Who is that Highwayman ?

I am not playing at being a Highwayman (irritation of the eye from my accident 6 years ago) but someone else was a highwayman last year……

Can you remember what George Osbourne announced about car Tax all that time ago, is it highway robbery.

I have been reading up on it, as it’s all change from April 1st and over time this will affect 99% of us who drive a non-electric car as road fund licence changes drastically for cars registered from April 1st this year.

Even our 1.0 Fiesta which has a nil road fund licence now will go up to costing £540 for the first 4 years driving. 

Being as most cars get a hefty hike in road fund licence, Ford have come up with some great offers to incentivise anyone looking to change their car this year to do it early, before March 31st.

For example, we have just advertised a New Fiesta Zetec on Facebook for Just

£9995, It’s been many year’s since we have been able to get below £10,000 on a car that is not a basic model, this example can only be achieved for cars registered before January 31st though, so you must move quickly to get this offer. That’s £3550 saving.

On the Ford Focus we have examples of over £5500 in savings if you take the £4000 deposit contribution into account, I won’t list them all here but there are fantastic offers across the range.

0% finance is also available on most our models now, with threats of interest rates rising in the future, this is a great way to locking your interest rate now for the term of the agreement, once we have agreed the rate it is fixed for the term, so why not benefit from this before March 31st and not only get the low road fund licence but lock your finance to 0%. See the example below.

So far, I have talked about it all happening before the end of March, but now it says January! And I will explain

1. All manufacturers and motor industry bodies are predicting January to March being the biggest new car market ever and this will cause a shortage of cars, so if you want a car for March order now.

2. There is a change to company car tax on April 1st as well as road fund licence so a lot of companies are getting their orders in now, this is not helping stock issues, there is a lot more to choose from in January.

3. We would always like to supply you with what you would like, not what we have available and leaving it until February or March will be too late.

4. We have some extra bonuses in January, so prices are a lot more attractive, for example the Fiesta offer above we cannot do in February or March it will be £400 more if there is any stock left.

So here is the difference that the road fund licence makes

We now have the best SUV line up Ford has ever produced, with the Ecosport, New 2017 Kuga (yes it’s changed) and the Ford Edge, all these cars have up to £1500 deposit contribution from Ford credit and they have a 0% offer available.

We also have some demonstrators of these SUV’s for sale with some great savings available

Ford Edge Sport 2.0 TDci Powershift Automatic with extras of LED Headlights, Front Camera, Panoramic roof Active Park Assist and Blind spot recognition in Ruby Red, the new car price for this is £40,075 we now have this for sale for £32,000

Save over £8000.00

This Kuga 2.0 TDci Titanium X 180ps, All wheel drive when it feels the need, has a wealth of extra equipment Active city stop, Appearance Pack, Convienience Pack, Family Pack, Sync 2 DAB Navigation, 19” Alloys and rear view camera, the price new £32,205 Now just 4 months old £26000

Save over £6000.00

We also have demonstrator Fiesta and Focus (over £7500 savings on some Focus) for sale that must go this January and will all have the benefit of the lower road fund licence, just call in for details.

For more information on any of these offers our phone numbers are at the base of each page, or email Jeff or Scott at Bicester Ford on 01869 323272   jeff@bicesterford.co.uk or James at Buckingham Ford on 01280 812121 james@buckinghamford.co.uk 

We hope to see you really soon.

Regards

   Ian

PS Don’t forget, If you were considering changing your car this year, January could be the month for you.

PPS Your part exchange will be worth more in January than any other time this year.

Do you remember what happened in last summer’s Budget?

No - Nor did I, but the former Chancellor of the Exchequer announced a radical overhaul of the UK’s system for taxing cars, with some going up dramatically, and it all happens from 1st April 2017.

Here’s some of the headlines:
The vehicle excise duty (VED) or road tax or road fund licence, as it’s sometimes called, will still have 13 different CO2 bands for new cars which will determine how much you pay in the first year of ownership.  But going forward only electric cars with zero emissions will qualify for the lowest band therefore being tax free.

Except for these zero emission cars any vehicle costing less than £40,000 will be paying £140 a year after the first year, regardless of whether they are Hybrid, Petrol or Diesel.

Why do you mention £40,000 I hear you ask?  Well over this figure cars will attract a premium fee of £310 a year for years two to five of ownership, regardless of the CO2 emissions, so that is £450 a year for 4 years.

Of course with Ford as a new car we don’t have much to worry about on the £40,000 list price new duty, but these changes still have a relative bearing on some of our range, for example 

Over the first four years of ownership
Example 1: Fiesta 1.0 Ecoboost if taxed before the 1st April it will be Zero but after the first of April that will become £540

Example 2: Focus 1.0 125ps Ecoboost if taxed before the 1st April it will be £120 but after the first of April that will become £560.

