GolfGTIforum.co.uk
Model specific boards => Golf mk7 => Topic started by: Mutley75 on 21 January 2019, 23:27
-
What would you buy in the highly unlikely event the naysayers are right and post Brexit it’s either impossible or ludicrously expensive to buy German cars?
I’m firmly in the VAG camp but in the above scenario, all European brands are out except for any which are built on home soil. So if your choice was limited to British, American and Asian cars, what would it be instead of a GTI?
-
Mustang
Or Aston if I won the lottery
-
That would be tricky as has German cars now for years. VW, BMW and Audi has been my last number.
-
What would you buy in the highly unlikely event the naysayers are right and post Brexit it’s either impossible or ludicrously expensive to buy German cars?
Secondhand.
-
This subject is the reason I decided to change early and order a new 245 last October in order to de-risk Brexit as far as cars were concerned.
What surprised and surprises me is how little this has been discussed on the forum.
I think I am one of very few posters who has ever even mentioned the “b” word!
-
I did the same. My pcp wasn’t due till September but with the new model A3/Golf due this year (but possibly not available in the spec I want, with decent discounts in September) and with Brexit uncertainty, I decided to change in March. I suspect Brexit won’t affect availability of German cars and I very much doubt they’ll be subject to tariffs as that will force many buyers to look at Japanese/Korean cars instead. What is likely to happen is further devaluation of the £ vs the Euro which will push prices up in the short term. As for Brexit, I fully expect it to be postponed via extension of article 50 and I wouldn’t be surprised if it doesn’t even happen at all now. .
-
If you take a worse case scenario, which looks like this:
1) There is import duty (ie a tariff) on EU made cars - you'd only do this to protect your domestic market or favour another source of cars (eg USA). We don't have a domestic maker (yet) but we do have foreign car makers assembling in the UK (whether they stay here when they are currently located here to access the EU market is another question). Tariff of probably something like 2.5%, but by no means guaranteed because as I say, tariffs are about protectionism or favouritism.
2) A nasty "B" crashes the pound and exchange rates against the Euro fall massively. More likely and the results of which could be quite huge. The Euro is currently bumping along at just under a pound, a few points of shift will be almost a percentage point each... could easily add 5-10%.
3) A nasty "B" causes mass damage to the UK economy, killing businesses, raising unemployment which then depresses wages - making already expensive imports even more expensive relatively to UK workers. Mass damage most likely caused by increased costs from #1 and #2.
So #1 is controllable by the UK government, the other 2 are not and are driven by market forces.
On the other hand, to prevent this, a forward thinking government could offer someone like VAG or BMW a tax free deal to build a plant in the UK for the UK market. Its probably not a good idea, but it could happen.
I'm going to avoid saying if any of this is good or bad and just stick to impact analysis :D
-
Article in one of last week's papers mentioned Germany are crapping themselves over Brexit as they have 112 billion invested in UK business and economy, Holland are the same.
-
Yeah we need to stop selling ourselves short, we are a massive market and the Gov needs to get a backbone in these negotiations
-
Article in one of last week's papers mentioned Germany are crapping themselves over Brexit as they have 112 billion invested in UK business and economy, Holland are the same.
Keeping things specific here, how much of that is VAG?
What have VAG got invested in the UK apart from a sales operation?
As I said above, how does the UK Government do anything to protect VAG's sales operation in the UK from the exchange rate and the broader economy crash? "tariff free trade" won't do that will it?
-
Brexit..? I think this needs a poll. What could possibly go wrong? :whistle:
-
Article in one of last week's papers mentioned Germany are crapping themselves over Brexit as they have 112 billion invested in UK business and economy, Holland are the same.
Keeping things specific here, how much of that is VAG?
What have VAG got invested in the UK apart from a sales operation?
As I said above, how does the UK Government do anything to protect VAG's sales operation in the UK from the exchange rate and the broader economy crash? "tariff free trade" won't do that will it?
Don’t forget VW own the bentley factory in Crewe and have pumped hundreds of millions into it in last 10 yrs
-
Default is 10% for motor industry, Porsche are already getting customers to agree to pay 10% more in the event of no deal.
-
Default is 10% for motor industry, Porsche are already getting customers to agree to pay 10% more in the event of no deal.
Yes, currently non-EU is 10% but that tariff is of course EU set, whether that sticks is up to the UK government... or the mythical "trade deals" you might see mentioned would be negotiated with particular source countries (or the EU which operates as a single bloc). And that would be on cars (not commercial vehicles).
A trade deal works like that - specific source, specific category of goods... its never usually a blanket tariff...
Have a look at HMRC's site to see just how many different categories of goods there are!!!
