[IanNazareth]

Greetings everyone!

I've been stuck in a dilemma over the last few weeks and have listed my car on sale and off sale multiple times.

Currently I own a 2017 Registered Audi A3 that I bought preowned in 2021 - 2 year ago. It's odo is now at 61000kms and was 35000kms when I bought it. Not been to the garage at all over 2 years apart from routine oil changes and replacing a headlight, more about this could be found on the ownership thread that keep updated. ( https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-...am-wheels.html (My Pre-Owned 2017 Audi A3 2.0 TDI | 1 Year Ownership | A dream on wheels) )

Situation :
My factory is in Kolhapur and I reside in Mumbai. Earlier I used to make a week long trip once a month by car and back to sort out all matters. This allowed me a nice drive as well that I thoroughly enjoyed. Off late I have been making the trip by overnight bus and have kept my 12 year old Spark at the factory to use while I'm there. Mostly as the A3 is racking up kms pretty quickly. 1000kms+ two way trip

Hence, the Audi isn't being used much apart from the Weekly Sunday morning drives 100 or so kms around the Mumbai coast.

Question :
Fearing a huge depreciation dip in value being :
1. An aging diesel car.
2. High mileage German.
3. Maintenance related nightmares in the future.

I have a good opportunity to sell the car right now while it's in pristine condition and move onto something that will be :

a. Fun to drive.
b. Won't take a massive hit in depreciation doing 20k kms a year.
c. Budget of max 30L

Twist : I have also considered adding a preowned under 10L car to the garage and retiring the A3 to more weekend or Important business occasions.

Conversely I have test driven the updated Tata Safari last week that I truly enjoyed trampling over potholes that I so feared in the Audi, felt bloody great .

Forgive me for I seem as confused as this thread does.

What would you guys do? I plan on adding a Sports car to the garage in 2-3 years time for the Sunday morning duties, so I need preferably something that I can retain for all work and travel, hence the Safari, just unsure about it being a diesel long term and living in Mumbai with the impending 10y ban coming to us too.


Thanks for your reading!


- Ian

[GTO]

Originally Posted by IanNazareth

Mostly as the A3 is racking up kms pretty quickly. 1000kms+ two way trip

Don't worry about racking up the km. In Europe & elsewhere, this engine & gearbox do well over 200,000 - 250,000 km. You've bought an Audi. USE IT. Especially since you:

This allowed me a nice drive as well that I thoroughly enjoyed.

Retain your existing car, keep it in top shape and enjoy it. Will be way cheaper than buying a new Safari / any other car.

Option 2: Alternate between the Audi & overnight bus. Many times, when in doubt, a 50 : 50 approach works too. Let's say I'm trying to lose weight, but am craving a pizza and it's not my cheat day. I'll eat half a pizza. Let's say I'm feeling a bit off, but it's my workout day. I'll work out 50%. A workout for 45 minutes is still better than no workout at all.

[IanNazareth]

Originally Posted by GTO

Don't worry about racking up the km. In Europe & elsewhere, this engine & gearbox do well over 200,000 - 250,000 km. You've bought an Audi. USE IT. Especially since you:

Retain your existing car, keep it in top shape and enjoy it. Will be way cheaper than buying a new Safari / any other car.

Thanks @GTO for your input, I really value it!

The thing I'm worried about is if there is going to be a market for used 10y + Diesel cars 5 years from now, specially European makes.

What are your plans with your 530? I'm sure this thought has crossed your mind a couple of times.

Factor in that I'm only 30 and a significant % of my net worth is in my car.

Originally Posted by GTO

Option 2: Alternate between the Audi & overnight bus. Many times, when in doubt, a 50 : 50 approach works too. Let's say I'm trying to lose weight, but am craving a pizza and it's not my cheat day. I'll eat half a pizza. Let's say I'm feeling a bit off, but it's my workout day. I'll work out 50%. A workout for 45 minutes is still better than no workout at all.

Couldn't agree more! If I end up keeping it, I was planning on adding a manual Ignis or Tiago to help split the load with small city chores.

[ike]

Originally Posted by IanNazareth

The thing I'm worried about is if there is going to be a market for used 10y + Diesel cars 5 years from now, specially European makes.

