How to save £500 when buying a Ford Fiesta, Nissan Qashqai or Mini Cooper
ONE thing many motorists don't consider when buying a new car is the hidden costs associated with paint choices.
The only free solid colour option available with the Ford Fiesta is Race Red
An investigation conducted by Parkers has found that more than half of the most popular new models will cost consumers on average an extra £536 if they want to have a choice of more than one colour.
30 of the most popular cars in the country only offer one free paint option, with the average cost of an alternative colour being an extra £292 for non-standard solid paints.
Black and white are the most popular colour choices for Brits but these colour options only a few companies offer a no-cost option.
Of those 50 popular ranges of cars sampled, only 26 are available with solid white as a ‘free’ colour whilst only 14 of those 50 popular ranges have black as a no-cost option colour.
For example the Ford Fiesta, Britain's most-popular car only has one free colour option on the entry-level Zetec specification - Race Red.
If buyers opt for a Frozen White Fiesta Zetec, they will add an extra £250 to their bill.
If however you chose form Ford’s Premium or Exclusive colour range you’ll then be looking to pay between £495 and £725 more.
The Mini range offers metallic Moonwalk grey as their standard colour on their hatchback.
If however you always wanted to be on the Italian job and opt for the Chilli Red or Pepper White then toy will be liberated of £474 whilst the Lapisluxury Blue cost an extra £750.
MINI’s spokesperson told Parkers: "Our customers love to customise their vehicles and there are hundreds of thousands of possible combinations.
"In order to offer this level of customisation, options are priced to reflect the manufacturing and logistical requirements to facilitate them."
The UK's most-loved crossover the Nissan Qashqai Visia DIG-T 115 which £18,795 only has Flame Red as its standard free colour with all others costs £575 or £745 for the pearlescent variety.
Flame Red is the free colour option with the Nissan Qashqai Visia DIG-T 115
BUYING ADVICE
Ensure you thoroughly research all of the costs before you enter the showroom, so you aren't surprised by these hidden costs.
Obviously the most cost-effective thing to do is opt for the free shade, if the colour of the car is not too important to you.
One top tip however is to fork out the additional money for a metallic colour paint job as they have a stronger residual value boosting its resale cost.
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Ford Fiesta ST200
Percentage of models only available in one standard colour:
2017: 60% of Parkers’ selection of 50 popular model ranges
2007: 32% of the nearest equivalents to those 50 model ranges
1997: 0% of the nearest equivalents to those 50 model ranges