The best executive saloon to lease – does the Alfa Romeo Giulia get mentioned in this discussion?
We were recently reviewing the Audi A4 and asking the question about the best mid-sized prestige company car i.e. would you go Audi, BMW, Mercedes or Jaguar or perhaps Lexus.
However, would the Italian manufacturer Alfa Romeo form part of your review? Will this ever be a key part of the company car market?
While we do get some interest in the Giulia and the Stelvio (SUV), we finds that many customers are interested in the petrol performance options, for example our offer on the Alfa Romeo Giulia 2.0 TB 280 Veloce or, for those with a considered budget, the Quadrifoglio – this being a 2.9 V6 BiTurbo 510hp option!
Would a diesel option be enough to turn you away from the German staples which are often procured on leasing deals between £300 to £400 per month? As a leasing broker, not a lender or dealership, we sit in the middle of all of this and while we are on hand to assist our customers we do not provide advice as to which car is the “best”.
It’s fair to say that are not too many bad cars and so this is very much down to subjective opinion as to which is correct for your needs and requirements.
Some of our more exciting performance car lease deals do bring a younger crowd, in particular via our Instagram account (@carleaseuk ). One of the first questions we do get asked is – what is the criteria for leasing a car? Can anyone lease a car? What confuses most customers is that not every industry is as clinically honest as ours – we are clear about the products we offer, how they operate and how you can apply to enjoy them.
You will see other automotive businesses advertising “leasing” when this is either a car rental or PCP style arrangement. These are not the same and these do need consideration when you are reviewing deals online, as you do need to be clear on what you are signing up to.
With CarLease UK you are looking at long-term contract hire, which is a fixed usership contract for between 2 and 4 years. To answer the questions efficiently – this is not a short-term contract and you do need to have excellent credit to procure a vehicle.
So is there an age limit? As a credit agreement, you must be aged 18 or older but unlike other car products, we don’t have strict guides for age i.e. you must be 21 or 25 years or older to proceed.
The difficulty for younger drivers is that they do not have much credit history by virtue of their age. This is why we often suggest to customers that they should get an credit report if they are unsure about that element.
What customers need to understand is that the underwriter from the selected finance company will be reviewing:
1) A Willingness to Pay – this is about the credit history of an individual and they will look as to how the customer has performed with other credit providers in terms of payment/missed payments plus they will be able to see what existing and settled accounts are on file. For those customers on the electoral register, who have a mortgage and who have paid their credit agreements on time, passing this element of the checks should be more than achievable. However, for those customers, in particular younger drivers, this may be an issue due to limited credit history;
2) An Ability to Pay – this is separate to the above and is about the income and expenditure section of our proposal form. This is about reviewing the financial condition and health of the customer and ascertaining whether or not the lease is an affordable proposition. For example, if a customer has £300 surplus income after their normal monthly expenditure, a £700 per month Range Rover is unlikely to be accepted. If the finance company is concerned that the arrangement could lead to financial hardship or distress, they will not allow the application to continue.
What is crucial about our proposal form is that the customer completes this as accurately and honestly as is possible. What we, and the finance company, need to avoid is for a customer to take a contract which is not suitable for their needs and requirements or to try to procure our product on a fraudulent basis.
This is why “no credit check” lease deals simply do not exist and do not follow the strict protocol which has been put in place by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
For a younger driver needing information on credit, joint application of parental guarantees, just get in touch with our team here.
In terms of the car shown here, the Alfa Romeo Giulia 2.2 JTDM-2 180 Tecnica 4dr Auto, this is based on the following configuration:
· Metallic – Vulcano black
· Cloth/leather – Black
· 17″ alloy wheels
In terms of the latest model year trims, you have the following options:
· Super – the base model offers 8.8” navigation, Apple CarPlay, 17” alloys, fog lights, lane departure warning, rear parking sensors, leather steering wheel and ambient LED lights;
· Nero Edizione – this adds 18” alloys, dark gloss and finish exterior, sports pedals, black window surrounds, lighting pack, steering wheel controls;
· Speciale – this amends the 18” alloys, offers slightly different styling and interior, electrically adjustable and folding mirrors and the sports pack; and
· Veloce – the top model will add a convenience pack, bi-xenon lights, upgraded braking system, autonomous braking, electrically adjustable driver and passenger seat, front parking sensors, steering wheel paddles and heated front seats.
As standard the car shown offers cruise control, cloth/leather upholstery, 8 speaker audio system, leather steering wheel, 17” alloys, automatic wipers, privacy glass, traction control, ABS, front/rear parking sensors, forward collision warning, lane departure warning, rear view camera, 7” display, connect 8.8” navigation display, electrically adjustable and folding door mirrors, DAB radio, automatic headlights, daytime running lights, climate control, multifunction steering wheel, autonomous emergency braking, climate pack, immobiliser, 6-way electrically adjustable seats and a start button. In terms of the additional specification consider adding – apple carplay, Harmon Kardon sound system and 18” alloys.
On the technical-side, company car and business users can note the P11d at £32,735.01 and CO2 at 109g/km. The 2143CC 8 speed auto diesel engine delivers 67.3 MPG combined (EC), 180ps and 0-62 times of 7.1 seconds.
So would the Alfa be your select leasing option? Or would the German alternative saloon cars be your preferred choices?
Find the webs best lease deals on the Alfa Romeo Giulia @CarLease UK – or – check out more saloon cars below…
