Company car choice these days.

[Des]

I've had a German outfit contact me, they manufacture some high end medical equipment and are gearing up to distribute here, they've headhunted a few staff already and need a sales engineer for the South. I've been self employed for 10 years, I like it, and don't know if I want to go back to working for 'The Man', but I'll give it some thought. The biggest concern is, as there'll be plenty of driving, just as there is for me now, only a car is provided. I understand the whole company car thing is a big old tax rip off, than can be lessened by picking something low emmissions, so would I be correct in assuming that would mean something horrendous and Prius-like. Come to think of it, is there a new car that won't just lead to depression and make me want to end it all. A decade ago I'd have probably been happy with anything, a BMW would be ok, but looking at the disgusting chavved up barry inspired shit they now curl off, I just couldn't. Ford Galaxy would have been a useful tool once the back seats are dumped, but I've been in a new shape one and they've been bolloxed. Anyway, the last thing I want is another car to find parking for.

BTW, what's considered a decent wage these days?

[fiatdaft]

Merc blue efficiency and bmw diesels are good on company car tax and remember your fuel aswell !

 

As for a decent wage,i have been told on here i earn £800 per month ,but unfortunatly the more you earn the more the cival servants take for the cushty pensions that they have.This month it was £1800 in tax and £500 in national insurance so if your happy and doing ok the noo....

[Albert Ross]

Skoda Superb Estate.

Horsey Horseless?

[Alexg]

For MASSIVE shite points -

 

 

Harsh tax and MPG though

[sporty-shite]

Apologies for going off topic...... "controversial" comments deleted.

 

I hear the VW TSi's are fairly decent if you like that sort of thing. Even better if you can spell them.

[fiatdaft]

Maybe in these troubled times they should be thankful they have a job.Anyway back on topic spelling police.

 

Btw its not a salary its earned commission,no set wage,no pay when off work,no pension.

[cort16]

As fiat daft said I think BMW more than any have ecofied their cars so you could probably get a 318d or 320d that wouldn't be too bad. I see VW are doing blue motion Sciroccos and Passat CC's if the BMW's are too dull.

[R9UKE]

Renault Laguna III 1.5 dCi. Surely worth quite a few shite points, under warranty so ownership isn't too terrifying, plus they're the only new family car I could tolerate.

[maxpower]

new ovlov estates with the eco drive thing

[fiatdaft]

500 twin air or an earnshaw diamond.

[Morgan84]

Kia or a Hyundai diesel is a sensible choice for reliability and easy on the wallet

[fiatdaft]

He said he didn't a car that would lead to depression and to end it all !

[Morgan84]

How can a 7 year warranty do that;at least they are chav proof !!

[Luxobarges_Are_Us]

I was reading the HR trade rag a couple of days ago, and they had a little article on the state of play re company cars. It seems like the vast majority of employers who offer a company car give you a choice between an actual car and an allowance in your pocket. Even at the higher tax brackets, there are no prizes for guessing which option is the friendlier one to the shitist and his wallet. No point "saving" 100 quid a month in tax when you're paying another 150 to rent a dreary tinbox.

 

"Decent wage" is a very difficult question...The job market is really weird at the moment, it's all random and piecemeal- the old "job evaluations" etc got binned at the start of the crisis and employers seem to not know whether they want to make a killing by paying the lowest they can get away with or be more generous in order to try and get more people (particularly engineers, managers and the like) to stay for longer...I am jobhunting and seeing near-identical jobs range from 15k to almost 40k- in fact, next week I am having an interview for a 32k job and the week after I've got another interview for a 16k one...They are the same kind of work, in the same industry and within an hour's drive of each other!

 

Given your location and expertise and the fact that they headhunted you, I'd say 35-37k should be your 'best price'. I would ask for fifty and see how they react.

[andrew e]

Would you do £20,000 of business with some one who turned up in 12 year old Mondeo with gaffer taped bumpers though? Depends on the industry I guess.

[Luxobarges_Are_Us]

He's an engineer, so I guess that turning up and fixing something is what the customer cares about. Besides, there's plenty of timeless, presentable shite out there...at least as long as you're prepared to spend a grand or a bit more.

[andrew e]

I'm an engineer too (indentured HV electrician) by trade, and a wanked out car/van normally equal low quality workman ship. Not always, of course.

