What Car? Q&A - Should I stick with my car on order?

Q: I have had a BMW X5 3.0D Sport on order since October last year, with delivery promised on September 1, 2005. I have paid a deposit of £1000 and am now due to increase this to 5% of the cost, roughly another £1000, in the next week or so.

I am now starting to read reviews of the new Mercedes ML and also see that the current X5 is due to be replaced around the end of 2006. There is also the Range Rover Sport diesel.

I’m unsure if I should proceed with the X5. Should I go for the new ML or Range Rover Sport? I don’t want to lose a lot of money on the X5 as soon as the new model comes out.
Mark Roe

A: If you were to cancel the X5 you’d face another long wait for your new choice to arrive. Range Rover says it’s had 4000 orders on its new Sport already which means it’s sold out into 2006. Mercedes lead times are also likely to be very long.

The X5 you’ve got on order is still an excellent product, and one that shouldn’t disappoint – even with the new cars on the block.

While it might look a little dated when the new model arrives (and more dated the more different the new model looks), we wouldn’t worry too much about losing a huge of amount of money with a dip in residuals.

The diesel X5 has some of the best resale values on the market, and we can’t see these bombing. There are likely to be plenty of eager buyers who don’t want or can’t afford what is said to be a larger and more expensive second-generation vehicle.

At the end of the day you’ll have to get behind the wheel of the Range Rover and Mercedes to see if they’re good enough turning your back on a still strong product, losing your deposit and waiting even longer for your new car.