Volvo XC40
It’s the age old cry for car finance – buyer beware
Running the Volvo has been a steep learning curve for me. Not because it’s an SUV – our Sensible SUV of the Year, in fact. And not because it’s a Volvo. No. The reason I’ve been back to metaphorical school, is that there’s a mileage limit on the XC40. “Please don’t put more than 8,000 miles on it,” Volvo said.
What have I learnt? No, not how to count, but how it feels to be tethered to a very limited mileage. How it feels, in short, to be on either a PCH or PCP finance deal.
The standard PCH and PCP deals allow you to travel 10,000 miles per year. After that you pay anything from 7.56 to 14.9 pence per mile on top when you get to the end of your contract. Ostensibly, I had 6,400 miles over six months – a better deal than PCH or PCP. So how would I fare with these mileage conditions?
Well, taking into account my nonnegotiable mileage (commuting, work photoshoots etc) and after some quick
TopGear maths, I was left with a horribly stark reality: come the weekends, I could do very little any distance away.
So, my earnest request for the roof bars I needed to use to enjoy fun stuff at weekends was irrelevant. The Volvo couldn’t figure in trips to Scotland or Wales to indulge in a spot of canoeing. Nor trips to France for a spot of offroading. Nor trips to the Alps for a few days of skiing. And I feel certain it would have excelled at all of them. Shame.
The point of this is not to moan about missed opportunities, but instead to underline the importance of checking out any finance deal you’re considering. Do due diligence. Make sure that the deal on that amazing car you’re so desperate to have will allow you to actually enjoy it, and not leave you worrying about a big mileage bill, come the end of the contract. Lesson learnt.