Although this is a big hike in yearly cost if you are paying nothing at the moment, it will have a bigger effect if you buy a car in excess of £40,000 with CO2 of over 255 as after April 1st you will be paying £2000 in the first year and £450 for the next four years.

What should I do? Well, if you don’t think you will be changing your car soon, nothing, as the tax due on your current car does not change. If you were thinking of changing your car this year act now and get one before the 1st of April 2017, and save yourself some money over the coming years.

The one thing you should do before buying any car though is to make sure you understand the new system.

VED for cars registered after the 1^st April 2017

CO2 emissions in g/km	First year rate	Standard rate
0	£0	£0
1-50	£10	£140
51-75	£25	£140
76-90	£100	£140
91-100	£120	£140
101-110	£140	£140
111-130	£160	£140
131-150	£200	£140
151-170	£500	£140
171-190	£800	£140
191-225	£1,200	£140
226-255	£1,700	£140
Over 255	£2,000	£140

The table below is for all cars registered between 1 March 2001 and 31 March 2017.

VED Band	CO2 Emissions	Annual rate	First year rate
A	Up to 100 g/km	£0	£0
B	101-110 g/km	£20	£0
C	111-120 g/km	£30	£0
D	121-130 g/km	£110	£0
E	131-140 g/km	£130	£130
F	141-150 g/km	£145	£145
G	151-165 g/km	£185	£185
H	166-175 g/km	£210	£300
I	176-185 g/km	£230	£355
J	186-200 g/km	£270	£500
K*	201-225 g/km	£295	£650
L	226-255 g/km	£500	£885
M	Over 255 g/km	£515	£1,120

Could it really be -20 pounds & degrees in Buckingham and Bicester

Did you see the weather warning headline yesterday put out by the Express newspaper?

SNOW BOMB: Wall of SNOW to SMASH UK as deadly blizzards hit in COLDEST freeze for 53 YEARS

BRITAIN faces a historic CHRISTMAS WHITEOUT with “dangerous" blizzards and near record-low temperatures threatening the worst festive freeze for half a century.

I don’t know how true this is, it’s in a national newspaper so who knows, I have checked a few weather sights and they’re all a bit woolly about a white Christmas, so rather than have our customers getting into trouble over the festive period I thought I would send you a little guide on what you need to pay attention to.

Antifreeze – Did you know it weakens with age (I know how it feels) and becomes less effective, when was the last time yours was checked or replaced?

Washer bottles – with the roads giving off so much spray in winter, keeping the windscreen clean Is very important on any journey, during and after a cold snap we see many people with split washer bottles where the wrong fluid or water mixture has frozen and expanded the bottle to breaking point, make sure you have the right mixture in your bottle so it doesn’t freeze in the bottle or pipes.

Tyres – Don’t be running around in wet cold conditions with worn down tyres get them checked, if you don’t know how ask someone in the know.

OR

We normally charge £20 for a Winter check but with the possibility of it being -20 we want you to be safe so they are now -£20 i.e. FREE to all our customers, just pop in to Buckingham or Bicester Ford and get a FREE Winter check before Christmas it only takes 20 minutes.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION – If you have any elderly friends or neighbours who you think would benefit from this please pass it on and we will look after them for free.

If you need the correct washer fluid we sell it premixed and probably the cheapest in town, I noticed it at £5.99 at the garage where I fill up, same size £4.50 for one or £8.50 for two.

World Challenge

Buckingham Ford have been the proud sponsors of a young girl called Neve, and this is Neve's story;

I am in year 12 at Waddesdon School and next year I will be going on my World Challenge - My team and I will be travelling halfway across the world to Tofo to help a primary school become a safe place of learning for the children who live there.  We take it for granted that we can go to school, have the resources to learn, have enough food and a comfortable place to live. However, not everyone is this lucky.

Whilst Tofo beach attracts wealth from international tourism, the area immediately surrounding it is scattered with small communities who do not benefit from this economy. Most of the villages consist of palm thatched huts and the inhabitants practice subsistence farming to survive. Likewise, the schools in the area are chronically under resourced by the government and as such are in desperate need of renovation.

The community engagement phase will offer a unique opportunity for me and my team to immerse ourselves in the community, giving an insight into a rich new culture.  The language, daily routine, activities, facilities and cultural sensitivities will all be new and different to what we are used to, and we are hoping to be accepted into the community to help in any way we can.  We need to prepare ourselves mentally and physically for a month of hard graft, making memories, friendships and lives better for those in the Tofo community.