-
Indeed, it’s a quagmire. My buddy at Nissan has been told they’re to adopt 10% too.
-
I can’t see it happening. Even if there’s no deal... there will very swiftly follow a deal of some sort. Too many vested interests. There might be a load of uncertainty March through September though. Hence why I dodged that bullet and went with a March purchase even at the expense of missing out on the mk8. Which itself is full of uncertainty with regards to price and appearance.
-
The Germans and French want to keep selling us their cars. There'll be an agreement on that score, or they'll make cars in their non-EU plants for the UK market.
The Polo is now made in South Africa and shipped to Emden for "QC checks" which are probably enough to be officially partially made in the EU to avoid tariffs. They then get shipped to the UK from Emden. No deal would mean those Polos would likely not go to Emden first, but direct to the UK instead.
-
Oh everything will "find a way" once the actual scenario firms up into something solid. Companies want to make money and they will adapt and change to whatever comes along.
Its just a question of how long that process takes... you don't say build a car plant in the UK or somewhere else over night.
In the same way WW2 damage was repaired and we carried on... it happened... over decades... and in the meantime things were a bit miserable.
Looking at just buying German cars though is just a microcosm of the wider problem.
I'm less worried about that than other impacts - I can always keep my current car until it breaks or until the dust settles.
-
Aaaargh, what did I do mentioning B*****!?!?
Let’s stop and get back to the original poster’s question.
My answer is :
As a massive VAG fan (7 iterations of Audi, Skoda and VW in 14 years).........I have no idea what I would buy instead!
-
Ignoring the B word...
I wandered the car world for years before I finally got a Golf. I like my Golf a lot, not for being fast, but being everything I wanted - practical, big enough but not too big, reliable, the tech thats useful and helps me across hundreds of miles a week, comfortable enough not to leave me mangled.
What else fits the bill? I looked hard after the Mk7 and the choices were finally my own after being liberated from the company car scheme....
Could I find something else that fit the bill? Nope.
Its not even a particularly demanding list! Probably the hardest part is fitting the total cost of ownership into my budget. A cheaper car actually costs more in depreciation...
Choosing something not from the EU probably wouldn't help either, but if I did? Assuming they stay, probably the best bet would be a Nissan or a Honda of some kind.
-
Hyundai i30n would be on my radar.
-
Hyundai i30n would be on my radar.
Me too... but I've not driven one yet. Maybe the new sportback version but only when it comes as DCT later this year.
Failing that a Type R, which although is more expensive now, it probably will price match the GTI after B....
-
Are they putting an auto or dsg your box in the Hyundai? It comes fully loaded with everything apart from climate windscreen which I'd quite like on my next car.
-
Are they putting an auto or dsg your box in the Hyundai? It comes fully loaded with everything apart from climate windscreen which I'd quite like on my next car.
Yes, DCT (aka "DSG") later in 2019.
Which hopefully would also bring ACC, which it doesn't have on manual (I said elsewhere, only VAG have ACC on manual gearboxes, nobody else)
-
👍👍
-
As I found out, the i30N is just really expensive on finance and even as an outright purchase. Little in the way of discounts.
-
As I found out, the i30N is just really expensive on finance and even as an outright purchase. Little in the way of discounts.
sh!t residuals like every other non German car... As I said earlier, that's one of my drivers in car ownership.
-
As I found out, the i30N is just really expensive on finance and even as an outright purchase. Little in the way of discounts.
sh!t residuals like every other non German car... As I said earlier, that's one of my drivers in car ownership.
Couldn’t agree more. Shame as it’s a good drive too.
-
As I found out, the i30N is just really expensive on finance and even as an outright purchase. Little in the way of discounts.
sh!t residuals like every other non German car... As I said earlier, that's one of my drivers in car ownership.
Couldn’t agree more. Shame as it’s a good drive too.
I looked longingly at the GT86 before buying my Mk7.5.... longing right up until I looked beyond the sticker price and into total cost of ownership....
-
As I found out, the i30N is just really expensive on finance and even as an outright purchase. Little in the way of discounts.
sh!t residuals like every other non German car... As I said earlier, that's one of my drivers in car ownership.
Couldn’t agree more. Shame as it’s a good drive too.
I looked longingly at the GT86 before buying my Mk7.5.... longing right up until I looked beyond the sticker price and into total cost of ownership....
Eugh... and the hideous plasticky interior and (despite exterior looks) 0-60 time of 2 1/2 weeks lol.
-
Managed to get 10.5% discount on carwow for the i30N performance but the finance rate is 5.9%!
