Hi, I'm looking for some advice about buying a car.  Hopefully I will have passed my driving test in a few weeks and am looking to buy a small car (new or nearly new) and am looking to cut as many costs as possible.  the finance deals I have seen on cars are extortionate and I'm far too tight to pay up to 10% interest if I do not need to.  My grand plan - which seems obvious and foolproof - is to buy a car and pay for it with a visa card, then transfer the balance to a 0% card for up to a year and pay off as much of it as I can in that time, then switch to another card until it is all paid off interest free.  It seems really obvious and apart from maybe not getting a credit limit on the second card big enough to transfer the balance to I cannot see any flaws - but there must be or everyone would be doing it.  So what I'm looking for from all the financial or motoring experts on CD is to be told it is a stupid idea (and offer another solution) or congratulations for finally noticing the obvious that I can actually have a car for the advertised price with no hidden extras.
If anyone has any tips about cheap insurance that would also be very much appreciated (female, >25, city centre postcode and no off-street parking, Dundee).  thanks in advance.

Ali I've sent you a pm

thanks, I love that site too and will trawl through it to find some useful info.

So long as youa re disciplined enough to pay it off, cant see a real problem. You may also want to look round the dealers for offers on new cars, some offer interest free if you are in the market for a new one.

I was looking at a hyundai getz as they seem to be quite reliable and are small for easy parking and there are some great deals on at the moment but the offers are only open until the 31st March and I'm not sitting my test (again!) until the middle of April which is a bit of a problem.  I'm thinking about approaching my local dealer and asking if i can buy it now and do all paperwork before 31st march but not take delivery until mid april but don't know how this would affect the paperwork for free insurance etc.  its so complicated for my non-car mind but I do not want to go in looking like i know nothing and risk them fleecing me because i don't know any better.  I'm also aware that if I do buy a car and don't pass my test it will be at least 6 wks before I can sit it again and I will be well and truly stuck with a car I can't drive, will be very expesive to insure to leave it out in the street at my house - oh yeah and I've no way of getting it to my house because I can't drive it.  nightmare.  

Now, don't all jump down my throat but why buy a car on credit rather than save up first and then buy it? 

I did this for my first car and have done it for everything since (other than the mortgage) as I hate owing money just in case something goes wrong, like me having an accident and therefore not earning, and I end up paying more than I borrowed.

I wouldn't buy a brand new car if I was a new driver :D :D Quite agree about not buying a car on credit - if you work out what the depreciation is on a new car, plus the interest on the loan, plus the running costs - it would probably cheaper (depending on your mileage) to just get taxis :)

Daisy

Hi Kerioak,
the main reason for buying a car on credit is that having spent nearly £2,000 on driving lessons I am totally skint!  I need a car for work and figured that buying a new one with all the guarantees that go with it (freebies include 1 years insurance, 3 years servicing, 5 years warranty and 3 years RAC cover) would work out cheaper than buying them all myself.  When i originally looked at insuring an older model of the same car I was going to be over £700 for personal insurance and it went up to over £800 to include business cover.  The other reason I need a car quickly is that my work might be wanting to transfer me to a promoted post in a different and quite rural area which I could drive to in approx 40 mins but with buses I would need to get three and it could take a couple of hours if there are no immediate connections.

Just a quick question - you asked about insurance deals and said that you get a years free insurace, you might want to check their terms and conditions on that as sometimes you need to be over 25 to get their deals (have forgotten how old you said you were now)- in which case you will still have to pay for insurance, also these days not sure about the car you are looking at but i know Ford used car dealers do what they call "top up warranties", which is basically where for a small fee (depending on how much you argue) you get an extended warranty on the car to make it back up to the length the warranty would have been from new + you get the car serviced before you leave, get vouchers for money off services in the future or free MOT's and my B/F also got a years RAC cover with it (oh also beware that the Free RAC cover is often only roadside cover which is their most basic and you may end up having to upgrade anyway if you want any of the services like home start, being taken on the rest of your journey etc)

I also hate the depreciation on new cars, obviously all cars depreciate but the amount of money you lose by just driving a new car off a forecourt is phenominal!!!

The way i got my last car was - trade in on the old one £2,500, - childrens bond matured on my 21st £1,300 - saved up £1,600 and borrowed £3,000 off my dad because he agreed paying finance was ridiculous. OH got his on credit and then extended the mortgage to incorporate the car because the interest rate is a lot lower but i imagine the credit card idea would work as long as you make sure you can pay it off - only problem i could see is if you do end up with any financial difficulty and got bad credit you might not be able to get the next interest free credit card and then you would be stuck paying interest

hi greatbritgirl,  I am over 25 but the insurance is still huge.  the car costs £6000 brand new with all freebies and insurance will cost me approx £700 so I thought that even with depreciation if I am getting free insurance, roadside cover etc it is kind of like getting the car for just over £5000 - if you see my logic?  thanks for all the advice it has given me even more to think about.