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.

We're doing something right?

There is nothing nicer than loyal customers who put their full faith into us all here at Buckingham Ford. We pride ourselves on our reputation through out Buckingham and its surrounding areas. We are constantly reminded of the work we do by our customers with their kind words and continuous business. Some of our customers started with us back in 1996 where they purchased their first car, serviced their first car and continued to move on up in the world alongside us with their brand new Ecosport, Fiesta or Focus, or even buying their children's first car.








As part of our collection and delivery service we are able to make life a little easier for our customers. Early last week a long term customer took full advantage of this service and popped in to express his gratitude and to tell me how pleased he was with the customer service he received. Harry our parts administrator delivered Mr and Mrs Gilder's car after they had the work done and spent 15 minutes with the couple to run through things and insure they were pleased with the work they got and the work they booked in for, he then explained all the technical details of their service to insure they fully understood. Dare I say we had very happy customers.

Thanks Harry
I carelessly knocked and disassembled a wing mirror on my wife''s Fiesta - she was not happy! Nothing was broken but it was beyond me to piece it back together. Harry at Buckingham Ford fixed it in less than 5 minutes for no charge. Very impressed. Needless to say the Fiesta will be serviced at Buckingham Ford from now on.
John Westlake

That Extra Mile
Excellent service from Chris and the service department at Buckingham. Chris and his team always goes the extra mile to make sure my needs are met, whether that be making a courtesy car available for me or just being helpful and friendly and explaining things in a non technical way.
Gary Giles

18 years of fun meeting great people

Buckingham Ford back in 1996

Yes it's 18 years ago today that we opened the doors as Buckingham Ford, taking over from the Phillips family who had been working from this site since the late 1800's as Phillips and sons.
 
Over that time we have met some great people as customers who we now consider friends, we have also been lucky that we have a great team of people working here, with four who have been with us since we started.

Although Mike and I are from far away in south Bucks (Aylesbury) most of our staff are local people with over 70% growing up and going to school in Buckingham before working with us, it is true that we have always looked to employ local people, as we always wanted to be the local garage.

We have been promoting some special Birthday celebratory offers this week, of which some are to the right hand side here, some I did not agree on, I just think James got carried away with the sherry in the Birthday cake when he worked them out.

So here's to the next 18 Years of Buckingham Ford and a big thank you to you for helping us make this happen.

Car Air con not as cold as last year?

It happens to us all, as the temperature is rising we all start to notice that we need the Air conditioning more in our car.

Did you know your car Air Con can lose 10% of its efficiency every year, even more if you haven’t been using it regularly?

As the refrigerant is under pressure in the system, it can weep through joints in the pipework, making the Air conditioning work harder to keep you cool.

We always see a steep rise in bookings for Air conditioning servicing and regas when the temperature rises, and the last week is no exception.

So what’s really cool, just to be different as the temperature has risen we have decided to reduce our price for an Air conditioning regas by £20 to just £49.

As our summers can be brief don’t wait weeks for an appointment, we guarantee we will get this booked in, in the next 24 hours for you.

Have a cool summer.

We are trying our hardest to give two cars away

This car is sitting in Buckingham Garden centre, and is the prize if you can find Santa’s missing reindeer; we have even left you a clue on the entry form at the garden centre.

As you know we like to keep things local, and just like the garden centre we employ a lot of local people, putting our money back in to the local economy as important to us both, as looking after local customers to the best of our abilities.

We have joined in this promotion, in an attempt to keep it local and are both giving away some extra special gifts before Christmas, If you come into either of our branches before Christmas you will be given a voucher for the other company (even if you come in for a free winter check), and could win some great prizes, but the amazing thing is there is a prize every time.

In the showroom at both dealerships we have a second car to win, we have a stack of presents under our Christmas trees, all you have to do is guess correctly there value, its not that hard as we have given you a hint to them when you come in, If you test drive or buy a car before 20th December you will have multiple attempts to win this great Fiesta worth over £10.000.


Are you missing our Facebook competitions, we have given away some great prizes, and announced some great promotions on Facebook this year, if you don’t want to miss out go and like our pages there, and if you don’t use Facebook ask you children or a member of the family that does to do it for you, and they can make you aware when we are having a mad moment and giving it all away.

www.facebook.com/buckinghamford
www.facebook.com/bicesterford

New name in top spot with 58.2 Mpg

 Jenny from AtHome in Well Street has been leading since we started, but this week sees a new name at the top of the leader board Mike Easom from Buckingham Garden centre bought the Fiesta back with an impressive 58.2 Miles per Gallon; Mike said he also couldn't believe it was a one litre engine “It drove so well”. This only goes to prove Buckingham Garden centres green fingers have green credentials on the road.


