Black Horse Finance

As well as helping you find and finance your new car, Black Horse is here to help you enjoy your new purchase and cut motoring costs – without compromising practicality or enjoyment.

We’ve compiled some useful advice and information on lower running and maintenance expenses, road safety, CO2 emissions and road tax:

• Staying safe
• If you look after your vehicle, it’ll look after you
• Save on spares - shop around.
• Not just any old oil
• The facts on road tax
• Lower emissions, less road tax
• Go green, don’t guzzle gas
• Places to visit online

Staying safe

Road safety mostly boils down to common sense. Follow the Highway Code, don’t drink and drive, stay calm, focused and alert, and take regular breaks when driving long distances.

If you look after your vehicle, it’ll look after you

Looking after your vehicle is also crucial to road safety. Here are just some of the checks you should carry out regularly:

• Ensure your tyre pressures are correct.
• Check your treads meet the legal requirement.
• Make sure your car headlamps and indicators are in good working order. Have your brakes tested regularly.
• Check your oil and water levels so your engine is well lubricated and doesn’t overheat.
• Check your windscreen for chips that might cause cracks to spread or limit visibility

Keeping your new car in roadworthy condition is just as important as choosing the right vehicle in the first place. As well as keeping you safer, it can save you headaches and hefty maintenance bills further down the road.

We recommend you service your car annually or every 10,000 miles – depending on how much you use it.

If your car is more than a couple of years old, it’s a good idea to find yourself a recommended specialist for the make and model to help you maintain a full service history.

People are always keen to save money, and there are many ways to enjoy cheaper motoring. Ask yourself, would a diesel estate car better suit your budget and circumstances? Would a smaller hatchback be cheaper to run and easier to park?

Save on spares - shop around

A good way to keep ongoing costs down is to shop around for replacement parts, like tyres, windscreens and batteries. The cost of the same or similar item can vary considerably from seller to seller.

Not just any old oil

Using synthetic oil is a good idea, too. It costs more to buy, but protects your engine for longer, so can keep maintenance and repair costs lower in the longer term.

The facts on road tax

Now that road tax varies according to a car’s age, engine size and emissions, you could save money by only going for the kind of car you really need. You might save in fuel costs, too.

The following link takes you to a page that details the current road tax charges: Current Road Tax Charges   

Lower emissions, less road tax

All new cars now have a CO2 ranking, which tells you how many grams of carbon dioxide they emit per kilometre. If your car emits less than 100g/km, you’ll be exempt from UK road tax. However, few cars can claim that accolade. Broadly speaking, if a car emits less than 130g/km, it’s a pretty sound green option.

Go green, don’t guzzle gas

Car buyers are increasingly aware of the impact of CO2 emissions on the environment. What’s more, new cars with higher emissions now incur higher road tax. As a result, many UK motorists are prepared to pay more for a ‘greener’ vehicle.  

Look at the second-hand value of more environmentally friendly models, and you’ll see how buying green can make good financial sense, too. They hold their value, cost less to tax, are exempt from the London Congestion Charge and offer a much lower annual expenditure on fuel – with up to 60 miles per gallon.

Diesel cars are often popular with company car drivers. Despite a 3% surcharge on higher toxic emissions, lower CO2 emissions make the overall running costs considerably lower.   

Places to visit online

Hopefully we’ve got you thinking about things to consider when buying a car, and how we can help. There’s plenty more information online, so here are some useful links to other websites:  
www.dft.gov.uk/dvla
www.hpicheck.com
www.eta.co.uk
www.fleetnews.co.uk
www.whatcar.co.uk
www.topgear.com

* The provision by us of a website address is not evidence of any endorsement by us of the material held there. We accept no responsibility or liability in respect of any materials on any website or the privacy of your personal information on such websites, as these are beyond our control.