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Formentor or not to Formentor. Dilemma!

Oily

Active Member
May 31, 2022
12
7
I have a dilemma and thought I'd throw it out to the wider community.
I had a Tiguan that wasn't ULEZ compliant so I bit the bullet and ordered my first ever new car in March 22. I orderd a Hybrid V2 that was originally scheduled for delivery September 22. However as we all know that wasn't an accurate date as come June it was in delay without a build date.
I needed to out the Tiguan before prices plummeted and so I bought a 6 month old V2 1.5 petrol with just 4k miles from a Cupra dealer as a stop-gap.
I really like what I have and it has only had a few niggles that I have been willing to put up with.
Last week I received a call informing me my original Hybrid V2 was going into build and should only be a few months away... until today when I was told it is at the dealers waiting for its PDI.
My original order was specified at just under £40k thus avoiding the government's stealth tax, (I did negotiate a good price that is guaranteed so I am actually paying a little less). The current list price is nearly £42k so I will have to pay the additional £390 vehicle tax for years 2 to 6.
WHAT DO I DO... I love my 18 month old petrol V2 with just 8k miles and I'm not sure I now want a Hybrid:

I could sell my petrol one, have the new Hybrid and suffer the extra tax... big chunk of my pension though and I probably would have specified a sunroof if I knew I was going to break the 40k threshold.
I could just tell the dealer I don't want the new one... I even get my deposit back.
I could 'find' the money, buy the Hybrid and then sell it straight away... could possibility make £2k but I don't know if I can bothered with the aggro.
Whatever decision I make I'll still be a Formentor owner and will continue to use this forum as a great knowledge base.
 
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Rusty2k

Active Member
May 12, 2013
710
134
My original order was specified at just under £40k thus avoiding the government's stealth tax

I'm not sure what you should do about your predicament but I do want to address this point.

The £40k+ VED premium is not a stealth tax. The defining feature of a stealth tax is that it is not clear to the person paying that the money is going to the government. Since the £40k+ VED premium is clearly defined and documented as a levy that ends up in HM Treasury's accounts it is not and cannot be a stealth tax.
 
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fpdoc0697

Active Member
May 22, 2021
48
18
I'm not sure what you should do about your predicament but I do want to address this point.

The £40k+ VED premium is not a stealth tax. The defining feature of a stealth tax is that it is not clear to the person paying that the money is going to the government. Since the £40k+ VED premium is clearly defined and documented as a levy that ends up in HM Treasury's accounts it is not and cannot be a stealth tax.
I think ‘stealth tax’ is the wrong word. ‘Absolute joke of a tax’, is more fitting.
 
Jun 29, 2023
7
4
I full agree, what on earth is the difference between a car paying £570 (for my SQ5) for 5 years, then suddenly it drops....

I just don't get it... well sorry I do, it's the UK goverment screwing with all of us yet again to help with their debt!
 
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SRGTD

Active Member
May 26, 2014
2,524
1,382
I have a dilemma and thought I'd throw it out to the wider community.
I had a Tiguan that wasn't ULEZ compliant so I bit the bullet and ordered my first ever new car in March 22. I orderd a Hybrid V2 that was originally scheduled for delivery September 22. However as we all know that wasn't an accurate date as come June it was in delay without a build date.
I needed to out the Tiguan before prices plummeted and so I bought a 6 month old V2 1.5 petrol with just 4k miles from a Cupra dealer as a stop-gap.
I really like what I have and it has only had a few niggles that I have been willing to put up with.
Last week I received a call informing me my original Hybrid V2 was going into build and should only be a few months away... until today when I was told it is at the dealers waiting for its PDI.
My original order was specified at just under £40k thus avoiding the government's stealth tax, (I did negotiate a good price that is guaranteed so I am actually paying a little less). The current list price is nearly £42k so I will have to pay the additional £390 vehicle tax for years 2 to 6.
WHAT DO I DO... I love my 18 month old petrol V2 with just 8k miles and I'm not sure I now want a Hybrid:

I could sell my petrol one, have the new Hybrid and suffer the extra tax... big chunk of my pension though and I probably would have specified a sunroof if I knew I was going to break the 40k threshold.
I could just tell the dealer I don't want the new one... I even get my deposit back.
I could 'find' the money, buy the Hybrid and then sell it straight away... could possibility make £2k but I don't know if I can bothered with the aggro.
Whatever decision I make I'll still be a Formentor owner and will continue to use this forum as a great knowledge base.
If you’re happy with your current car, which by the sound of it you are, and aside from a few niggles is trouble free, then I’d keep it. What does a brand new V2 hybrid give you over and above your existing 18 month old petrol engined Formentor, apart from a few months extra warranty cover?

Buying the car you originally ordered and then flipping it for a profit is certainly an option worth considering. A guy on golfgtiforum.co.uk forum has just done this. They own a mk7.5 Golf GTI TCR and had a mk8 Golf GTI on order. They bought and flipped the mk8 GTI at a profit to a non-VW dealer that sells nearly new premium brand cars and kept their existing mk7.5 Golf GTI TCR.

Other selling options for flipping a brand new car would be to use car buying services such as Wizzle or Motorway (I’d avoid using We Buy Any Car as they tend to make low-ball offers). I‘d also not sell a new car to a private individual; I wouldn’t want the hassle of the tyre kickers, and many potential private buyers may just be time wasters and not have the funds or the finance in place to buy a brand new car.
 

Andy.M

Active Member
Mar 20, 2022
261
119
Keeping in mind how good the V2 petrol is (I'm biased by the way)
Think what is spending all those thousands extra going to bring you over the current car? Is it worth it?

Keep it!
 

dvinell

Active Member
Jul 27, 2011
23
10
The V2 1.5 is a great car.
You'd have a lot less money for other things and be no happier with the Hybrid IMHO.

If it was a choice between the V2 1.5 and a VZ2 with 310hp, we would be having an entirely different conversation.