-
Glad I'm not in this boat, but if I was:
1.) Civic Type R and get the dealer to remove the wing (apparently dealers are doing this here in Aus if requested)
2.) i30n.
-
I'd have my testicles removed with a rusty blade rather than have a civic type R. It just looks hideous :sick:
-
It’s certainly chalk & cheese with the Golf :grin:
-
I'd have my testicles removed with a rusty blade rather than have a civic type R. It just looks hideous :sick:
Where did I put my razor....? :wink:
I thought so too, but have somewhat changed my mind after seeing it in the metal. But I'd have to jettison that wing. I don't love the design, but don't hate it. I could tolerate the styling for the driving experience.
-
The look of the type-R has grown on me. I don't think I'd utterly reject it like I did when I first saw it.
I've not seen inside one though, not even through the window.
-
The look of the type-R has grown on me. I don't think I'd utterly reject it like I did when I first saw it.
I've not seen inside one though, not even through the window.
Sat inside one on the Honda stand at the bike show live and must say, the seats are absolutely amazing, and the whole cockpit feels built around the driver. Even more so than my S2000 felt all those years ago..
But from the outside. No, no and no. Wouldn't be taken seriously pulling up to work meetings driving one of those!
-
Sat inside one on the Honda stand at the bike show live and must say, the seats are absolutely amazing, and the whole cockpit feels built around the driver. Even more so than my S2000 felt all those years ago..
But from the outside. No, no and no. Wouldn't be taken seriously pulling up to work meetings driving one of those!
Maybe a wrap might fix that.... like this:
(https://twistedsifter.files.wordpress.com/2010/02/zebra-striped-camouflage.jpg?w=594&h=396)
-
This thread highlights what a crap choice we have if we want a hot hatch and can’t have a German car nowadays.
I’d go secondhand.
Although the i30N is interesting and the Honda could be very tempting if the competition was removed.
-
So if we look at Hot Hatches more broadly, we have cars from:
Renault (EU)
VAG (EU)
Peugeot (EU)
Mercedes (EU)
BMW (EU)
Hyundai (Korea)
Honda (UK ironically)
Suburu (Korea)
Ford (but produced in the EU?)
Mini (ok its BMW but...) UK (for now, who knows soon!)
Did I miss any? Vauxhall don't make one any more but if they did, it would be in the EU...
The logical choice would be a Honda or a Mini
-
My choice would be a new Ford Focus or Fiesta.....but they are made in Germany now I believe :sad:
-
Does everyone on here HAVE to have a new car?
-
I but if you can afford it, why not?
-
Does everyone on here HAVE to have a new car?
Its the one time when my wife doesn't moan at me for having a dirty car.... don't take that moment of peace away from me!
-
It's not about affording it. There are much more expensive used cars should you choose one, plus it can often be cheaper to rent/finance a new car over a given term, than a used equivalent.
It strikes me that most in this section of the forum are serial new car 'buyers' and would never consider anything used and maybe a little more interesting. Perhaps it's the safety net of the warranty, fixed service plans and no MOT? Hardly the ways of an enthusiast.
-
I've had used cars... and old cars....
For me my Golf is reliable transport with manageable fixed costs. Thats why its new and replaced every 3 years.
-
For me it’s simply PCP. While I’m happy to drop 3k and £300 a month on a car, I’m not happy to drain £15-30k out of my savings account for a car. New cars on pcp get manufacturer contributions and reasonable APRs. The TCO over the term is cheaper than buying a 2-3 year old used car of the equivalent model. Plus I have car OCD and I’m incredibly fussy. I don’t want someone else’s mangled alloys or dusty air vents! 😭
-
Does everyone on here HAVE to have a new car?
My current and previous car were new (admittedly the current was technically second hand as 3 months old but near enough I think for this discussion) but my last one I kept for 12 years, not sure how long I'll keep this one for but it's been over three years now and I'm still very happy with it. I need a reliable car for commuting (as I do shifts) and I use my car for regular UK holidays. I also don't like the last minute pre-holiday mechanical maladies that can occur anymore, not fun! Although yes I kept my last car a long time and therefore I could've bought a secondhand one, with one from new I know exactly what has and has not been done to it which also aids for some peace of mind.
Having said all that, I'm not comfortable with the way cars are going technology wise, much of it to me seems unnecessary and just expensive stuff to go wrong. My next car could well be something older, I'll have to weigh up the pros and cons of the issues I've stated and see how I feel. Now, if I had the space then I would get myself a classic or two as I do like tinkering but so long as they weren't daily drivers :smiley:
-
If I couldn’t get a Vw I’d go for the i30N. I’d just have to put up with the harsh ride and hope my teeth don’t fall out.