Thank you to our leading BMW supplier, BMW Park Lane, for sending this beautiful SUV the BMW X3 to the CarLease UK for one our business leasing customers to test-drive.
As a credit-broker, not a supplier, the cars we offer to our customers do not get delivered from our premises – we do not have a forecourt, garages, mechanics and delivery agents! When you are organising a new car with a leasing broker, what you need to understand is that they are a) not the finance company; and b) not the supplier of the vehicle.
In almost all cases, they are an intermediary who will facilitate the ordering of a vehicle with a franchised dealer and who establish finance on the vehicle with one of their selected funder partners. As such, selecting the best BMW supplier for our customers is paramount. Without doubt, the team at BMW Park Lane offer this every time – dedicated account management, demo/test-drive programmes for customers, transported delivery for every vehicle and a superb after-sales service which ensures any issues or problems are managed expediently.
Working to the highest standards is paramount for our business. While we never profess to be the cheapest we do want to ensure we offer the best experience!
The customer in question (who is using the car) is an existing leasing customer of ours. Historically they have always “self-maintained” their vehicles whereas for the next transaction they are going to be doing something slightly different.
This does raise a good question – does leasing include all servicing and maintenance? When customers are new to the process, one of the first queries raised is what is the position on looking after the car or van – what do they need to organise and pay for? With contract hire you have two main decisions:
1. Driver-maintained; or
2. Funder-maintained
A driver-maintained contract is one where the customer, personal or business, will organise all of the servicing, maintenance and tyres on a vehicle (in addition to the fuel and insurance). The contract they have put in place will simply be a fixed contract for the car over 2, 3 or 4 years.
This means that the driver must ensure that the car is serviced in accordance with the manufacturers recommendations (to preserve the warranty), maintain the vehicle, change the tyres in the case of a puncture/wear and tear and also organise any breakdown recovery if the manufacturer provision has run out.
The most important thing to note is that you need to check with the credit broker or finance company as to their conditions for maintaining the vehicle. In some cases, you will able to maintained the vehicle at ANY Vat registered garage using genuine parts whereas in other cases you have to go to a franchised dealer to organise all servicing and maintenance.
Before you take out a car or van lease you need to work out the costs involved.
In contrast, if you go for a funder-maintained contract, you will have all of the servicing, maintenance and tyres accounted for. This is for customers who want a certainty of cost and who want to ensure they are responsible for the fuel and insurance on the vehicle only. Again, do check with the broker or finance company as to the exact provisions of the maintenance agreement. In some cases, the finance company will offer a collection service for your car when it needs its servicing, they will change your tyres if they have a puncture (“no quibble”) or they will offer breakdown recovery for the duration.
Every finance company is different and you need to ask exactly what is included within your package to ensure this meets your needs and requirements.
In terms of the car shown here, the BMW X3 DIESEL ESTATE xDrive20d M Sport 5dr Step Auto, this is based on the following configuration:
· Black Sapphire Metallic Paint
· High gloss black shadow line roof rails
· Vernasca leather – Black with contrast stitching
· Digital cockpit
· M Sport Plus pack – X3 (Harmon/Kardon, M Sport Braking and Sun Protection Glass)
· 19″ M double spoke light alloy wheels – style 698M in bicolour ferric grey
As standard the car includes LED headlights, park assist system, cruise control, Bluetooth, reversing camera, leather upholstery, electric power steering with servotronic, green tinted heat glass, rain sensing wipers, automatic differential brake, cornering brake control, dynamic traction control, hill descent control, hill start assist, front/rear parking control, automatic tailgate operation, velour floor mats, navigation system (professional), real time traffic information, 6.5” monitor, auto dimming mirror, body coloured electric adjustable door mirrors, follow me home headlights, LED daytime lights, climate control, gearshift paddles, M sport multifunction steering wheel, 40/20/40 folding rear seat, crash sensor, heated front seats, warning triangle and first aid kit and Thatcham cat 1 alarm. In terms of additional options, to make the X3 perfect consider – sun protection glass and the Harmon Kardon sound system.
On the technical-side, the car shown has a P11d of £44,645.00 an CO2 of 144g/km. For company car and business users, do note this for your company car tax calculations. The 1995CC 8 speed auto engine delivers 51.4 combined MPG, 190ps and 0-62 times of 8 seconds. Service intervals on a diesel X3 are every 24 months or 18,000 miles, whichever lands sooner. Do use this when working out your position on driver vs funder-maintained contracts.
So would the BMW X3 be your select car leasing option? Or would the Audi Q3, Volvo XC60 or Mercedes GLC? Even a new BMW X2 might get your vote.
Find the webs best lease deals on the new BMW X3 right here @CarLease UK – you might also like our other SUV reviews and diesel reviews.
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