Brand New or 2nd hand?

[Abrown]

I have already ordered a brand new A3 s-line 184 and I am kinda thinking if I made the right choice...
Due to the time wait it has made me look into used A3's of a similar spec.. It seems within a year of me having the car I would of lost around £4,000 which I think is a lot....
I highly doubt I would get my £500 deposit back to then purchase a 1 year old one...

My discount was 11.2% overall.

 

[monopole]

why wouldn't you get your deposit back? but you certainly won't get the equivalent finance from them buying used as you would new.

 

[Abrown]

Surely the whole point of a deposit is so I don't pull out?
My car is on order although not until week 28 which is July time I believe.

 

[monopole]

if the dealer withholds your deposit, then he probably wasn't worth going to in the first place.

 

[JohnM100]

All cars will depreciate, including the second hand one if you choose to go that route.

You have negotiated a good discount on your order and it will be MY16 so with the latest addons, and with the spec you wanted, not what someone else wanted.

Ultimately your choice though, and price is always a factor in that.

 

[Abrown]

All cars will depreciate, including the second hand one if you choose to go that route.

You have negotiated a good discount on your order and it will be MY16 so with the latest addons, and with the spec you wanted, not what someone else wanted.

Ultimately your choice though, and price is always a factor in that.

Yes that it true I suppose. I don't think MY16 really has any change except ibis white which is the colour I chose.

 

[driver_tim]

I'm starting to get a bit concerned about A3 residuals. Followed a 63 plate SE sportback for a while on my drive home this evening. From the registration I'd say it was an ex-hire car, however it had been sold through cargiant who are a big car supermarket here in London. Looking on their website they have a few 8Vs, and some of the others look to be on Audi UK head office registrations. I'm a bit worried that Audi can't shift this kind of stock through their dealers and instead are already dumping them on car supermarkets. The OP's experience here rather reinforces my concern!

 

[jaypers777]

I wasn't originally going to buy new and was looking at ex-demos etc. didn't find I was saving a massive amount of money, and when I thought about it, decided that I really wanted to get the exact spec from my wish list rather than compromise. For me, this made going for new worth it. The whole experience of having a car built to my own spec and the wait etc was worth the extra to me. Horses for corses really. Depends if you want to make compromises, plus the fact of not knowing how the second hand car has been treated/driven. However, this is true for any second hand car and I've had plenty.

 

[Beluga S line]

There is no VAT on second hand cars so you will save 20% on a used model. And I'm sure you would get at least another 10% off the screen price.

As people have mentioned It depends if you are buying the car with the folding stuff or on finance

 

[Kugaman1]

Also, buying new means, if you plan to keep it a long time....you can run it in correctly and look after it.....

Having test driven an m135i before buying one and several Golf Rs recently.....Im ****** sure I wouldnt buy an ex demo hot hatch thats for sure!

 

[Forbzeeee]

I originally planned to buy 2nd hand but after looking for nearly a year I couldn't find the right car with the right spec. It was a tough decision, but I learned from my last s3 which didn't have those buckets seats or rnse.... both of which I craved throughout my ownership of the car!

In the end, it was a no brainer to buy new and get the whole experience that comes with it. More importantly, I got the exact car I wanted and I'm enjoying it more each time I see it, get in it, and drive it!

If the right car comes up, at the right time, grab it!! I looked everyday up until I got my new car just in case the perfect car came along! ....It didn't!! This has more than justified my decision to buy new!

Good luck!!

 

[cemerson]

You'll likely get your deposit back if you didn't order anything too 'specialist' that they would find difficult to shift.

 

[RichardT]

I wasn't originally going to buy new and was looking at ex-demos etc. didn't find I was saving a massive amount of money, and when I thought about it, decided that I really wanted to get the exact spec from my wish list rather than compromise. For me, this made going for new worth it. The whole experience of having a car built to my own spec and the wait etc was worth the extra to me. Horses for corses really. Depends if you want to make compromises, plus the fact of not knowing how the second hand car has been treated/driven. However, this is true for any second hand car and I've had plenty.

My experience exactly. These 6 month old 5K miles cars seemed pretty much the same price as new - very little benefit.
I think if you look at over a year old the situation is different. Although, they don't stop depreciating for years - all cars cost a chunk of cash!!

