Manageable maintenance
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Think long-term
Costs that need to be factored in start with a vehicle’s residual value – the amount that will be retained when the car is sold on. Fuel, insurance and company taxation are three areas that even the most basic of whole-life cost investigation needs to take into account. Other areas to consider, depending on how detailed an analysis is deemed necessary and worthwhile, include the cost of finance to buy the vehicle in the first place, service, maintenance and repair costs.
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Pump decision
Choice of fuel was previously a foregone conclusion, because diesel is the most CO2 efficient option and the tax regimes generally reward CO2 efficiency, so the company car market has gradually migrated across to the black pump. But, like many things in the fleet industry, that viewpoint is now shifting thanks to a combination of considerations. Firstly, automotive manufacturers have put a lot of investment into a new breed of low-capacity turbocharged engines, so units offer the fuel economy of a smaller engine with the power of a larger one. This, combined with the seemingly settled differential of at least 10 cents per litre cheaper for unleaded means that for lower mileage drivers, petrol rather than diesel is usually the intelligent choice.
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Maintenance costs
There also seems to be an imbalance between the attention paid to choosing and acquiring a car, and managing the so-called in-life costs of that vehicle. That’s especially true among smaller businesses that don’t have a dedicated fleet manager and where the responsibility instead falls on procurement, finance or even HR specialists. The attitude seems to be a presumption that once a vehicle is on fleet, its costs are largely fixed. But with service, maintenance and repair in particular, that’s far from the case. Many franchised dealers offer competitive service packages or nationwide fixed-price servicing aimed at improving the offering for companies and their drivers. Downtime is also a major consideration. If a main dealer can turn a repair around a couple of days quicker than an independent, or vice versa, then the cost compared with the inconvenience of having that worker off the road needs to be factored in, especially if a hire car is required in the intervening period.
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Kia Service Commitment
At Kia, we understand the needs of Business users. That's why we are commited to 7 basic priciples when it comes to service, maintenance and repair:
- VALUE
- TRANSPARENCY
- CONVENIENCE
- SAFETY
- MOBILITY
- EXPRESS SERVICE
- RELIABILITY
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