There probably wouldn't be however this is too far into the future plus there wouldn't be any market five years down the line for a safari either. BTW a 10 year old Audi will have no "market" even if the purported diesel ban was not on the horizon. As long as you are enjoying driving your car, why not use it now?

[Rajeevraj]

In todays day and age, where only SUV's rule the roost, sedans itself are a rare commodity. The A3 is a lovely compact, high quality car and hence I don't think you should sell it. Since it is a diesel, has the more reliable DSG gearbox too. In addition only 6 years old.

Also, after driving the A3 for long, I don't think any of the current crop will satisfy you.

[IanNazareth]

Originally Posted by ike

There probably wouldn't be however this is too far into the future plus there wouldn't be any market five years down the line for a safari either. BTW a 10 year old Audi will have no "market" even if the purported diesel ban was not on the horizon. As long as you are enjoying driving your car, why not use it now?

True, however from a cost of ownership standpoint, factoring in interest,insurance, service and maintenance AND depreciation I estimated it to be around 30-40k a month amortized over 4 years of usage.

However with a resale value of 0, things are different.

Suddenly a new TSI A4 even at 50L - used over 8 years seems *cheaper*

This is where I'm stuck. I could be driving a new Audi for the same cost per month. Unless my calculations are flawed or biased in someway.

Originally Posted by Rajeevraj

In todays day and age, where only SUV's rule the roost, sedans itself are a rare commodity. The A3 is a lovely compact, high quality car and hence I don't think you should sell it. Since it is a diesel, has the more reliable DSG gearbox too. In addition only 6 years old.

Also, after driving the A3 for long, I don't think any of the current crop will satisfy you.

I agree with you, it's very reliable and a hoot to drive on those few twisty roads, but again few. My concern is purely financial and logical.

[Ashwintona675]

Hey, i have a preowned A3 as well 2.5 years old. I had bought it in 2021 at 50,000km odo reading. Now it is at 80,000km. I have the timing kit replacement incoming next service which is quite a bit expense. I was in the same boat as you few months back, thinking of upgrading with a budget of 30L (preowned luxury sedans only).

But the problem now is, used car market is at an all time high, im not even getting a 2019 model 320d for 30L, let alone new shape (2020+). So i decided to wait for 2 more years, fingers crossed the used car market cools down and i get g20 bmw in the 30L price range. A3 is a very underrated car. Absolutely can be used as a beater, insane torque and sweet gearbox. Has the snob value as well. So i would suggest retain the A3 for a couple of more years, diesel Audis are still in demand and you will definitely get a good bargain and wont regret keeping the car either. Cheers mate.

[ike]

Originally Posted by IanNazareth

Suddenly a new TSI A4 even at 50L - used over 8 years seems *cheaper*

I'm no expert in this and happy to be corrected however interest, maintenance, insurance etc would be required for a new car as well. I'd evaluate it from a current outflow perspective. The 50L will increase substantially if invested now and could even pay for the ownership of the current car.

Else you are looking at yet another depreciating asset with a resale value closer to zero than it's original cost after a few years and all the other associated ownership costs on top of it.

[IanNazareth]

Originally Posted by Ashwintona675

A3 is a very underrated car. Absolutely can be used as a beater, insane torque and sweet gearbox. Has the snob value as well. So i would suggest retain the A3 for a couple of more years, diesel Audis are still in demand and you will definitely get a good bargain and wont regret keeping the car either. Cheers mate.

Hey Ashwin! Thanks a ton! Prices are going crazy and we've not lost any value on our cars too in the last 2 years. I agree with you, It's quite versatile and possible to maintain well if you find a good mechanic willing to solve problems.


Cheers!

Originally Posted by ike

I'm no expert in this and happy to be corrected however interest, maintenance, insurance etc would be required for a new car as well. I'd evaluate it from a current outflow perspective. The 50L will increase substantially if invested now and could even pay for the ownership of the current car.

True, If you factor in opportunity costs for 50L then it's a whole different calculation by itself. I suppose keeping it for another 2-3 years makes the most sense as there's no logical replacement anyway at this price point.

Thanks a ton!

[lamborghini]

Keep the A3!

You won't get anything that would feel as much fun, and classy at that price point! Make the most of it, and during bad weather - such as monsoons, summer : maybe take the bus down to Kolhapur as the roads are often bad / in repairs during these times.

