subject: Vat Increase Makes Green Cars A More Viable Option For Many [print this page] While many urban drivers in the UK have been swayed by the benefits of buying low-emission new cars, it may take measures such as the VAT increase imposed in the recent Budget to help spread the word of their benefits further afield. One area in the car-buying market where there is scope for downsizing and choosing smaller engines producing fewer emissions is among families whose now grown-up children have flown the family nest.
The recent Budgets increase in the rate of VAT from 17.5 to 20 per cent is also likely to feed through to fuel prices in time, adding to the appeal of more economical, fuel-efficient, and even hybrid-powered cars. Immediately after the budget, motoring pundits were forecasting that car dealerships would see more people coming through their doors as buyers look to beat the VAT rise by securing their new car before the higher rate is imposed at the start of 2011.
In many instances, people trading up will also be part-exchanging an old car in order to partly fund their new purchase. So there should be benefits too for those looking for a quality used car, as the number and range available increases. An upswing in car sales ahead of the imposition of the VAT rise has been predicted by The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, and this is as likely to apply to more economical cars as to bigger family vehicles and 4x4s.
This may mean some buyers are able to snap up a pre-owned first-generation hybrid car, such as a Toyota Prius, Honda Civic or Insight, or even a luxurious Lexus saloon, hatchback and 4x4 model. Owners of these cars will have had a number of years good use from their cars, and they may see now as a good time to see what the latest models have to offer.
Company car buyers were among the first to see real benefits from driving a hybrid car, because of the lower tax levels which they attracted, and the ongoing benefits of cheaper fuel costs. So if they are trading up, the cars they will be relinquishing are likely to have been well maintained and regularly serviced.
So all major components will have been regularly checked, and items subject to the greatest wear and tear, such as tyres, exhaust, battery and brakes, likely to have been replaced when needed. In the case of a hybrid car, its combination of petrol or diesel and electric motors means that engines are less likely to have been harshly treated.
So the reasons for choosing a quality hybrid car look even more compelling for buyers concerned about the rising cost of fuel, and their overall motoring costs, especially if they cover high mileages.
