Nissan Qashqai 1.6 Visia

The Nissan Qashqai has just been awarded the title of “What Car? Used Car of the Year 2011” with the British built car being praised for its styling, price, family-friendly cabin, Euro NCAP 5-star safety rating, low running costs, comfortable ride and dependability.

In addition, the Jaguar XF won the award for the best used car in the Executive and Luxury class, beating off rivals from Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz. The winners in their respective sectors are listed below and the seven-strong What Car? judging panel was made up from all areas of the motor industry, including car dealerships, British Car Auctions, Warranty Direct, Lex Autolease and experts from What Car?

They looked at a number of factors when considering buying a used car including running costs, reliability, driveability, quality, longevity, safety features and desirability. Don’t forget if you are thinking of buying a used car to also consider the new MoT rules that come into effect on the 1st January 2012, as items like ESC (Electronic Stability Control) will now form part of the MoT test and repair costs for used cars may become more costly with these features.

What Car? Used Car Winners

• Supermini – Ford Fiesta 1.25i Style+ 5-door
• Small family car – Nissan Qasqhai 1.6 Visia
• Family car – Ford Mondeo 2.0 TDCi Zetec 5-door
• Estate – Volkswagen Passat 1.9 TDI SE
• MPV – Ford S-Max 2.0 TDCi Zetec
• SUV – Hyundai Santa Fe 2.2 CRTD CDX 7-seater
• Executive and luxury – Jaguar 2.7D V6
• Sports car – Porsche Boxster 2.7
• Green car – Volkswagen Golf 1.6 TDI SE 5-door

Overall winner- Nissan Qashqai 1.6 Visia.

If you are a small business and may be looking at buying a used Nissan Qashqai, you might also be interested in leasing a brand new one? We have the Nissan Qashqai 1.5dCi Acenta 110bhp 5-door on the site now on Nissan Qashqai car leasing from only £185.59+VAT per month. This is based on a 2-year contract, 6 rentals in advance, 10,000 miles per annum and non-maintained car leasing.

Ford Fiesta ECOnetic

Ford has extended their popular ECOnetic Fiesta range which is now available in Edge, Zetec and Titanium trim levels. All Fiesta ECOnetic models are powered by the 1.6-litre, 95PS Duratorq TDCi engine with Diesel Particulate Filter (DPF), which offers 78.5 combined mpg and CO2 emissions of just 95g/km.

The Edge ECOnetic comes with Electronic Stability Programme (ESP), air-conditioning, lowered suspension, aerodynamic improvements and low rolling resistance tyres. Step up to the Zetec trim and this adds 14-inch 6-spoke alloy wheels, front fog lights, rear wheel deflectors, chrome surrounds on headlights, lower front grille, tailgate handle, three-spoke leather steering wheel and ambient lighting.

The top-of-the-range Titanium model adds Sony DAB radio, Bluetooth voice control and USB, cruise control, front upper grille chrome strip, power folding door mirrors, privacy glass, electronic automatic temperature control (EATC), automatic headlamps, automatic wipers, two rear speakers and a perimeter alarm as well.

Two new colours, Mars Red and Fashionista, have just been added to the existing ten colour options and Ford car leasing on the new models is on the site now.

Ford Fiesta 1.6-litre TDCi ECOnectic

E.ON, one of the UK’s largest power and gas companies in the UK, has just ordered 340 Ford Fiesta 1.6-litre TDCi ECOnetic hatchbacks on contract hire over four years. The large vehicle fleet order was to replace the previous-generation Fiesta models which have been driven by their home energy consultants over the last three years.

The fuel-efficient new Fiesta 1.6-litre TDCi ECOnetic is an ideal replacement for their consultants, who advise customers nationwide on how to save money and be more energy efficient. The Ford Fiesta Edge ECOnetic emits only 95g/km of CO2 and also returns 78.5mpg on the combined fuel cycle, making them extremely cost-effective.

