Why such a huge variation in trade-in allowance?

Comhrá

When I was shopping for my 161 Audi A4, I was trading in my 141 A3 Saloon.

One Main Audi dealer was allowing me €19,000 for my car, another main Audi dealer was allowing me €24,250 and another non-Audi dealer (but a VAG group main dealer) was allowing me €24,500.

Why would there be such a huge variation in allowances for my A3?

Did one of the salesmen get their valuations very wrong or would there be other possible considerations at play?

The guy with the low-ball offer was the only one who rang me afterwards asking to know if I had decided to deal?

Charles Babbage

If you had no trade in there would be variation in the discount they would offer you, this is wrapped up in the trade in and of course there could be some variation in their perception of the resale value of the trade in.

Nonoperational

Cost to change?

carsfan

were you getting the quotes for buying the exact same model?
The lowest offer, maybe got your car wrong? I can't see why otherwise as would have thought 1 to 2 grand variation would be max.

Comhrá

carsfan wrote: »

were you getting the quotes for buying the exact same model?
The lowest offer, maybe got your car wrong? I can't see why otherwise as would have thought 1 to 2 grand variation would be max.

Yes. exact same model.

Comhrá

Nonoperational wrote: »

Cost to change?

Dealer A: €23,840

Dealer B: €18,590

Dealer C: €18,340

carsfan

5 grand variation is too big. He made a mistake I would say.

Nonoperational

Interesting.

Comhrá

How does a salesperson with supposed knowledge of the marque make such a gross mistake valuing a 2 yrs. old model of the same brand he's dealing in for years?


I can't imagine Audi would be too pleased with him for such a bad miss with his valuation. Anyway, I doubt I'll be calling him againin the future.

Cee-Jay-Cee

Did you not ask the dealer to explain why his price was €5k more than anyone else?

Either he got his valuation wrong or its just pure greed.

bazz26

I think some people tend to take a low trade-in offer of their car very personal. Not defending the dealer in question but there could valid reasons why they valued your car so low or then again they may have chanced their arm to see if you'd bite just like in poker - stick or twist.

The important thing is to not get insulted by the low offer but just vote with your wallet and buy elsewhere.

Mintoe

tippman1 wrote: »

Dealer A: €23,840

Dealer B: €18,590

Dealer C: €18,340

Maybe go back to dealer a and find out why he was so much more expensive, you'll probably find an error was made and you never know, the salesperson might just that bit more than you're other cheaper quote to make up for his mistake, make it work to your advantage. Tell him you'll put down deposit today if he atones for his error.

Toyotafanboi

tippman1 wrote: »

How does a salesperson with supposed knowledge of the marque make such a gross mistake valuing a 2 yrs. old model of the same brand he's dealing in for years?


I can't imagine Audi would be too pleased with him for such a bad miss with his valuation. Anyway, I doubt I'll be calling him againin the future.

He may already have had a few of the same vehicle you were trying to trade in in stock and his lowball offer was the only way he'd be interested in taking another.

If he gets you, he gets you. If he doesn't, consider it a polite "please **** off".

A reasonably common tactic i'd say.

carsfan

OP already has his 161 so deal is done.
Your A3 was petrol I think.Was he a rural dealer who maybe felt that in his garage it may be harder to move on?
Why not ring them not saying you've bought already and query his pricing compared to what you were offered elsewhere if it's bothering you?
Did you not ask at the time?

Comhrá

carsfan wrote: »

OP already has his 161 so deal is done.
Your A3 was petrol I think.Was he a rural dealer who maybe felt that in his garage it may be harder to move on?
Why not ring them not saying you've bought already and query his pricing compared to what you were offered elsewhere if it's bothering you?
Did you not ask at the time?

No it's not bothering me in the least. I was just curious as to how they do valuations.
I went into his showroom one day after ordering my A4 elsewhere, just to see the colour swatches before choosing colours and interior, and he was over to me, asking if I were ready to press ahead with a deal.

I explained that I'd dealt elsewhere and he was visibly taken aback. I mentioned his low offer and he looked surprised when I told him the other quotes I'd got. He sort of admitted he'd made a mistake and then said he'd had to have his offer approved elsewhere. Anyway, he's at the game a good while so I was surprised at the big price-gap. It's a city dealership and the two other places I priced in were much smaller and located in smaller towns so hard to know if it's a rural/city thing with petrol v diesel values.

bear1

Have I understood correctly that your 141 Audi depreciated by 50% give or take in 2 years?

Comhrá

bear1 wrote: »

Have I understood correctly that your 141 Audi depreciated by 50% give or take in 2 years?

A3 list price new was 34.5 k, allowed 24.5k against new A4.

bear1

tippman1 wrote: »

A3 list price new was 34.5 k, allowed 24.5k against new A4.

Ah right I thought that your car was being valued at max 24.5k but you'd still have to pay 19k on top of that.

R.O.R

The trade in value is one person's view compared to a different person's view, so there's no right or wrong answer.

We've had variances of over €10,000 between traders bidding on the same car in our sale, and it's a regular occurance that differences are €3,000 - €5,000 between the top bid and lowest bid.

R.O.R

The trade in value is one person's view compared to a different person's view, so there's no right or wrong answer.

We've had variances of over €10,000 between traders bidding on the same car in our sale, and it's a regular occurance that differences are €3,000 - €5,000 between the top bid and lowest bid.

VincePP

Here's a way of getting a good idea of your car value.

Call into one of the car auction houses and ask what you could expect from auction.

Then take 8%-10% of the asking price of the car you are looking to buy.

Add the two figures together and you'll get the approx trade in price.

colm_mcm

the one who gets the deal isn't necessarily getting it right though.

waxon-waxoff

Hey Tippman, im going off on a tangent here but were you disappointed with the A3 and now you're going to an A4? I think the A3 saloon s-line is one of the best looking cars on sale, inside and out. Not cheap though.

Comhrá

waxon-waxoff wrote: »

Hey Tippman, im going off on a tangent here but were you disappointed with the A3 and now you're going to an A4? I think the A3 saloon s-line is one of the best looking cars on sale, inside and out. Not cheap though.

No, I was very happy with the A3 Saloon, and I agree the S-Line is a lovely looking car if a bit pricey for it's size.

When I originally decided to get an Audi back in 2013, I went test-driving a few A4s, but to be honest, I wasn't over impressed with how they drove, plus the A4 was due for replacement anyway. I saw the A3 Saloon photos, thought it looked very smart and when I eventually got a chance for a test-drive, I really liked it and decided to buy.

A very nice car in every way, but a bit on the small side if you have people in the back for a long drive. For driving, though, it is a very nice experience and the 1.4 petrol engine at 148hp gives good performance, at least it was plenty fast for me anyway - and around 50 mpg, driven reasonably.

I generally change cars 2-3 years so when the new A4 came on the scene, I was wooed and to be honest, my new A4 SE is a pretty big upgrade from the A3 SE Saloon, especially, the extra space, better seats, much quieter cabin, and I got an automatic which makes for very easy driving.