Opel Astra Devaluation

cooperguy

I was thinking of buying a 2 door Astra in the next few weeks. Probably 05 or 06ish. I was telling a friend of mine that and he told me that Astras drop in value like a rock and I shouldnt go near them. I was wondering is it really that bad? Would people on here think its a bad idea to invest in one?

bazz26

Everything drops in value, especially in the current state of the used car market. Even Golfs which have always had strong resale values have dropped. I'd hold off a little longer for the Astra though, there is a new model being released towards the end of the year. This will drop values again making them better value if buying.

Remember a car is not an investment and should not be treated as such. Get value from it rather than worrying about it's value to the next owner.

Camarague

That 3 door model Astra should hold its value better than other Astras.

You can actually see on Carzone people are willing to pay more for them.

The biggest proportion of depreciation has already happened at this stage anyway

cooperguy

I probably picked the wrong word when I said invest. I know its going to loose value I just dont want to buy a car and have it drop in value by a huge amount more than most other cars. Is it a myth that they loose value that quick?

Drummerboy08

cooperguy wrote: »

I probably picked the wrong word when I said invest. I know its going to loose value I just dont want to buy a car and have it drop in value by a huge amount more than most other cars. Is it a myth that they loose value that quick?

Unfortunatly, no, its not a myth.

Cars are still dropping in value, albeit slightly. Be prepared to lose money on it, especially if you plan to keep it for more than 12 months.

On the other side, the Astra Sporthatch is not a bad car. If possible, try to pick up a diesel variant - preferably a 1.7CDTi, or the older 1.9CDTi 150bhp if you can get one - as this will help resale values.

Steer clear of the 1.4 petrol and 2.0Turbo OPC models unless you really feel in a charitable mood, and want to buy a future bargain for someone else.

colm_mcm

think the 1.3 diesel is the pick of the bunch for good resale.

cooperguy

I was looking at the 1.6 petrol model. Its said in a few places that its the best model? I reckon its the middle of the road model, not too small but at the same time not so big that people will be turned off buying it in 2 years time. Would people agree?

Sorry for all the questions my friend just spooked me a bit. Im well aware that I wont be making money on any car and that they loose value every year just want to make sure im not getting something that will be loosing value at a much greater rate than similar models!

.Longshanks.

+1 for the 3door 1.3 diesel, i had one for two years when they first came out. However this time next year the current 5 door model will have been replaced (3 door followed about year later last time) so this won't help resale value. The current form of focus has been around only 18 months or so....

bazz26

Longshanks100 wrote: »

+1 for the 3door 1.3 diesel, i had one for two years when they first came out. However this time next year the current 5 door model will have been replaced (3 door followed about year later last time) so this won't help resale value. The current form of focus has been around only 18 months or so....

The current Focus is a facelifted version of the model that has been on sale since late 2004.

bazz26

cooperguy wrote: »

I was looking at the 1.6 petrol model. Its said in a few places that its the best model? I reckon its the middle of the road model, not too small but at the same time not so big that people will be turned off buying it in 2 years time. Would people agree?

Sorry for all the questions my friend just spooked me a bit. Im well aware that I wont be making money on any car and that they loose value every year just want to make sure im not getting something that will be loosing value at a much greater rate than similar models!

That totally depends on the model in question. In a car like an Astra a 1.6 litre is a large engine to the Irish motoring public and not really in demand but the same engine in a Vectra is the most popular model. This is mainly down to the old engine size based motor tax system and VRT. A 1.6 litre petrol Astra will be difficult enough to sell on compared to a 1.4 litre or 1.3 litre diesel.

.Longshanks.

bazz26 wrote: »

The current Focus is a facelifted version of the model that has been on sale since late 2004.

Without nit picking, thats more or less what i said. Perhaps you put it better but what i meant was ....."the current form of focus" = facelifted version

Matt Simis

Someone in my family is selling a low mileage 2006 Astra Twintop (3piece metal folding roof like the Merc) "Design" if you are interested? They have other cars for lugging around, so its fairly mint IMO.

Looks quite nice with the roof up, unlike many convertibles:



The folding mechanism is very Transformers. :pac:
If you were going for a Convertible model, run away from the 1.6 (or the laughable 1.4), as always the weight of the roof and reinforced body commands a bit more oomph from the engine. I presume the Diesels pull it quite well (though Diesel with a 'vert is an oxymoron) and the 1.8+ petrols are grand.