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[cruisetopoland]

Right, D-day has arrived and I need to look at what to do with the Omega as the main car in the household...

I do a fairly high mileage (8,000 since Nov) and the expenses are not covering the cost of running the Omega, so we are getting shorter and shorter of money.

After discussions with my employer, it is clear that it would be in their interests as well as mine to lease me something efficient and give me a fuel card, for me to pay any personal fuel myself-this is the most tax-efficient way.

My wife misses having a car, but would only do 40 miles or so a week socially, I do 1000 miles a month for work on narrow twisty lanes which the heavy auto Omega hates, we are short of money and time to keep the Omega fettled for this kind of heavy high mile use.  I have put my heart and soul (plus the proceeds of selling my wife's car, every penny we owned, plus overdraft) into getting the Omega working 100% and am loathe to sell it, as all of this money, heartache and effort would have been pointless.

Options:

1/ Keep Omega as is-it owes me well over £3k but is making a heavy monthly expenses loss

2/ Spend £1000+, to gas Omega and keep claiming at break even until the money spent is recovered

3/ Keep Omega for my wife to use for local runs, plus our Poland trips, accept a cheap Yaris/C1/Smart just for work

4/ Lose Omega, accept Focus/Golf as a good cheap family car and hire an MPV for Poland in June, then fly after then

5/ Lose Omega, contribute £50pcm towards MPV or Skoda Superb Greenline lease, use this for Poland too

Anyone got any ideas or comments?

I work alongside accountants and their view is clear: ditch the Omega before anything else goes wrong, and accept a tax efficient company car which will cost me about £8 tax per week and relieve my of insurance, repairs, breakdown cover, running costs, maintenance, servicing, huge fuel costs and the road tax.  Use the Omega money to pay off the overdraft and bank the rest carefully as a deposit on the next car should I ever need to buy again.  Accept the fact that I have done 8,000 miles and this justifies the write-off costs of the repairs and parts, which would have been far higher on a new car in depreciation.  Simples.

Thing is, a lot of me has gone into the Omega-not just ££

I hate all this and just wish my expenses were better and mpg higher.

[tunnie]

given what you have paid towards the car, option 3.

I bought all the LPG gubbins needed, cost me £500 all in. I am lazy git, and its all still in my garage waiting to be fitted, i keep changing my mind as i do use the boot space.

What kind of costs are they predicting for you lease car?

[cruisetopoland]

given what you have paid towards the car, option 3.

I bought all the LPG gubbins needed, cost me £500 all in. I am lazy git, and its all still in my garage waiting to be fitted, i keep changing my mind as i do use the boot space.

What kind of costs are they predicting for you lease car?

Was thinking of toroidal in spare wheel well, but want to do a deal if that's what I decide  :-/

Lease car-they mentioned a few avaiable, Smart, new C3, Focus or Megane, all fuel covered, in effect I would have to show "some payment" for private fuel to keep tax-man happy.

Put in £463 fuel last month...hilly area, twisty b-roads, lots of cold starts and stop/starts, plus the Omega struggles to do my job compared to my old hatchbacks due to size.

[tunnie]

given what you have paid towards the car, option 3.

I bought all the LPG gubbins needed, cost me £500 all in. I am lazy git, and its all still in my garage waiting to be fitted, i keep changing my mind as i do use the boot space.

What kind of costs are they predicting for you lease car?

Was thinking of toroidal in spare wheel well, but want to do a deal if that's what I decide  :-/

Lease car-they mentioned a few avaiable, Smart, new C3, Focus or Megane, all fuel covered, in effect I would have to show "some payment" for private fuel to keep tax-man happy.

Put in £463 fuel last month...hilly area, twisty b-roads, lots of cold starts and stop/starts, plus the Omega struggles to do my job compared to my old hatchbacks due to size.

Sounds like a good deal, so at the moment they don't give you fuel money. Can they not do that for you now with the Omega?

[cruisetopoland]

given what you have paid towards the car, option 3.

I bought all the LPG gubbins needed, cost me £500 all in. I am lazy git, and its all still in my garage waiting to be fitted, i keep changing my mind as i do use the boot space.

What kind of costs are they predicting for you lease car?

