so far.
I must admit that it is a really good car for the price. It’s big and quiet and comfortable and is reasonably priced. No wonder Audi and BMW drivers are considering it seriously now. The hatchback boot is so big that you don’t need an estate car, even with two children, and the 2.0 diesel engine seems superb and delivers good fuel efficiency.
So that’s that then. The Mondeo is the car to go for!
Well not quite. Talking to the salesman about various finance and purchase option soon turned up a horrifying fact about this good car.
Depreciation.
I was shocked. We ran some figures on a Ford Mondeo costing just over £23,000 new. After three years, having only done 30,000 miles, that same car would be worth £6,800! That car would lose around £16,000, 66 percent, in value in three years.
At a depreciation cost of £100 per week, buying a new Ford Mondeo is plain daft, unless someone else is paying for it. Buying a “nearly new” or second hand one with that first tranche of depreciation paid by someone else, would make sense, however.
The latest Mondeos are very rare on the second hand market at the moment as they are so new, however I have just been contacted by our local Ford dealer who has one coming into their showroom later this week. With only 3000 miles on the clock, it could be interesting……