Jo Moir from Style by Jo in Hillesden only managed 30 miles in two days due to being at home with the children, but still managed 47.1 mpg driving to and from town, a very credible result for local driving.

Nick Maple from Arthur’s radio hairdressers, who was already looking to change his car when we set the eco-challenge, was so impressed that the Fiesta is a definite possibility, but Nick wasn't as nifty with his economy as he is with his scissors as he returned a very poor 38.7 Mpg.

As we go to press James Beckett Motoring correspondent for the Buckingham and Winslow advertiser and formula Ford race supremo is driving the 1.0 Fiesta, we look forward to his eco result to see if he is as green of the track as fast on it.

If you wish to take part, or just want to follow the progress over the next 6 weeks Follow on Facebook for daily updates on who is taking the challenge.

Who will be the most economical of our local drivers?

Just call James at Buckingham Ford on 01280 812121 or Jeff Lawrence at Bicester Ford 01869 323272. All entries are subject to status.

To find Buckinghams best driver

This week we have had many more drivers take the challenge, Jenny from AtHome in Well Street , Buckingham is still top of the table, Mark from Barbers in High Street Buckingham improved on his colleagues performance. 

We also Had Nicky for Cakes by Nicky in Bicester and Joff from Natitas Design all drove the New Fiesta with its very quick 1.0 Ecoboost engine, for two days.
Nicky loved the new Fiesta so much she didn’t want to give it back, and even though she only used it around town the little Fiesta still returned a healthy 45.8 mpg. Nicky said “I want one. I can’t believe that is only a 1.0 litre engine”

Joff Cheney from Navitas design on Buckingham industrial estate returned a very good 52.8mpg and covered over 100 miles in his two days, but is a little nervous that Michelle from Meet and Mingle in Bicester will beat him this week. 

This coming week as well as Michelle Howie we have Jo Moir from Style by Jo, Kelly from Kelly Jo Photography, Nick Maples from Arthurs Radio hairdressors and Mike from Buckingham Garden centre.

If you wish to take part, or just want to follow the progress over the next 6 weeks Follow on Facebook for daily updates on who is taking the challenge. If you want to take part, just call James at Buckingham Ford on 01280 812121 or Jeff Lawrence at Bicester Ford 01869 323272. All entries are subject to status.

Leader board
Name                  Company                     MPG
Jenny Dobbs         AtHome                      54.9
Ian Redding    Bicester/Buckingham Ford 53.3
Joff Cheney    Navitas Design                   52.8
Nicky Churchill      Cakes by Nicky         45.8
Mark Green         Barbers                       44.9
Paul Griffin           Barbers                       41.6

Are you an eco friendly driver

Welcome to the environmental challenge, over the next 6 weeks we want to get as many local people to take up a two day challenge to see who can get the best miles per gallon from the new Ford Fiesta 1.0 ecoboost. 

We already have many willing volunteers, well who would say no to a free car for 2 days!

You need to be over 25 and hold a clean driving licence, and been driving for over 12 months, and that's it, you don't need to be an existing customer either, just live in the Buckingham, Bicester or Brackley area.

We know that the New ecoboost engine is good for the environment already as it emits so little, the road fund licence is free on on this little car, yes you heard me right Nothing, Nil yes exactly £0. we also already know the government figures on this car are very good with a combined MPG of 65.7.

So watch this space for updates.

We are a Badger free zone

I just had to share this when I was shown it. 

This is very very funny, and you will NOT find a badger at Buckingham or Bicester Ford.

We are a Wiggle free zone.

View Badger at work here

If you have ever experienced the Badger at another dealership, come and see us for a refreshing change.

• Take a test drive not a short trip around the block
• We give you all the facts, and don't hide behind a monthly payment
• 1000's of new and used cars available to us, so you don't have to buy the one we have here, you can choose.

I got this email yesterday about James.

                "Just a quick note to say how pleased I am with the new Focus ST I purchased from you. Fabulous colour the Spirit Blue and the power and drivability of the car really is breath taking. So, thanks for persuading me to purchase it. Also many thanks for the help and advice you gave me with the models, optional extras and the general understanding of the car."
Many Thanks
Keith

Compound clearance starts 12th June for 8 days only

1       For Eight days only you can make massive savings on any car on display or in our compound. (We need the room)
Over £4000 off some new cars

2       We need more used cars, and as you know we always pay more for privately owned cars like yours. We would always prefer to sell a privately owned car other than ex fleet or hire cars, they are more sought after and easier to sell, so your car could be worth more than you thought this week. 

