David hit the nail on the head on the podcast - the Foolish way to drive is to run a car into the ground. Sure, you don't get the status of a brand new Beemer or Merc, but it's way cheaper if you're lucky enough to get yourself something reliable and/or not too expensive to fix/get replacement parts for. I would never do a PCP Scheme, to me it seems like a waste of money.

I drive an ageing Mazda - it's bland, but it's reliable. It's nearly 10 years old, so I've treated it to new cambelt/tensioner, new tyres and brake pads/discs and exhaust in that time. Also there's servicing on top of that, but find yourself a good independent garage and it's not as expensive as you'd think. I think it's the least expensive route into driving, and, if you pick your car up second hand with the expectation of running it into the ground you don't have residuals to worry about. Also, steer clear of cars with a lot of electrical gizmos, it really is more to go wrong in the long term - and will cost more to fix because you might end up having to take the car back to the franchise dealer to hook it up to their own diagnostic kit...

Bottom line is expensive, top-of-the line car = expense. There's no getting away from that, whatever your BMW guy says.

Me too, I'm afraid.

The BMW guy is a typical finance salesman, after all, that's what he's paid to do.

I bought an ex-company car from a nationwide auctions operation about ten years ago. High mileage (as you would expect), I paid about half it's list price, just eight months old. The first owner took a hell of a financial hit. As I'm a low mileage owner, the car is now (for it's age) low mileage - in other words it's balanced out.

All I've had is replacement wear and tear parts, and had it's normal servicing done. (Can't be bothered to DIY any more).

The result; to date, it's cost me about £500 per year depreciation (decreasing) plus normal running costs.

Having spent the first 14 working years of my life repairing the damn things, I have absolutely no interest in what the car is (as in essence, they're all the same) providing it gets me from A to B without hassle.

Bottom line: ten years motoring for what he'd have you pay for two!

David, you hit the nail on the head. Buy a reliable car, for as reasonable cost as you can, and run it until it stops. Can't beat it!

Just like the fashion industry, the car industry convinces you that you need the image. That's just crap!

As an aside, I've never insured it for breakdown cover, as I reckon if I break down tomorrow and have to pay for a recovery, I'm still way ahead of the financial game.