Alternately : What about replacing it with a previous gen Q3 / X1?

[IanNazareth]

Originally Posted by lamborghini

Keep the A3!

You won't get anything that would feel as much fun, and classy at that price point! Make the most of it, and during bad weather - such as monsoons, summer : maybe take the bus down to Kolhapur as the roads are often bad / in repairs during these times.

Alternately : What about replacing it with a previous gen Q3 / X1?

Thanks! I've actually always strongly been a sedan person and only recently tried out the Harrier / Safari. Seems like a great idea. Looking for something I can keep for long that will be fairly reliable.

I've been considering a diesel Innova or Fortuner however since they are pretty mileage resistant and could always retire it to Kolhapur duties later on incase of a metro diesel ban.

[thisissoumya]

Originally Posted by IanNazareth

I agree with you, it's very reliable and a hoot to drive on those few twisty roads, but again few. My concern is purely financial and logical.

Let me suggest a very black and white type answer. The moment you bring in finance and logic to the equation, buying any new/used car doesn't make sense IMHO because the opportunity cost of the new car will work against it. Ask yourself this - Are you still enjoying the Audi every time you are behind its wheels? If yes - keep driving that and don't pay a damn about where the ODO is, save/invest to the maximum possible and buy your sports car whenever the time comes.

Now comes selling the A3 after 10 years. Let me tell you even if 10 year diesel ban comes to few cities, it will come in a very slow and phased manner and by the time it is implemented across the country its gonna take a long time. You can always sell it to a buyer in a smaller city taking a hit of additional 3-4 lakhs. By that time this hit won't hurt you much because your new car fund would have grown, add the compound interest and acquisition cost of any new/used car you are thinking of buying now and there you have a sizable amount for your sports car . Cheers !!

[Kkumar]

Hi IanNazareth,
After going through your query it seems to me like a fight between the heart and the brain. In such cases it’s better to go with the heart than the brain. An Audi at the end of the day is still an Audi and these German vehicles are built to last a life time. However your choice of Safari is not bad, as a vehicle it can take a lot of beating. The only issue with Safari is Tata Motors lack of professionalism in dealing with customers especially their dealers and service centres. If you can discount that then go for it. But just remember whether it’s an Audi or Safari, 5 to 10 years down the lane both these vehicles will be in the same boat.

[lamborghini]

Originally Posted by IanNazareth

I've been considering a diesel Innova or Fortuner however since they are pretty mileage resistant and could always retire it to Kolhapur duties later on incase of a metro diesel ban.

The Innova & Fortuner are extremes compared to the A3, and not sure if you would be up for such a transition, hence was suggesting one of the Germans which would be easily available in your price bracket.
A good FNG can help with maintenance, and honestly - these cars age really well : we often end up keeping them for that much longer than the Japs because they just don't feel as dated + are a joy to drive!

[IanNazareth]

Originally Posted by thisissoumya

Let me suggest a very black and white type answer. The moment you bring in finance and logic to the equation, buying any new/used car doesn't make sense IMHO because the opportunity cost of the new car will work against it. Ask yourself this - Are you still enjoying the Audi every time you are behind its wheels? If yes - keep driving that and don't pay a damn about where the ODO is, save/invest to the maximum possible and buy your sports car whenever the time comes.

Hi Soumya, Thank a ton for the advice! I've decided to keep it for another year / 80k kms at least and evaluate where things stand then. Hoping I'll be able to grab a good deal on another fun car by then.

Originally Posted by Kkumar

Hi IanNazareth,
After going through your query it seems to me like a fight between the heart and the brain. In such cases it’s better to go with the heart than the brain.

Thanks @Kkumar, you and Soumya essentially drilled in the same point in different words. If the logical side had won, we'd be signing transfer forms by now, clearly the heart has won.

Originally Posted by lamborghini

A good FNG can help with maintenance, and honestly - these cars age really well : we often end up keeping them for that much longer than the Japs because they just don't feel as dated + are a joy to drive!

@lamborghini I've never actually gone the FNG route for repairs, only for small niggles as the car is fairly new still and haven't had any trouble. I have however found a good garage in Mumbai now, if things go well, it will inspire alot of confidence to hold onto the car.

I still look at old 1st Gen Octavia's on the road in awe when they are kept well. I see what you mean by holding onto the car. Thanks!