Sinclair Finance & Leasing

Spring Spectacular - 4x4 Sales from £8,995!

Spring is finally upon us and at SInclair Direct we have spectacular deals on 4x4 used vehicles - all at knock down prices and not to be missed.  Prices start at just £8,995 and with finance and cash back deals available we have a deal to suit everyone!

(04) Landrover Freelander 1.8 SE 5dr - Manual, Petrol, Hardback

Available in choice of colours - Was £9,995 Now £8,995

(04) Honda CRV 2.0i VTEC Executive 5dr

Available in Grey - Was £10,495 Now £9,695

First Motorway Car Share Lane Opens

The UK's first motorway car share lane has opened near Bradford.

The 1.7-mile lane links the southbound M606 near Bradford to the eastbound M62 towards Leeds. It is open to cars and taxis with two or more occupants, as well as buses and coaches, and bypasses the notoriously congested section where the two motorways merge.

It is estimated the new lane, which has been built in addition to the existing motorway lanes, will save road users an average of seven minutes per journey.

Congestion busting projects get funding

£8m has been awared to improve congestion and journey times on the roads. Three major research projects are being constructed looking into providing relevant driving information, environmentally friendly driving styles and enhancing transport systems.

The three projects, which will see companies working with academic institutions and network operators, have been awarded the funding through the Government's Future Intelligent Transport Systems initiative.

"Congestion and pollution are problems that both affect the economy and are frustrating for road users. With the number of vehicles on the UK's roads set to rise, along with levels of congestion, we need to find solutions - and new technology will play a key role,” said science and innovation minister Ian Pearson. "We are confident that these projects will help to provide innovative solutions for this major challenge."

Budget 2008: Vehicle Excise Duty changes

With the latest budget comes a reform of the Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) structure.  2009 will see a restructure where financial incentives are offered for those choosing the greenest cars, while from 2010 in order to deter people from buying the high emitting vehicle, there will be a new higher first year rate. 

This will mean that cars emitting less than 130g/km of CO2 will pay no VED in the first year, but cars that produce more than 254g/km will pay a first year VED of £950.

Budget 2008 - Company cars capital tax reformed

From the recent budget, the Chancellor has decided to change the capital tax on company cars.  In addition to reforming Vehicle Excise Duty, Chancellor Allistair Darling promised that the Government will further promote the take up of cleaner cars through reforms to the taxation of company cars business travel.

The new approach will mean replacing the existing capital allowance treatment for company cars with an emissions based method.  This will take effect from April 1, 2009.  Expenditure on cars with CO2 emissions above 160g/km will attract 10% Writing Down Allowance (WDA) and expenditure on cars with CO2 emissions of 160g/km or below will attract 20% WDA

Sinclair Finance and Leasing forms new partnership with Total Accident Managment

At Sinclair Finance and Leasing we have recently teamed up with Total Accident Management to manage vehicle accident claims across our fleet of 2,500 contract hire vehicles.  Total Accident Management is the fleet accident repair and claim division of Helphire PLC.

Sinclair Finance and Leasing has opted for Total's newly launched Fleet 1-Call package, which is ideally suited for smaller fleets.  In the event of a Sinclair customer's vehicle incurring accidental damage, Total will take care of the whole repair and claim process, from first notification of loss to final completion.

"We were impressed by Total's flexible customer focused approach and its ability to fit in with our needs, and those of our customers".   

Techonology makes a dream car, a perfect car!

Every so often television shows have a good laugh at the expense of past visions of the future.

Rocket cars, hover boards and the like have been touted by futurologists since the 1950s and such predictions have usually fallen hilariously wide of the mark.

                  

                       Cars that drive themselves?

                                     Ridiculous

                                   But hang on..

Vehicles running on nuclear power might not be with us yet, but self-aware machines that can drive for us are much more of a reality.

Some technology that allows cars to take over aspects of control from the driver is already with us, and more sophisticated versions are on the way.

Technology cannot solve traffic problems on its own

New and wider roads are needed in addition to new vehicle technology such as real time sat nav to combat the growing congestion problems on the UK’s roads.

According to RAC research, 58% of drivers believe that in-car technology makes driving safer, however, 71% of drivers believe the complexity of modern vehicles means new technology would have to be explained to them to have a positive effect.

Indeed, 14% of drivers admit that new technology in cars means added distractions that divert their attention away from driving.

In its latest research paper, the RAC also states that indecision, poor management, the formation of transport departments that do not have a clear remit and a lack of long-term vision has set back the development of UK roads.