Standard Matters

A personal contract hire agreement is one option that many people fail to consider when looking at obtaining a new vehicle. Over the last few years there has been a large increase in the number of people taking up personal contract hire agreements. This is because, understandably, levels of disposable income have dropped with the global economic downturn and people have been looking for cheaper alternatives to purchasing a car outright, using a bank loan or entering into a finance agreement.

It is a well known fact that as soon as you purchase a vehicle from a manufacturer, the vehicles value takes a huge hit, sometimes as much as 30% of the value is wiped off just because it is not brand new anymore. This means that when you come to sell the vehicle in the future, it may not be the valuable asset you expected it to be when you first bought it. When hiring a vehicle, that risk is non-existent.

Personal contract hire is simply a long term rental agreement between individuals and vehicle leasing companies. Lease terms generally range from 12 months up to 60 months. Individuals pay monthly premiums to rent the vehicle for the duration of the contract and at the end, lessees can simply give the car back to the lessor without any further obligations.

Personal contract hire agreements have been increasing in popularity because it works out cheaper per month to rent a vehicle than it does to purchase. The total cost of the monthly rental figure is based on, primarily, the depreciation of the vehicle over the duration of the agreement, plus also any leasing taxes or other service costs which the lessee will have negotiated with the lessor.

With a personal contract hire agreement you have the added benefit of a brand new car every few years. Depending on what you requested in the agreement, you may also have free maintenance costs on the vehicle and also breakdown cover, all tied in to the monthly rental cost.

As contract hire agreements also come with mileage limitations, if you plan on doing a lot of traveling then maybe a contract hire agreement is not for you; you could end up paying a very large fee if you exceed the number of miles stipulated in the agreement.

In summary, the main benefits of a personal contract hire agreement are that it is a cheaper alternative to vehicle financing, you get a new car to drive every few years and you will be able to use a vehicle that would normally be outside of your price range. As for disadvantages, the only one is that you will not own the vehicle at the end of the contract.

The world of cars can often seem like a world apart from your own. What may seem like a simple thing – buying a new set of tyres – is actually fraught with choice. Read on for a guide to the most common types of car tyres. The most popular type is the standard all-season option. These come as standard on most cars and, as the name suggests, you can use them all year round. They’re designed to have a long life with regular use and are manufactured from hard rubber.

You could also choose to go for the performance tyre, which can be a good idea if you have a car that requires increased handling performance. They’re also known as ‘summer tyres’ as they’re at their best in dry weather. They’re not very good in the rain, though, so you can only use them year round if you live in a warm, dry area. They have good grip as they’re made from soft rubber, although this also works to make their shelf life shorter than normal tyres.

If you live in an area with rough conditions and harsh winters, then you may wish to consider the winter tyre. These are designed to cope with tough weather conditions and the added difficulties associated with driving in winter. They are good at handling in snow and ice and you can get them with little metal studs embedded in the tread, which gives extra grip in extreme conditions. You can’t use them in dry conditions as they wear out fast and damage the road.

Another type of tyre you may want to consider is the all terrain tyre. These are most commonly found on off-road vehicles as they can be very noisy if you use them on standard roads. They have increased grip from a large tread block pattern and their stiff sidewalls means they can cope with unexpected potholes and challenging terrain. They’re great for using on loose surfaces such as dirt and sand and there is a special mud tyre available for use on mud.

Finally, you could also go for the ‘run flat’ tyre, which is exactly as the name suggests. These tyres can operate without air, so you can continue driving if you get a puncture without worrying about the handling. You should only do this for a short distance at a slow speed, though. The run flat is a relatively new concept and they’re most commonly found on brand new cars. If you do ‘run it flat’, you should still change the tyre as soon as you can.

Learn More : 4 x 4 Tyres

If you are thinking about making a new car purchase then this is something that you need to think about carefully. Many people will just look at the purchase price of the car and then neglect to take into account the other costs of buying such a vechicle. The following are some of the things that you need to think about if you want to consider the real cost of buying a new car

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- If you are going to borrow money or get finance then you are going to be likely spending a lot on interest. You will end up paying more back if you take longer to pay the money back. Calculate the total cost of the car with interest added and then you can decide if this amount is something that you are willing to pay for the car.

- Keeping the car actually on the road, costs money too so don’t forget this. If it is a bit of a petrol guzzler then this could work out quite expensive. The amount of miles per gallon that you will get varies widely from one car to the next but luckily there are a lot of cars which are very fuel efficient these days. Lots of people spend a fortune on a new car and then realise afterwards that they can’t actually afford the running costs. Make sure that you are not one of these people.

- The cost of your insurance is likely to rise if you buy a new car that has a bigger engine than the one that was in your old car. Paying for insurance can require a whole chunk of money so always get a quote before you buy.

- You need to remember that there will be other costs that you will have to pay for a new car such as the cost of taxing it and fees for parking.

Colt Cleartec as an industry has changed beyond all recognition in recent years. No more are they just figments of an over active imagination. Now many different motor vehicle types are benefiting and you can even find electric 4wd and Colt cars.