How about a New Ka for under £85 a month and that’s without a big deposit and an Apr of only 4.9%. 

I've had my arm twisted by James and Jeff to run the 5 year FREE warranty offer for one more month, so June will be the last month we are offering 5 Year’s Warranty on all our New cars instead of the standard 3 years. 

Even if you don’t keep your car for 5 years it will improve the value of your car in part exchange in the future. 

Book an appointment today with Jeff or James and make sure you find out which special offer is right for you.  

Remember we don’t do or know how to do any hard selling, it is up to you, we don’t hide the facts behind a monthly payment, and we are here to help you make the right decision for you not us.

3       Extra bonus for the lucky five who are quick to reply 
If you are in the first five to take action on these offers I have over £500 worth of extras waiting for you, and they are on me, completely free, and they will help you enjoy your new car even more. 

The compound clearance starts on June 12th and will run for eight days only; this is your chance to get a look at the offers before we go public.
  
Some of the offers James and I have calculated are amongst the strongest we have ever made and include some new technology’s you may not have seen or heard of

• Ford SYNC enabling safer usage of your phone or music playing device.

• MYKey on New Fiesta, a programmable key that restricts speed for younger drivers, amongst other things.

These are standard on a lot of our offer cars

Sunny Sale Great Offers 6 Days Left

What a weekend, when our sale started on Friday, we did not estimate just how busy Friday and Saturday would be.

We have been catching up this morning contacting customers who we didn't feel we gave enough quality time to, being so busy. And got some great reactions, they all understood and were pleased for us.

In fact while we were calling people a regular customer Mr Haines came back in, he had been in on Saturday, to place his order for a new car for his wife, he said he and his wife were both amused and impressed on Saturday, as even when we so busy not one person was ignored or left unattended, and James reminded him of a plate spinning act from the circus, making coffee, getting cars out for test drive and doing paperwork with others, and this quote will live with me

 "It was so nice seeing local people so busy and getting what they deserve success, we left you to it on Saturday as we could come back on Monday"

So 6 days left of the Sunny Sale, let’s see what this week brings, more fantastic offers for our great customers.

Sunny Sale Starts 26th April 10 days only

We have some amazing used cars in stock, that we sold new to the previous owner, most have been looked after by us in our workshop all their lives.

There is nothing quite like knowing the car you are buying has a sound history that you can rely on.

The sale ends Bank Holiday Weekend, so don't delay, we can only sell these cars once.

Prices start from as little as £2995, on top of this we have 100's of other used cars available, under one year old nearly new Fords, and lots of very low mileage 3 year old cars with Full service history and only the one owner from new again.

Many of the cars have lots of extras that the first customer enjoyed.

Don't delay and come and see us as soon as possible.
Ian or James 01280 812121
james@buckinghamford.co.uk

Most Loved Ford dealer in the UK

We couldn't be happier, The Bestof website awards for their 14daysofLove announced the results and we have come up trumps.

Buckingham Ford has for the 3rd year running been voted “Most loved business in Buckingham”

Bicester Ford has also come in first place as “Most loved Business in Bicester”

And on top of that we have also come 3rd in our category “Most loved Car dealerships in the UK”

These awards are something we have entered for three years now, we would not achieve these great results without you, our customers, placing your votes, for that I am very appreciative.

Thank You

Ian

Here are a couple of entries that you submitted

“Andrea on reception is very friendly knowledgeable and always willing to help and accommodate your needs so that when your vehicle is out of action a courtesy car is arranged or someone from the garage will collect your vehicle from your place of work/home and return. All of the mechanics have always been very friendly and knowledgeable and represent Bicester Ford well.”
Sam M

“Ian and his team at Buckingham Ford are sooooo good. I have used them to supply a new Fiesta for my son and to undertake restoration on my 45 year old classic. What I love about them is the 'old-fashioned' way they conduct business. There's an authenticity and integrity about them which I love. "
Nigel B

They are terrific and the best customer service I have encountered and I am in my 60's - can't be beaten! "
Mrs Glenice M

“You couldn't meet a nicer man than Jeff. Having been to other garages and being treated as just another sale it was refreshing to actually be listened to.”
Mrs Jo T

“They provide a great service, it is prompt, good value for money, they collect and deliver back your car, and do an excellent job! The people are great to deal with, trustworthy, professional and won't rip you off!”
Mrs Collette H

How to use Traction control in snow or ice

After seeing so many people sliding around in the snow and ice yesterday, with their traction control obviously still switched on, we made this small video to help.