Standard specification for the Edge model includes air conditioning, electric/heated mirrors, front electric windows, MP3/CD player, ABS, multiple airbags, traction control, electronic stability programme, immobiliser and remote central locking and Ford contract hire prices are on the site now.

Ford Fiesta

The latest Society of Motor Manufacturers (SMMT) July 2011 new car registrations data has been released showing new car registrations fell by 3.5% (compared to July 2010) to 131,634 units. However Ford increased its market share for the month of July to 15.5% for the month and for the year-to-date position, to 15.4%.

Ford’s introduction of the latest all-new Ford Focus has helped boost their sales and the Focus is now catching up on the Ford Fiesta which is still the UK’s best selling car. The Ford Fiesta Van also performed well with 16.7% of the market but it was the Ford Transit that led the way in the commercial vehicle sector as the UK’s best selling van, with 28.5% of the market share.

Ford of Britain managing director, Nigel Sharp, said,”Ford’s best ever vehicle range demonstrated the breadth of its appeal by helping the company to increase share in all the key market sectors in July. Our latest, the new Ford Focus Studio, priced at under £14,000, will help us maintain this momentum as we and our dealers gear-up for the September sales rush”. Ford contract hire  on all the range (cars and vans) is on the site now.

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If you are looking for a reliable new car to get around town then perhaps the Ford Fiesta 1.25 Studio 3-door hatchback is one to consider. Ford personal car leasing on this model starts from only £152.15 including VAT per month, which is around £38 per week, or just over £5 a day. Metallic paint is also being offered free of charge as well.

The Fiesta Studio is economical to run, offering 51.4 combined mpg and has CO2 emissions of 127g/km, with a really low insurance group too. The deal is based on four years at 10,000 miles per annum on a non-maintained contract hire rental, with rental terms of only 3 in advance. If you wanted to lease the car over three years the rental including the VAT is only £167.60.

The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, (SMMT), has announced that April new car market registrations fell by 7.4% to 137,746 units, however this figure was ahead of expectations by 1.5%.

Registrations for the first 4 months of the year are down 8.5% to 696,082, but the full-year figure forecast remains the same at 1.93 million units. Fleet business (25+vehicle registrations) was up by 6.5% in April and diesel sales also recorded a strong growth.

The top 10 selling cars in April were as follows;

1. Ford Fiesta -6,755 units
2. Volkswagen Golf – 4,973 units
3. Vauxhall Astra – 4,900 units
4. Vauxhall Corsa 4,888 units
5. Ford Focus – 4,843 units
6. Volkswagen Polo – 4,524 units
7. Vauxhall Insignia- 3,912 units
8. Nissan Qashqai- 3,738 units
9. BMW 3 Series – 3,133 units
10. Volkswagen Passat -2,720 units

Paul Everitt, SMMT Chief Executive, said,”New car registrations in April demonstrated continued stability in the marketplace, with demand remaining lower than in 2010, although slightly ahead of industry expectations. The coming months will remain challenging, but we do expect to see a return to growth in the second half of the year”.

If you are thinking of getting a new car for your business, car leasing is a cost-effective way of financing and we have prices on all makes and models on the site now.

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You could be driving a Ford Fiesta 1.25 Studio 3-door hatchback from only £152.14 per month on Ford personal car leasing. This economical hatchback returns 51.4 combined mpg and emits only 127g/km of CO2.

This Ford special offer is based on a 4-year contract, non-maintained contract hire, at 10,000 miles per annum on a 3+47 rental profile. This works out at just £5 a day to drive a brand new Ford hatchback and offers excellent value. Other terms are available on request.

The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) has released the latest new car registrations for March, which saw 366,101 new 11-plate cars registered. Compared to the same period in 2010, this is a fall of 7.9%. However March did perform better than expected, with registrations up 5.9% on 2010, with car scrappage figures excluded.

Overall in the first quarter of 2011, new car registrations fell by 8.7% to 558,336 units and the SMMT is forecasting only 1.93 million new cars will be registered in the whole of 2011. However interestingly, average new car CO2 emissions dropped again for the first quarter by 3.4%, with an average CO2 figure of 140.3g/km being recorded.

