Holding on to your older car might save you money in cheaper running costs

More motorists are driving around in new year-10 plate vehicles as new car sales for 2010 have already surpassed the poor figures during the whole of 2009, thanks mainly to the Governments car scrappage scheme.

However, a new publication called ‘The Bangernomics Bible’ informs a person that driving around in a 10-year-old banger also has its benefits.

The book is full of useful tips for running an older car for next to nothing. Author James Ruppert, a motoring journalist and former car salesperson said, “There has been a growing trend for car buyers to convince themselves that it is a matter of urgency to replace their cars every three years or sometimes less, with another new car.”

The theory behind the book is trying to encourage people to buy and run an older vehicle, even if they can afford a new one, or keep the car they have for as long as possible.

The logic behind this is that after being on the road for five years or more, the vehicle has already lost the vast majority of its value and it is close to hitting the bottom of its depreciation in value ‘curve’. According to Rupperts theory, it means the car will not lose anything close to the depreciation value as a new or nearly new car would.

The managing director of a car fleet provider said of the concept, “For my last three cars I have tried to buy it new and turn it around every year, which cost about €2,000 each time. However, the last new car I bought, in 2007, was a Range Rover Sport and it absolutely nose-dived. I am three years in now. I have about €45,000 outstanding on it and its now worth about €35,000 in the market. It is an interesting concept but it assumes that the motivation behind buying a car is purely financial. There is a lot of other emotional stuff that goes with buying a new car.”

One motorist from Portlaoise owns a 1996 Nissan Micra that was bought in 2002 for €3,500 with almost 40,000 miles on the clock. Eights years on and with 134,000 miles behind it, the car is still running smoothly, only being serviced once a year.

The car owner estimates that is costs less than €600 a year to run in tax, servicing and motor insurance and has no plans to trade it in, despite the scrappage deals that have been on offer. They said, “The way I look at it, it runs perfectly, does what it needs to and is worth very little to anyone else. That whole concept of ‘why fix it if it is not broken’, kind of fits the situation.”