Was thinking of toroidal in spare wheel well, but want to do a deal if that's what I decide  :-/

Lease car-they mentioned a few avaiable, Smart, new C3, Focus or Megane, all fuel covered, in effect I would have to show "some payment" for private fuel to keep tax-man happy.

Put in £463 fuel last month...hilly area, twisty b-roads, lots of cold starts and stop/starts, plus the Omega struggles to do my job compared to my old hatchbacks due to size.

Sounds like a good deal, so at the moment they don't give you fuel money. Can they not do that for you now with the Omega?

I get 40p/mile but only on out of town stuff, so when I get 15mpg cold on short in town runs, I can lose a gallon a day, every day..

[tunnie]

Lease car does sound like a good option then, slow speed twisties are not the place for the Omega really, much better taking them at 80 

What kind of cost are you looking at for the monthly rental of the car?

[cruisetopoland]

Lease car does sound like a good option then, slow speed twisties are not the place for the Omega really, much better taking them at 80 

What kind of cost are you looking at for the monthly rental of the car?

Company would pay, but examples (plus vat, non-maintained, 10k mpa)
Mine will be slightly more due to higher mpa..

Smart Pulse        £93pcm
New C3 VTR+     £129pcm
Focus TDCi         £159pcm
Superb Greenline £199pcm
C5 HDi VTR+       £209pcm

[tunnie]

Lease car does sound like a good option then, slow speed twisties are not the place for the Omega really, much better taking them at 80 

What kind of cost are you looking at for the monthly rental of the car?

Company would pay, but examples (plus vat, non-maintained, 10k mpa)
Mine will be slightly more due to higher mpa..

Smart Pulse        £93pcm
New C3 VTR+     £129pcm
Focus TDCi         £159pcm
Superb Greenline £199pcm
C5 HDi VTR+       £209pcm

Looks about the best, and if company is paying!

You mention non-maintained, you have to pay that? Guess on a brand new car, apart from standard services costs should be fairly cheap

[Omegadoha, Desert Member]

Take the company car, but hang on to the Omega as you might not get very much for it anyway. Don't forget a lot of improvements you have put into the Omega weren't necessarily reactive repairs.

[davethediver]

It does seem a shame to have to get rid of it but ultimately putting the family finances first is a must 

Having a new car can give you that sense of realiabilty when you get up and don't have to worry about it starting or working out on a monday what you will be fixing/fettling on a saturday.

If you do get rid i hope it goes to a good home 

[cruisetopoland]

Lease car does sound like a good option then, slow speed twisties are not the place for the Omega really, much better taking them at 80 

What kind of cost are you looking at for the monthly rental of the car?

Company would pay, but examples (plus vat, non-maintained, 10k mpa)
Mine will be slightly more due to higher mpa..

Smart Pulse        £93pcm
New C3 VTR+     £129pcm
Focus TDCi         £159pcm
Superb Greenline £199pcm
C5 HDi VTR+       £209pcm

Looks about the best, and if company is paying!

You mention non-maintained, you have to pay that? Guess on a brand new car, apart from standard services costs should be fairly cheap

Company would likely pay up £150pcm, deduct any higher off wages.  They would maintain.

I like the Superb as you may have guessed from my eternal wittering about it, but ££???

[cruisetopoland]

Take the company car, but hang on to the Omega as you might not get very much for it anyway. Don't forget a lot of improvements you have put into the Omega weren't necessarily reactive repairs.

Well put-I have rebuilt it 

[cruisetopoland]

It does seem a shame to have to get rid of it but ultimately putting the family finances first is a must 

Having a new car can give you that sense of realiabilty when you get up and don't have to worry about it starting or working out on a monday what you will be fixing/fettling on a saturday.

If you do get rid i hope it goes to a good home 

Its now 100% reliable, but I do feel I have put it before the family 

[Marks DTM Calib]

I would love to know how you can wangle so little tax....it would be useful for me to!

[r1]

sorry mate but the omega has to go even if you keep it it will still need tax mot insurance etc
face facts it wont to your work job [not a hatch] so waste of time/ money converting it
sell the omega get the wife a small car if she needs it and go for option 5