Other headlines from the SMMT data;

• Fleet and business registrations saw a modest growth in the first quarter of the year, however private registrations fell post scrappage scheme.
• Diesel car volumes rose by 7.9% in Q1, with the diesel market share rising from 41.1% to 48.5%.
• The Ford Fiesta was the best selling model in the month and also in Q1.
• Supermini volumes fell in March, lower medium cars saw a drop in demand, whilst demand for luxury saloon, MPV and executive cars increased.

Full details of the SMMT new car registrations can be found at the SMMT website. If you are a small business (or a private individual) but you don’t want to spend your cash on a large asset like a car, then car leasing may be the answer for you, as the initial rental required is only three months in advance.

Personal car leasing with maintenance

Personal Car Leasing (Personal Contract Hire) is an easy and simple way to source a new car as rental prices are fixed (subject to VAT rates) for the contract duration, helping UK driver’s budget their annual motoring running costs. Fully maintained personal car leasing for most makes and models is back on the site, exclusively for consumers and company car scheme opt-out drivers.

Pricing for fully-maintained personal car leasing (personal contract hire) on most cars will now be available through the site on two, three or four year contracts, all inclusive of vehicle maintenance, covering 10,000 or 20,000 miles per annum, with only three rentals in advance. Other mileages and payment terms are also available on request.

Whether you are searching for personal car leasing prices with or without maintenance, the rental price on Comparecontracthire.com will always be the same, so make use of the great prices we can now offer you for fully maintained contracts.

Full maintenance personal car leasing covers all routine servicing, mechanical repair, tyres, batteries and exhausts and don’t forget the road fund licence (vehicle excise duty)  is also paid for as well, as part of the contract. All personal car leasing prices for consumers or “company car opt out drivers” are quoted with and without VAT, however the rental you will pay has to include the VAT.

Here are a few personal car leasing offers with maintenance currently available;

• Nissan Micra 1.2 Visia 5-door hatchback with air conditioning from £168.42 including VAT -2 year deal
• Ford Fiesta 1.2 Edge 3-door hatchback from £201.78 including VAT – 3 year deal
• Ford Fiesta 1.4 Edge 3-door TCDi (70) diesel hatchback from £222.94 including VAT – 3 year deal
• MINI First 1.6-litre 3-door hatchback from £218.68 including VAT – 3 year deal
• Vauxhall Corsa 1.0-litre ecoFLEX 3-door with air conditioning from £225.59 incl VAT – 3 year deal

There are thousands of cars on offer so try the Personal car leasing shopper to find a car for you.

The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) has published the December and full year car, van and truck registrations with 2010 new car registrations up 1.8% on 2009. The 2010 car market rose by 35,847 units to 2,030,846 with the fleet market (25+ vehicles) rising by over 10%. Registrations in December fell by 18% to 123,817 units.

Private volumes slipped however due to the end of the Scrappage Incentive Scheme (SIS). The 2011 market is expected to decline by around 5% with a forecasted UK car registrations figure of 1.93 million units.

Here are some other highlights from the SMMT about new car registrations in 2010;

• Diesel penetration rose to a record 46.1% which was helped by the increase in MPV and SUV sales, which are usually diesel, and also due to the fall in private retail car sales due to the Scrappage Scheme, which tended to be smaller petrol models.
• The Ford Fiesta was the biggest selling new car in the UK for the second successive year and Ford was the best selling brand.
• In December however, Vauxhall was the best selling brand with the new Astra the best selling model.

Van and truck registrations

Van and truck registrations climbed by 16.4% in 2010 with full year up to 257,373 units and in December there were 20,260 registrations, up 25.6%. Vans were up by 21.7% to 17,086 in December with the full year figures finishing at 222,915, up by 19.6%.

However truck registrations rose by 51.6% to 3,174 in December with the full year down by just 0.8% and 34,458 units registered. Further details about 2010 vehicle registrations can be found at the SMMT website.