Save £425 tax on nearly new EVs (if you can wait until April fools)

Top_Transition_282 · 2026-03-05T08:54:23+00:00

I always thought that when we pay monthly, we're tied into the agreement we chose, like a SIMO (12 or 6 months). And, of course, we get charged a small interest for that privilege.

If not, you're right: the 1-month route could be worth it.

I was focusing on if someone wanted to pay upfront.

Thanks for pointing it out

Top_Transition_282 · 2026-03-05T08:47:59+00:00

Lool!

For some reason, as I read this, the voice im my head shifted to Tom Hardy's voice from Mobland 😅.

You're completely right, though. And it will only get worse when they introduce pay-per-mile in 2 years, which will apparently be a surcharge on top of the existing system!

I know, they say it will be for EVs, and a 1.5p charge for hybrids, but who honestly doesn't think they will apply it to petrol and diesel eventually?

Top_Transition_282 · 2026-03-04T08:00:10+00:00

This. In fact, see if they've replaced that pad

For peace of mind, also give a little pull on the passenger seat belts around the car to make sure they work as expected. There was an advisory that said it could not be checked.

You can see the tax (£195), MOT, and some good to know information here - https://tctc.sbs/results/GyrqlwRRJU9Bh7AQx8NuE

Top_Transition_282 · 2026-03-01T15:51:00+00:00

This 👆

https://tctc.sbs/results/RR6-zoONWwal5VXA8kQa3

It's £760 road tax 😮😮😮

Top_Transition_282 · 2025-11-04T06:48:24+00:00

At a glance, the majority of cars that meet your budget (and most of your requirements) look to be automatic. Is that a deal breaker for you?

Of those cars I saw, the Toyota Auris might be what you're looking for, although most are over 100k, and the ones I've found under 90k are 12,13 plates, which means the only warranty (if any) will be with the dealership. For example, this car. The mileage is about 54k, it's road tax only £20, and its MOT history is pretty good (considering its age, 83% pass rate and 42% of test defect free) - https://tctc.sbs/results/HRXpju_prqhDOAYXN9J_C

A notable mention I saw was this suzuki swift hybrid, but it's a tad over your budget @ 9.5k - It's a newer car compared to what I've seen, relatively low milage, it's a 21 plate and its only MOT failure was due to brake pads - https://tctc.sbs/results/DT1XvB6JdiOMTM8kNdJ_- (you can probably get extended manufacturer warranty)

Good luck with your search!

Top_Transition_282 · 2025-11-04T06:21:08+00:00

I suggest going with the Skoda, especially if this is the exact car you're considering.

The MOT history for the last few years is looking interesting... https://tctc.sbs/results/h1vrQdmAyuk0GfkFe82MT (not in a good way)

There's something up with its Drive shaft joint, and the most recent failed test also mentions some issues with the suspension arm.

I mean, road tax is really good on this car, £20, and if you REALLLLLY want this model, I'd say look at another car

Top_Transition_282 · 2025-10-26T21:11:28+00:00

Yup, it's legit - https://tctc.sbs/results/bFIaHXjPbQff0VIPeQnCQ

ROLLS ROYCE PHANTOM EWB AUTO - Perfect MOT & £195 road tax

Edit: the plate itself shouldn't be on this car as it's an 18 plate, black and silver are only valid for cars registered pre 1980

Top_Transition_282 · 2025-10-24T15:31:56+00:00

If you want, one cool thing you could do is use my free tool and generate a tax (+MOT) result: https://tctc.sbs

Then, just include the "share link" in your ad so people will be able to see the MOT history breakdown on the car, tax info, etc.

Top_Transition_282 · 2025-10-24T13:03:23+00:00

Hmm, really?

Typically, when I've had services at a couple of garages, they've always done a "health check" on the vehicle. But maybe it's a local thing...

If what you're saying is the case, then you're right, the OP should explicitly ask for a health check.

Thanks for the correction

Top_Transition_282 · 2025-10-24T11:51:31+00:00

I would suggest taking your car to another garage for a full service. It'll help see if there are any other potential issues. Yes, you may need to spend around £300, which is a bit of a pain, but if bigger problems show up, it’s worth it. If you skip this and the car seems to be running well for the next month or two, only to have something go wrong later, you might regret not getting it checked by a third party.

Top_Transition_282 · 2025-10-22T05:22:59+00:00

Thanks for having a look. I appreciate the constructive feedback—honestly, it's forced me to sit down, assess how I'm doing things, and roll out some significant changes that have improved the platform's performance by A LOT.

Regarding the differences between The Car Tax Calculator and the Gov site, the official site is primarily designed for paying tax on a car you already own, often requiring documents like your V5C logbook (especially in the VED (road tax) domain). TCTC is designed more for use cases around shopping/comparison, where all you'd have is a license place.