To further Neve's fundraising she will be holding many more events for you and your family to get involved with, so show your support and follow;

https://www.facebook.com/worldchallengegascoyne/?fref=ts

 NEW models...

Ford have announced the new models...ST-Line, with a bit of sporty styling touches and full focus on efficiency rather than speed.
New sport-themed editions of its Fiesta, Focus, and Mondeo
Named ST-Line , they feature styling add-ons designed to echo the look of the full-house ST hot hatchbacks but in cars with more modest performance and better fuel efficiency.

All three cars have sports suspension, a unique design of alloy wheels and a subtle body kit on the outside, plus a sports steering wheel, sports seats and alloy pedals in the cabin. The exterior styling models include a rear diffuser and a lip spoiler, dark surrounds for the front fog lights and a honeycomb design for the front grille.

The Fiesta version is offered with a choice of the 99bhp or 123bhp 1.0-litre three-cylinder EcoBoost petrol engine, or the 138bhp version of the same motor. There is a diesel option, too; the ST-Line edition can be ordered with Ford’s 1.5-litre 94bhp TDCi unit, offering CO2 emissions of 94g/km.The Fiesta ST-Line is available in three and five-door variants, with prices starting at £15,645,

The Focus ST-Line will be offered with two diesels - the 118bhp 1.5 or the 147bhp 2.0 - and a range of petrol engines with power outputs from 123bhp to 180bhp.

Focus ST-Line costs from £20,595 and is offered in both five-door and estate form.

The Mondeo ST-Line features engines from the top of the Mondeo range - the 148bhp and 178bhp 2.0-litre TDCi diesel units. It's available with automatic Power shift transmission and four-wheel drive as optional extras, and will come in hatchback or estate body styles.

Ford expects up to 10% of Fiesta buyers to pick an ST-Line - and the company is already lining up additional models, believed to include the Kuga and S-MAX.

We have Focus ST-Line in our showroom at Buckingham for you to see,as well as examples of the stunning Fiesta Black edition and Focus Red/Black editions,come and try one out today !!!

Saving Christmas

Yes it’s a long way away and not something you think about when you get your car serviced, but it could have unforeseen connections like what happened to Mr and Mrs Smith from Buckingham on Christmas day.

Every Ford we service you have the option of taking our FREE Ford assist package which includes breakdown cover, recovery, at home service covering the UK and Europe. Yes as I said it’s FREE with every Ford car and Van we service any age any mileage and is there when you need it most, that doesn’t have to be Christmas day.

So when you book your car in for a service, just think what’s included it’s not just the service you get on the day, but what comes with it – sometimes the back up between the service is just as important to what you receive on the day.

We have been quoted between £89 and £149 for the same level of breakdown cover you will receive with our FREE Ford assist.

“Just wanted to say a great big thank you to Buckingham Ford who by looking after our car each year includes us in Ford Assist.

On Christmas Day we packed our car up to join our children and grandchildren for present opening and dinner only to find our car wouldn't start.

So on Christmas Day Ford Assist sent out a pick up lorry and mechanic; unable to get the car started (alternator had died) gave us a telephone number whereupon a gentleman from Enterprise hire cars picked us up and took us to Northampton to get a hire car free for the next 6 days as they don't count weekends or Christmas Day and Boxing Day and saved our Christmas from being ruined. 

So a great big thank you and very well done for everyone who did so much to help it was much appreciated :)”

Why do we do this- Because it can save Christmas and many other important days of the year.

Hello,
 
I’m finding writing this quite hard as last week I was fortunate enough to visit the D-Day landing beaches, memorials, cemeteries and museums, a present from my family for my 50th birthday.
 
I felt very privileged to see all of this.  I already knew a fair bit about D-Day but nothing prepares you for some of the stories of that day in 1944, just how much was given up for us to lead the lives we live today.
 
Don’t worry I am not leading into any EU referendum debate.
 
The difficulty I am struggling with is that although Ford Motor Company have always been very supportive of the serving members of the armed forces, it has just been announced that special allowances available to existing personnel are now available to Ex-Service Personnel and Veterans.
 
I know we have veterans from conflicts since WW2 but with the experiences I had last week I can’t help thinking that it would have been nice to have done this for them as well.
 
On the brighter side if you know or are in fact yourself Ex-Military Personnel or a Veteran please spread the word that through us Ford has some very generous discounts available.
 
On a lighter note I was lucky enough to have a ride in one of Ford’s military vehicles from 1944 last week.  This was one of the facts I learnt as I didn’t know Ford produced the “Willys MB” more commonly known as a Jeep which was why I always presumed it was made by Jeep.
 
Have a great week.
 
Ian