a new company car dilema :-)

[ewan221]

I am due to change my company car when next registration plate comes out, currentley have a Audi A4. I was going to go for an Alfa 159 and think the majority of people who repied to my earlier thread thought that was good choice.

 

But ... my boss phoned today and told me that one of the directors had left and asked if I wanted to take over his car. Its a 9 month old black BMW 530d which has has a lot of optional extras ticked and the really good bit is I dont have to contribute any extra for it.

 

So have to decide if I take this now or wait a few months and get to choose something for myself

 

Has anyone driven one ? It does look much bigger than the A4 and 156 but a lot more powerfull

[glrnet]

Won't you get stung more for company car tax (emissions)?

[rtbiscuit]

5 series all the way

[ewan221]

Won't you get stung more for company car tax (emissions)?

 

Will do trying to find an online calculator at moment

[Vik54]

for once I have to agree with the Rich T - the Beemer is the better deal

[Neilp]

yup beemer over alfa anyday.. the 530 shifts aswell

[mbs]

Had a 525 and a 530 as company cars before I semi retired and bought my 350 myself, they were the previous model but great cars would have bought another but had no need for 4 seats anymore and wanted to get the 2 seater out of my system before I was too old to enjoy it. Take the BMW, great cars.

[LRF4N]

My dads got a 530d at the mo, very nice car, drives well, plenty of power, good economy and if it's got some toys ur laughing. If it's an m sport that's the icing on the cake. If u don't have to contribute then it's a no brainer

[rtbiscuit]

for once I have to agree with the Rich T - the Beemer is the better deal

 

 

what do you mean for once,

 

 

 

i'm always right

[rich5259]

Won't you get stung more for company car tax (emissions)?

 

Will do trying to find an online calculator at moment

 

 

try this one http://www.comcar.co.uk/

[Sarnie]

I am due to change my company car when next registration plate comes out, currentley have a Audi A4. I was going to go for an Alfa 159 and think the majority of people who repied to my earlier thread thought that was good choice.

 

But ... my boss phoned today and told me that one of the directors had left and asked if I wanted to take over his car. Its a 9 month old black BMW 530d which has has a lot of optional extras ticked and the really good bit is I dont have to contribute any extra for it.

 

So have to decide if I take this now or wait a few months and get to choose something for myself

 

Has anyone driven one ? It does look much bigger than the A4 and 156 but a lot more powerfull

 

Do you have to pay extra for the A4/156? If not, Beemer all the way......

[SunsetZed]

Beemer for sure!

[Chesterfield]

Have a look at this to work out your benefit in kind tax:

 

http://www.comcar.co.uk/

 

Just taking rough figures in and not knowing the exact emissions or price when new of the cars, then its looking like this:

 

the 530 D will be in the 24 or 25% band if its emissions are anything like the new model (if worse then the percentage will be higher), meaning your benefit in kind will be 24/25% of the price when new (including all the nice extras) - so say 25% of £40k = =£10k benefit in kind minimum.

 

The Alfa 159 (diesel I assume) is in the 20% bracket and price when new is £26k - so your benefit in kind is £5200.

 

If you are a 20% tax payer then thats £2000 per year for the BM, and £1040 for the Alfa

 

at 40% you will be paying £4000 in tax for the BM and £2080 for the Alfa.

 

So while you may not have to "contribute" any more to the company for the BM, you will pay about double the tax.

 

 

The reason the company will be trying to keep the older cars and not buy new is the way that writing down has changed. Companies cannot write off the depreciation of a car in a year all at once if it exceeds about £3000. Therefore it can take many years to write off a cars depreciation, and the company pays corporation tax on money that has effectively been lost as they cant write it all off.

 

We have fallen victim to this with the oh so brilliant residuals of the Jag. Weve lost about £10k in just over a year on each car, but it will take us maybe four tax years to write off those losses if we sold the cars now. That means this year we will be paying 27% tax on £6k per car (£3240 in total) for money which effectively doesnt exist as we cant write off all the depreciation. Over the next four years we will pay probably around £10k in corporation tax on the money which we cant write off all at once.

 

Thats why we will be canning the company cars and getting private, its just a joke having anything above the £15-20k level on company cars as it costs the companies a small fortune.