In Review; Mercedes A180d AMG Line 5dr (Diesel/ Auto)

A big thank you to our long-standing personal lease customer from Whitchurch (Cardiff) for sending through pictures of their new luxury hatchback – the Mercedes A Class.

One of the leading leasing deals from 2018, the Mercedes hatchback continues to grow in popularity across the UK and will almost certainly be one of the best-selling contract hire vehicles of 2019. With a strong brand, aesthetically impressive and incredibly cost effective,

Merc have created themselves a perfect car. In particular, with political and economic certainty, they have a vehicle which is almost recession-proof; with a range of economical diesel engines through to high-powered petrol derivatives, they have an offering in a number of segments.

Indeed, our customer database shows that a huge number of very different personal and business users are taking this car – young and older drivers alike. It’s now over to Audi and BMW to counter this trend.

As we have been discussing in many of our recent blogs, as contract hire continues to grow as the foremost way to operate a new car, there a number of misnomers/misunderstandings which have arisen. This became clear with the customer here, as we entered into a situation where their current vehicle had a number of months’ remaining and yet they wanted to proceed with a new offer on the diesel A Class.

So can I return my lease car early? Can I upgrade my lease car during the contract?

To simplify this matter, it needs to be understood that contract hire is a fixed term contract based on 2, 3 or 4 years (and with anything in-between). Contract hire is fundamentally all about certainty of a) term; and b) price. When a quotation is prepared for you at the outset of the contract this is done based upon your individual bespoke requirements; we don’t pluck figures out of thin air nor do we operate set pricing structures (which arises in the car hire industry). So often we hear – “how much would it be to lease a Mercedes/Ford/Kia?” With respect, that would be like us asking a mortgage broker “how much is the monthly payment on that house” but without saying how much deposit we had, how long the mortgage was required for, what our credit situation was and what type of mortgage we require.

As a leasing broker we face exactly the same challenge in that we tailor a quotation to meet your needs and requirements; while this may add 5-10 minutes to the conversation, we would prefer to offer our customers something which is completely suitable.

When you provide an annual mileage, initial rental amount (what people refer to as a “deposit”) and a term, the quotation and any corresponding order/contract will be based on this information. The contract is then fixed on this information, as the finance company have provided you with a set price based on the anticipated value of the vehicle.

Bear in mind that at the end of the contract, the car will be collected and then sold at an auction.

Contract hire is not a purchase style product. The advantage to this “fixed” contract, is that if anything changes which affects your vehicle’s value, this will never influence your monthly rental cost. Certainty of price is something which most other finance products on cars cannot provide.

However, the “price” of certainty is flexibility. What this means is that lease agreements cannot be simply be stopped at any time, whether to return the vehicle or to upgrade it. If you do want to step away from the agreement, there will be cost-penalties in most cases. As a credit-broker, we operate alongside a limited number of finance companies who each have their own terms and conditions. This includes their approach to early terminations. In some cases, the finance company will charge an amount equivalent of half of the remaining rentals in order to return the vehicle. However, a limited number of finance companies will look at the vehicle’s value against the rentals outstanding – if they can allow you to walk away without a cost, they may do so. For some of our existing customers, we may be able to assist with this process, depending upon their early termination costs and the vehicle they require.

Regardless of whether you are returning your vehicle or upgrading it for a new one, the same early termination applies. Contract hire is not a flexible (without-cost) finance product.

Mercedes-Benz A CLASS DIESEL HATCHBACK A180d AMG Line 5dr [Auto] Car Leasing

Mercedes-Benz A CLASS DIESEL HATCHBACK A180d AMG Line 5dr [Auto] Car Leasing Select Options

Mercedes-Benz A CLASS DIESEL HATCHBACK A180d AMG Line 5dr [Auto] Car Leasing Best Deals

Mercedes-Benz A CLASS DIESEL HATCHBACK A180d AMG Line 5dr [Auto] Car Leasing Information

In terms of the car shown, the Mercedes-Benz A CLASS DIESEL HATCHBACK A180d AMG Line 5dr [Auto], this is based on the following configuration:

· Iridium Silver Metallic Paint
· Artico leather/Microfibre Dinamica – Black with red stitching
· Dinamica microfibre trim in black
· 18″ AMG 5 twin spoke light alloy wheels in titanium grey with highsheen finish

As standard the car includes blue tinted glass, rain sensor windscreen wipers, active brake assist with forward collision warning, adaptive brake assist with hold function and hill start assist, brake calliper with Mercedes lettering, ESP curve dynamic assist, AMG floor mats, hard-disk navigation, 180 degree rear view camera, active lane keep assist, attention assist, cruise control, stop/start system, a 7” instrument panel, 7” media display, Mercedes me connect, DAB radio, body coloured externals, MBUX multimedia system, headlamp assist automatic, LED headlamps/rail lamps/brake light, 3-spoke flat bottomed steering wheel with perforated leather, stainless steel floor pedals, gearshift paddles on steering wheel, 18” alloy wheels, sports eats, keyless go, alarm system with interior protection and immobiliser and seat comfort pack. With the exception of the trim or colour, there are no further additional factory options which you can add to the vehicle. You could however upgrade to one of the packs – Executive, Premium or Premium Plus, which each add an array of additional specification.

On the technical-side, the company car and business users can note the P11d at £29,100.00 and CO2 at 111g/km. The 1461CC 8 speed auto diesel engine delivers 67.3 combined MPG (EC), 48.9 combined MPG (WLTP), 116ps and 0-62 times of 10.5 seconds. Service intervals on the new diesel A-Class are every 12 months or 15,500 miles, whichever lands sooner.