New buyers favour new models

New research has found that over half of those looking to purchase a car for the first time are looking to buy a brand new car on finance or through a leasing agreement instead of an older model with more miles on the clock.

Minimal maintenance costs and status amongst friends topped the list as to why first time drivers are choosing to splash out a little more on their first car.

There seems to be a shift in how new drivers treat buying a new car, choosing to instead pay more for their first time car upfront, saving money on maintenance costs in the future, a new study would suggest. Furthermore it was found that the average Briton looking to buy a first-time car is willing to part with £6,500 on average.

In a study conducted by VoucherCodesPro, 2,112 drivers all aged 18 and over were quizzed. Each participant had a full UK drivers licence and revealed to researchers that they were planning to a buy a car for the first time within the next six months.

Initially all respondents were asked if they’d done any research so far into the car they plan to buy, to which 41% stated they had not. When presented with the question, ‘Are you planning on buying a used car or a newer model?’ over half, 52%, stated they were looking at buying a newer car instead of a used one.

The reasons for this were cheaper maintenance costs (27%), finance options (24%), status (19%), lack of trust for used car seller (17%), reliability (seven per cent).

George Charles, spokesperson for VoucherCodesPro, said, ‘The age of the first time banger is fading quickly. Granted, they used to be a good idea; a cheap car you could drive until the engine fell out, and then just drop it in the scrap yard certainly had an appeal, but these days cars are so much cheaper, with multiple finance options for all people with different incomes.’