The video explains what happens with the traction control on and off, and then we go on to explain how to switch the traction control/ESP off on Ford cars that don't have an obvious button on the dashboard.

Its worth watching until the end, and please share as this may help others with there safety in the snow.

View You Tube video here  Traction control in snow and ice

Please make sure you turn traction control back on once snow and ice has cleared.

Free Breakdown cover with a Ford service

We like to look after you and your car between annual services, we now offer Free breakdown cover with any Ford service. Prices start from just £99 for a service with us.

The Breakdown cover includes;

• Home Start - Assistance at your home, not always included with free breakdown cover.
• Roadside Assistance
• Vehicle recovery - If we can't arrange a prompt repair, we'll transport you and your vehicle to the nearest Ford Authorised Repairer.
• European emergency assistance
• All from a man in a yellow van.

And this cover is available on a Ford car or light commercial of any age and mileage.

The cover is activated by us when you request it with your service, the cover then runs until your next service is due, so if you do 25,000 miles a year, the cover will last until your next service is due say 12500 miles later, but don't worry come back for a service and we will renew the cover.
If you only do 6000 miles a year we will renew your cover when you come in for your yearly service, the breakdown cover is acctivated with the service requirements of your vehicle.


If this is of interest call David or Carol on 01280 812121

Who is this for?  If you can answer the following as yes it is for you

Do you own a Ford car or Light Commercial?
Would you like your breakdown cover for free?
Would you like the peace of mind, of Ford qualified mecanics working on your car?
Would you like all work on your car guaranteed for 12 months
Would you like the garage working on your car to have past, regular audits by the RAC?

We can confidently answer yes to all of the above.

Used Car Sale 4 days only

Between 27th and the 30th April only

• Money off screen price
• 1 Years road fund licence included
• 1 Years warranty included
• 1 Years breakdown cover included
• All cars serviced and mot'd

We have so many nice one and two owner cars in stock that soon the bank manager will be on my back, so they have got to go this weekend.

Most are part exchanges that have come in against New cars this month, we have Fiestas starting at just £3495. And over 50 cars to choose from.

New Ford's Extra Discount

It all ends this Sunday at 4pm.
Our man from the factory is now giving money off new cars over and above the customer savings from Ford.
So far two lucky customers have taken advantage of his generosity, and it is only the start today.
We have more cars on display than ever before, and anyone taking a test drive between yesterday and Sunday will be entered in to a draw for a case of wine, for this all you have to do is drive a car, you don't even have to buy one.
Our man from the factory does have a budget though, and once it has gone, it has gone. so make sure you are in pole position to make the most of this once only event.
See you over the weekend.

Winner's of our Christmas Draw

Thank you to all our customers who entered our Christmas draw. And the winners are Big long pause xfactor style!!!!!!!!!!!!! Jackie Fox Deba Correia Glenda Summers Thank you to you all, i will deliver the prizes today. A merry Christmas to all our customers And thank you for all your business this year. We are back open on the 28th December. Ian

Win and ipod 2 in our Free Christmas Draw

Christmas draw taking place on Christmas eve, Free to enter just visit the showroom or pop in to the service department.
Take a test drive before Christmas and get a second entry, or if you buy a car get 5 entrys.
Any service work also doubles your entry.
If you have liked our facebook page, you are in the draw, congratulations.

New registartions out on the road now

September has been very busy so far with the new 61 plate cars leaving our forecourts last week and over the weekend.

But one customer who collected his new Focus really made me think, we were discussing the many new cars he had over the years, and every one came with some new technology. But what really came out of this was his surprise of exactly how much new technology the Focus now has packed into it.

We went down memory lane and discussed the first time he had power steering and then Anti lock brakes on the next one and airbags, and then they not only came from the front but the sides and the roof and now by your legs. Where is it going to stop he asked?

Its not was my answer, because you can now get a Focus that can parallel park itself with little help from the driver, it will tell you if you are drifting over the white lines while driving or warn you if someone is coming into the blind spot on the motorway.

He stopped me then and said Ian enough, i think all that can wait until the next one, its great to reminisce but i need to go and enjoy this one now.

He called me today just to tell me his new Focus is fantastic, and the best car he has ever had, and no he wouldn't swap for any of the old ones we talked about.

The lesson i learned from this, is we have a lot of customers who still would not know what is now available in the way of safety or convenience in the new Focus, and all other new models.