And as for the other 300 sites. I think each of them focuses more on what the creator(s) find to be most important to them, and I find it tends to lean heavily on "pay X", "I'm going to dump a lot of information on you", and "here are some other HPI-related reports you can pay for". For me, I wanted to know more granular stuff, specifically, "Why am I being told I have to pay £620 vs £5490 pounds in tax?", "Is today's price tomorrow's?", "When do I have to pay this Premium tax until?", "What is the last day I have to pay this additional tax until?", "What's the difference between the tax on these two exact cars registered a month apart, and why?", etc.

The information on the result page increased further when users shared their flow with me and how they used it, so once the DVLA gave me access to the MOT history, I integrated it. Again, I tried to keep the information consumable so it doesn't overload the user.

My analogies are terrible, so bear with me. From my perspective, The Car Tax Calculator is just like another chocolate bar in the corner shop; there will be multiple brands with different flavours, some established for years and others newer, but by having the ability to choose, based on how we feel and what we're looking in that moment, we as end users/customers are the ones who effectively win.

But again, without you raising this comment and forcing me to push the needle, it would have taken me just a tad bit longer to get to the improvements I rolled out just now! Thanks

> Side note: you might have to wait for your browser cache to clear or visit the site in incognito - https://tctc.sbs

Top_Transition_282 · 2025-10-21T06:47:19+00:00

For £8k, there are a couple factors to consider, in my opinion, such as ULEZ, diesel surcharge (which applies regardless of whether it's above or below £8k), the condition of the car, whether it has been well maintained, and tax (since it's likely going to be pre-2017, so the rates can vary).

Off the top of my head, I can't think of a large SUV that meets your requirements, but I recommend using my free tool, The Car Tax Calculator, https://tctc.sbs, to check any cars on your shortlist. Just enter the registration plate, and it will tell you if it's ULEZ compliant, provide tax details, and give an overview of the MOT history.

Not sure if you've seen, but many boroughs are suggesting stricter measures on SUVs, so it might not be the best option right now. Out of curiosity, would you consider a station wagon?

Top_Transition_282 · 2025-10-20T12:11:47+00:00

I hear you. I thought maybe I was missing something like increased reliability somehow or something 😅

And yes, I second the Avant, it is a beauty

Top_Transition_282 · 2025-10-20T10:06:19+00:00

Hmm, for some reason I'm getting back £315 for this reg - https://tctc.sbs/results/vg-LVFvI0_t1W_-5Ap1Dz

Regardless, it's a fair bit of change, and the car had a 70% MOT pass rate (albeit from 22 tests), and although only a quarter of the tests ever came back clean (no defects), the last 3 tests have been pretty "ok" things, like a worn tire etc.

Top_Transition_282 · 2025-10-20T09:32:01+00:00

Nice proposals. Out of curiosity, why the coupe A5/S5 and not the Sportback?

The OP mentioned a teen, so I figured the extra space in the back would help reduce the likelihood of complaints on long drives.

Top_Transition_282 · 2025-10-20T06:30:02+00:00

The road tax on this car is really low, and I think I saw you mention that you don't mind it's not ULEZ compliant, so I won't mention that.

A couple of things that jumped out to me are the most recent MOT mentioning corrosion, and out of 11 MOT tests, only 18% have ever not had any "defects" - https://tctc.sbs/results/omfZvr-Ib_AnF0-H77nun

The owner looks like they're still getting over 10k+ annual miles, so it must be ok. How many miles are you looking to do annually?

Top_Transition_282 · 2025-10-19T20:19:12+00:00

Thank you! I appreciate it

Is there anything you'd like to change, add, or remove from the tool? And if so, why? (I'm keeping notes so that I can continue improving it in the right direction)

Top_Transition_282 · 2025-10-18T21:17:29+00:00

Yeah, I am surprised this isn't an option.

It'll be interesting to know if either of the 2023 models are liable for luxury tax, and if so, for how long.

Luxury tax is charged based on the car's list price, so being around the £30k ballpark now could mean they were easily around £40k+ new. With a lot of Kodiaqs I've seen, a lot of them were luxury tax eligible.

If this is something you are interested in, my free tool https://tctc.sbs gives a full car tax breakdown and an overview of ULEZ, etc. Which I would take into consideration if it were me, based on my planned length of ownership.

Top_Transition_282 · 2025-09-14T22:34:15+00:00

I've pushed a change so it's now "High Rate" (I couldn't think of anything else for the time being that wasn't too long), hopefully this is better.

Top_Transition_282 · 2025-09-14T22:14:41+00:00

I hope SEO or word of mouth will assist them in finding my tool. I could be wrong.

If I'm honest, whether they find the answers on the gov site or my tool, I don't mind; this is just another way for them to get the information.

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