Natasha Fenton

Buying my Ideal Car

As I am learning to drive, I have been looking for a new car to drive when I pass my driving test.

My ideal car is a Ford Fiesta, as I have been learning to drive them when having weekly lessons. I have now passed my theory test and am continuing to have lessons before trying my practical test.

I have been looking at 3 different types of Ford Fiesta; all of them are petrol and all the same engine size. The first model is the Fiesta Studio 1.2 engine; 3 and 5 doors, the second model is the Fiesta Style 3 and 5 doors.

There are different methods of payment; both payment plans require different deposits. I have opted for the monthly payment plan as I am not able to pay the whole amount to purchase the car.

Monthly plans are over these yearly lengths.

• 24 months • 36 months• 48 months

Fiesta Studio -

The Fiesta Studio 3 door on a 24 month payment plan is £174.39 per month, on a 48 month payment plan is £212.69 per month.

The Fiesta studio 5 door car on a 24 month payment is £209.74 per month, on a 48 month payment its £239.46 a month.

Fiesta Style

The Fiesta Style 3 Acquire door on a 24 month payment plan is £192.50 per month. When pricing the 48 month plan, the 3 door increases to £224.94 per month.

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Natasha Fenton

A 5 door Fiesta Style Acquire with re payments over 24 months are £209.74, when compared with a 5 door increasing to repayments of £239.46.

New Ford Fiesta Zetec TDCi

A 5 door Zetec TDCi is on a 36 month payment plan. The repayments are £195.95 per month.

Table showing the different model Fiesta’s and their different payment plans.Car Supplier Price Deposit Payments

length of time2012 Ford Style 5 door

Ford £11,295.00 £1,000.00 24 Months

2012 Ford Studio Acquire 5 door

Ford £11,895.00 £1,000.00 48 Months

2012 Ford Style 3 door

Ford £11,295.00 £1,000.00 24 Months

2012 Ford Studio Acquire 3 door

Ford £11,295.00 £1,000.00 48 Months

New 2013 Ford Fiesta Zetec TDCi 5 Door

Ford £12,975.00 £1245.00 36 Months

I have include the New model Fiesta Zetec TDCi as this has just been released and I wanted to know whether this would be cheaper to buy than the older 2012 models.

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Natasha Fenton

Graph showing the different prices for the 2012 and 2013 models.

This graph shows how prices differ for each model according to how many doors the car has. I have included the new 2013 model and this has increased by £1080 on the price for the 2012 model.

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Fiesta Prices

£11,295.00

£11,895.00

£11,295.00 £11,295.00

£12,975.00

£10,000.00

£10,500.00

£11,000.00

£11,500.00

£12,000.00

£12,500.00

£13,000.00

£13,500.00

2012 FordStyle 5 door

2012 FordStudio 5 door

2012 FordStyle 3 door

2012 FordStudio 3 door

New 2013Ford Fiesta

Zetec TDCi 5Door

Natasha Fenton

Comparing Prices

I have looked at the prices for cash payments and finance and as I do not have the whole amount to pay up front. I will have to look at purchasing a car with a monthly payment plan.

To reduce costs I have decided to look at the 3 door models as these would work out cheaper.

Fiesta Studio 3 Door.To purchase a car, I will have to give a £1,588 deposit and can then decide whether to have my payments over either 2 or 4 years.

The hand calculations that I have made show that the fiesta Studio price over 24 months would be cheapest at £4,185.36 (24 x £174.39). When I checked this I found that I would also have to pay a final instalment amount of £5,139.00. This would all add up to a total of £10,912.00.

Fiesta Style 3 Door.This model also requires a deposit which is £1000.00 and the dealer also gives £1000.00. This helps as this deposit option was not available for the Studio.

The cheapest monthly payment terms for this model is £5,033.79 (24 x £209.74), a final payment of £5,139.00 plus a credit charge of £10. When you add all these costs the final price I would pay would be £12182.74.

I have checked the prices for longer plans over 48 months and these are available for 5 door models as well. The payments for these plans are more than what I can afford.

The prices of cars vary with the method of payment that you can afford. Searching for different models of Fiesta’s has shown me that there are a few different models and they all priced differently. Some models have a part deposit paid by the dealer and other don’t! This makes choosing the right car for you harder. Do I choose the car where the dealer gives me £1000 or choose the one I really want and pay the larger deposit myself?

Too many hard choices to make, I think I’ll wait until I have passed my test

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