 

[Rob2k68]

Lower APR on the new car swung it for me it was actually cheaper to buy new and get the exact spec that I wanted. Factor in total cost, warranty, colour and spec options and also how long you expect to keep the car.

 

[Dtwm1]

You tend to find base models of any car get dumped into car supermarkets. No dealer wants a forecourt full se spec cars. I work for Enterprise who unlike everyone else buy all our cars because of this it's very rare to see a bottom spec car. Europcar who have Audi's have them on a buy back scheme (lease) so it's whatever is cheapest.

 

[AndyB-S3]

I bought my S3 at 8 months old with 6/7k miles, ex-management car. (yes it was probably thrashed a few times but it seriously was/is immaculate!!)

In total I paid just a little over £24k for it with my part exchanged A1 and got a fantastic price that nobody could match, also got 2 free services when I "took" the finance, which also had dealer/Audi contributions ((which was paid off 1 week later with no penalty....Just so happens I came into money that week. :wink wink) It was a no-brainer for me at the time. Similar specced new S3 was approx £34k.

 

[thewanted]

What was your A1 worth? Was your cost to change £24k, or was the price of the S3 £24k? If it was the former, then I really hope that your A1 was worth no more than £5k

 

[AndyB-S3]

I physically had to part with £12.5k & the A1. For me it was a good deal.

 

[thewanted]

I physically had to part with £12.5k & the A1. For me it was a good deal.

That does sound a lot better I've been scouring the Used Cars page on Audi.co.uk twice a day but every S3 is overpriced. My problem is that I want the new-style 18" wheels which seem to only be included on cars from about June/July 2014. I don't want the original 10-spoke wheels which rules out every car under ~£30k.

 

[AndyB-S3]

Well I had a quick look and it seems prices have gone up since I bought mine. Strange.. I think I have the wheels you are talking about and my car is earlier than June/July.. and at the time was priced at £28,850. Maybe because it was the run up to xmas and they needed sales by end of the year??..

 

[thewanted]

Well I had a quick look and it seems prices have gone up since I bought mine. Strange.. I think I have the wheels you are talking about and my car is earlier than June/July.. and at the time was priced at £28,850. Maybe because it was the run up to xmas and they needed sales by end of the year??..

Yeah, the car in your avatar has the wheels I want I'll keep looking because I'm not really in a big rush. The longer I keep my S1 the less brutal the depreciation hit will be. I should really stop searching now and resume my search in early 2016 when more cars hit the second-hand market.

I hate the fact that you can't search for magnetic ride on Audi's site

 

[Daveotto]

I'm starting to get a bit concerned about A3 residuals. Followed a 63 plate SE sportback for a while on my drive home this evening. From the registration I'd say it was an ex-hire car, however it had been sold through cargiant who are a big car supermarket here in London. Looking on their website they have a few 8Vs, and some of the others look to be on Audi UK head office registrations. I'm a bit worried that Audi can't shift this kind of stock through their dealers and instead are already dumping them on car supermarkets. The OP's experience here rather reinforces my concern!

Car Supermarkets are in effect second tier dealers and majority of stock is high mileage ex fleet/hire cars or low spec lease returns and typically have above average mileage....I would not worry as there is nothing you can do about it irrespective of what car you own unless you own a 10 year old banger which cant depreciate any further

 

[h5djr]

Nearly all of my A3s have been purchased new mainly to get the exact spec I want. Personally I don't see any point in paying out a lot of money for something that is not exactly what I want. All of my A3s have been purchased for cash although I may consider a PCP next time.

 

[Psyman79]

That does sound a lot better I've been scouring the Used Cars page on Audi.co.uk twice a day but every S3 is overpriced. My problem is that I want the new-style 18" wheels which seem to only be included on cars from about June/July 2014. I don't want the original 10-spoke wheels which rules out every car under ~£30k.

I'm sure there would be a few people on here who'd be willing to swap wheels if you managed to bag a bargain.

 

[AndyB-S3]

@Psyman79 that is a great idea!!.

@thewanted find a car with 19" and I will happily swap the 18" for them. haha

 

[thewanted]

@thewanted find a car with 19" and I will happily swap the 18" for them. haha

Haha I can't even find a car, let alone one with 19s!