[andrew e]

Besides company car - surely something you would never spend your own money on in a million years

 

Hello Chrysler!

[Luxobarges_Are_Us]

Who needs Chrysler when you can choose from such Eastern delights as the Proton Gen2 and the MG Oyster Sauce Emperor?

[andrew e]

Can you still get the brown leather seats and plastic rimmed wheel combo????

[Luxobarges_Are_Us]

It certainly looks like you can.

http://www.proton.co.uk/gen-2/features/interior.php

[Morgan84]

If the car looks too good,the customers going to think " I'm paying for that " or " He's doing too well " - Needs to be a happy medium

[Cavcraft]

Maybe in these troubled times they should be thankful they have a job.

 

 

What a crock of bollocks, go back to the Daily Mail or talk about cars as you seem to know about them.

 

 

OP: Can you not opt out of company car ownership and use the savings to buy yourself a decent second hand motor instead?

[Justin Case]

Alfa Guilietta 2.0 JTD. 13% tax, 62.8 mpg (allegedly )

 

Now let's get back to talking about Shite

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

A decent wage is anything over 25 grand these days. As for a company car, a 318d or 320ed would be okay. Avoid the M Sport, just a stock one in a good colour (i.e not resale silver) such as white or bright red. There is a new 3 Series out in February and they started building them in October.

 

Don't ignore stuff like the Insignia - badge snobbery apart they're very good. Also the Golf TDi 140 is a very fine car for everyday use which does great MPG and does nothing wrong. Ditto the Astra which is just as good if not quite as quick.

[carlo]

I've always thought if I had to choose a new 'company' car I'd go for an Octavia TSI. Good, comfortable cars with a slightly old-fashioned approach and image.

[Mr_Bo11ox]

 

Given your location and expertise and the fact that they headhunted you, I'd say 35-37k should be your 'best price'. I would ask for fifty and see how they react.

 

Phone rings..

 

"Hi Dez its company XXXX here, we've got a possible opportunity coming up in technical sales in the Southern regions of the UK. It'll involve quite a lot of travelling demonstrating our products, preparing quotations, visiting existing customers, chasing up leads on sales and the like. Obviously we'll provide some training in the workings of our businsess and products. We wondered if thats the sort of thing that may interest you?

 

'Er, yeah, it might actually, thanks for getting in touch. Have you got a copy of my CV?'

 

'Yes, we have actually, so probably the next step if you're interested would be either a phone interview or a face to face one depending on availabilites at our end. We're trying to arrange to meet a few candidates the week after next, if you're available then'

 

"er, yes, shouldnt be a problem'

 

'Ok, one more question, can I ask what your salary expectations would be for such a job?'

 

'Hmm, probably about 50 large or so?'

 

[trigger]

 

I doubt you could go far wrong with a Skoda Octavia, They may be a bit bland to look at but they are bloody good cars, looking on their website they even do a GreenLine II model now which i guess is the same as a Bluemotion on the VW which i guess would bring the tax down a bit.

 

The Octavia Hatch GreenLine II is fitted with technological advancements such as a Stop/start system, gear change recommendation, and energy recuperation, improving economy and lowering CO2 emissions, reducing its impact on the environment. Octavia GreenLine II emits just 99 g/km CO2 and has a combined fuel consumption of 74.3mpg with no impact on the available space or load carrying ability of the Octavia.

[andrew e]

[Luxobarges_Are_Us]

If you are going to actually be making sales as opposed to supporting them, you 'll probably want a commission structure.

 

Having said that, my earlier comments re salary still stand. Think about it...they don't know how much you're making working for yourself. There are plenty of thoroughly USELESS self-employed consultants/trainers etc who are on day rates of 400-500 quid. Heck, even mobile auto electricians charge 50+ an hour (alright, those are not useless, but you don't need to have 3 degrees to read a few fault codes and do some basic problem-solving). Averaging 10 days' work per month on a day rate of 400, you're talking 48k. It really isn't hard to convince them that you are making that sort of money and that you'd want something similar to be lured away.

 

If the question was "how much gross salary do you need to make ends meet without struggling?", I' d say 20k as a single person and about 8 extra for each additional household member you're responsible for (i.e. you need 28 if you're married to someone who doesn't work but have no kids or 24 if you're married with a working spouse and one child as you're only responsible for half child ).