Deals to shatter the quiet
THREE of the UK’s most affordable car ranges are to be the subject of price cuts, deposit contributions and special deals in the traditionally quiet period during the run-up towards Christmas.
Dacia, Skoda and Renault have announced financial incentives worth up to £3,000 on some models, with the added bonus of cheap or even free finance.
In the case of Renault, the free finance offer applies to a wide range of vehicles including the Clio, Captur, Kadjar, Megane, Megane Sport Tourer, Scenic, Grand Scenic and Koleos.
The finance period is three years and the deal is on offer until the end of this year. It means that the Clio is up for grabs for a monthly payment of £130, which works out at about a fiver a day, meaning it is probably cheaper than catching a bus or train to work.
The same three-year deal makes a Kadjar available for just £200 a month. The new Scenic with 20-inch alloy wheels and active emergency braking with pedestrian detection now included is £220 a month.
Renault’s electric offering is the ZOE, which comes with a 7kW Wall-Box home charger now included in the price of £18,170, plus battery hire. The vehicle becomes available with a four-year 4.9% finance rate on a PCP. The car now has a 250 miles range, and can be bought with a deposit of £2,500 and monthly payments of £250 including battery hire.
To finance the vehicle without battery hire there is an offer available on the “full purchase” ZOE-i Dynamique R90 Z.E. 40, which is available with a deposit of £4,500 and payments of £250 a month, based on a four-year 4.9% Selections PCP.
Renault’s sister company Dacia is giving a five-year warranty on vehicles financed through the RCI Dacia Dimensions Scheme, on a four-year PCP or HP deal.
The five-year warranty usually costs £395 as an upgrade from the standard three years. With a deposit contribution of £1,250 for diesel versions and £250 for petrol models, the four-year PCP package for the Duster dCi 110 4x2 in Lauréate trim costs £200 per month with a deposit of £1,683.
Recently declared probably the UK’s cheapest car to own, the Dacia Sandero now gets a four-year PCP deal on the Ambiance SCe 75 five-door hatchback costing £90 a month with a customer deposit of £1,360 and comes with the five-year extended warranty.
The Dacia Sandero Stepway small SUV attracts a £600 deposit contribution for diesel versions when bought on a four-year PCP deal and £400 on petrol versions, costing £100 a month with a deposit of £2,295 for the Ambiance TCe 90 version with the five-year extended warranty.
A scrappage allowance of up to £1,000 on a new Duster can be combined with Dacia’s existing PCP or HP finance offers, meaning a total saving of up to £2,250. Drivers taking advantage of the scrappage scheme must trade in a car that is registered before 2010 and owned in their name for more than 90 days. The vehicles will then be destroyed.
Meanwhile, Skoda is another brand with a reputation for affordability and is offering deposit contributions of up to £3,000 and low-rate finance packages.
The biggest savings are on Octavia and Superb models, which get deposit contributions of £3,000 and a 4.9% interest rate. Kodiaq and Fabia models come with a £2,000 deposit contribution. Fabia buyers are offered a 2.9% finance rate against the Kodiaq rate of 5.5%, while Rapid buyers get the same lower interest rate of 2.9% plus a deposit contribution of £1,800, whilst the updated Citigo comes with a £1,000 deposit contribution and the 2.9% APR.
The Yeti can be driven away with a £1,500 deposit contribution and free finance, although the offer applies to current stock models only.
Even Skoda’s forthcoming new SUV, the Karoq is available with a deposit contribution from the company of £1,500 when bought with a PCP, although the finance rate is 6.1%.
Deliveries are set to start in January and order books are now open. There’s also a Skoda scrappage deal for diesel models registered before 2010.
Incentives range from £1,500 to £4,000 and are available to use against the majority of new SKODA models ordered by the end of the year. Buyers must have owned the trade-in vehicle for at least six months.