buying a car

I believe most people prefer the lease option now avail widely in Europe. Where for similiar or less than a rental you can get a new car by lease and simply return it when you are finished of course as noted by the terms of the contract. Walk away and no bother of hoping to sell.
Further comments re pros & cons can be found on this board.

Thanks for your help. We were hoping to find a cheaper way for friends who will be living in France for a year. They're finding that the lease would be about $1000 a month, which would be quite expensive for the year. But, that may be the only real option.

Will your friends be temporary residents with work permits?

They will be temporary residents, but they will not be working. They're retired.

What type of vise will they have? That will impact their ability to purchase a car.

I can't understand why buying a low cost used car is preferable to leasing a new one. You can't buy much of a car at all for less than $1000, the cost of a one month lease. My aunt and uncle bought a new Mercedes in Germany and drove it all around Europe before bringing it back to the States with them as a used car, and paying much less in duty than they would have if it were new.

Dave, they will be there for a year. 12x$1000 = $12,000, which could buy a pretty good brand new car. If its healthy a used one would have to be a better idea, but they will find it difficult unless they are legally able to, based on the visa.

I will check with our friends as to the kind of visa they will be getting. They have been in contact with an expatriate English couple who would like to rent them a house for the year. They have said they would help our friends with the necessary paperwork, bank accounts, etc. What kind of visa do they need in order to buy a car?
Thanks to everybody.

If I wanted to buy a cheap used car, I would go to a U.S. Army base, such as Heidelberg. Often times, if a service person has their family with them, they will want to have another car, in addition to the one they can ship over from the States. Then when they are being transferred back to the States, they need to sell their extra car.

They need a long term stay visa for France. Otherwise they are limited to three months. That needs to be squared away before they do anything else. See -- http://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/en/france_159/coming-to-france_2045/getting-visa_2046/what-type-to-apply-for_10872.html

Thanks again for all your suggestions. This will all be very helpful.