Which Passat to buy. Advice wanted

[ashdays]

Dear VW'ians,

I am in the process of buying a VW Passat 130 TDI Highline Sedan. I looked at three Passat's today. I want to run the details of the cars past you hoping you could help me make a decision.


1) Passat. Built Jan 2014. Demo Car. 500 kms done so far. Price – $43700. VW finance available at 6.9%. Standard factory fittings. Drive away price.


2) Passat. Built June 2013. Used Car. 9100 kms done so far. Price – $33990. VW finance available at 7.9%. Standard factory fittings. Stamp duty payable.


3) Passat. Built May 2012. Used Car. 23700 kms done so far. Price – $31990. VW finance available at 7.9%. Drive Assist Package, BiXenon lights, daytime LED lights come fitted. Stamp duty payable


I haven't begun negotiating price or finance percentage yet. Once I decide on the car to buy (with your help of course), I will begin negotiating. Are there any extras I can ask them to throw in?


Thank you for your advice.

[Darks RS]

The 12 won't be a 130, as I've got a 12.5and it's a 125.

The 13 and 14, it's a 10k difference... Can you live with a 6 month older car.. For that cash I could! Besides there's always negotiations!

If you go the 12 don't pay that sort of price, thats highway robbery for a sedan. A dealer here in the ACT had a similar car that they wanted 33k and in the end it was advertised (and sold) for under 27.

Me personally, the 13 with hard bargaining or if option oriented then the 12 with extra hard bargaining

[Eaglehawk]

I'd go Option 2 as well...

[ashdays]

Thank you Darks & Eaglehawk for your advice. If I went with option 2, what would be considered a fair price for that car?

[ashdays]

Thank you all for your opinions.
Right now I am leaning towards the second car (Built June 2013. Used Car. 9100 kms done so far. Price – $33990. VW finance available at 7.9%. Standard factory fittings. Stamp duty payable at 3% of purchase price)

When I go in for bargaining, I would like some options added to it like 5 year dealer warranty which begins after the factory warranty runs out, window tints, floor mats, roof & bike racks & possibly a wheel upgrade to 18" alloys.

I haven't asked the dealer about the 18" alloys yet, I have enquired for the other options and have been quoted $1595 for the premium 5 year dealer warranty, $695 for window tints, $1000 for roof and bike racks.

All up,& without the 18" wheel upgrade, this would bring the car to $37000.How much could I bargain the car for?

[Eaglehawk]

I wouldn't negotiate with the dealer with any of those options (except for the warranty). You'll be a walking cashbox if you start asking for any of those options to be put on the car. Best do your own research after you purchase the vehicle at a price you're happy with. Then get those options from cheaper places. (eBay, trusted tinter in your area etc)

Just my 2 cents.

[Amalgam]

Thank you all for your opinions.
Right now I am leaning towards the second car (Built June 2013. Used Car. 9100 kms done so far. Price – $33990. VW finance available at 7.9%. Standard factory fittings. Stamp duty payable at 3% of purchase price)

When I go in for bargaining, I would like some options added to it like 5 year dealer warranty which begins after the factory warranty runs out, window tints, floor mats, roof & bike racks & possibly a wheel upgrade to 18" alloys.

I haven't asked the dealer about the 18" alloys yet, I have enquired for the other options and have been quoted $1595 for the premium 5 year dealer warranty, $695 for window tints, $1000 for roof and bike racks.

All up,& without the 18" wheel upgrade, this would bring the car to $37000.How much could I bargain the car for?

What exactly is the dealer warranty?? Is it the VW branded, Allianz extended warranty? If so it is a 2 year extension of the VW new car warranty to a total of 5 years. I would stay well clear of any "dealers" warranty and other non VW/Allianz warranties. Most are not worth the paper they are written on.

Dealer accessories is where the profit is. Window tinting looks like double what you would pay if you did it privately after purchase and you should be able to able to buy roof racks from EU resellers of the interwebs.

My basic negotiating policy is to haggle hard for the base car and accessorise privately.

BTW Are you sure that you want to pass on the bixenon?? I would suggest you test drive both cars on a dimly lit street at night before making a decision. There are many discussion threads on retrofitting bixenons....

[Passat R36]

BiXenon with LED DRL are hard to come by. The normal halogen of the B7 looks awful to me.

Dont bother with the options from the dealer.

[brad]

When I go in for bargaining, I would like some options added to it like 5 year dealer warranty which begins after the factory warranty runs out, window tints, floor mats, roof & bike racks & possibly a wheel upgrade to 18" alloys.

I haven't asked the dealer about the 18" alloys yet, I have enquired for the other options and have been quoted $1595 for the premium 5 year dealer warranty, $695 for window tints, $1000 for roof and bike racks.

Crazy to buy on finance IMO but that's a personal thing regarding depreciating assets. I assume you can claim your interest?

Dealer extended warranty - not worth the paper it's written on & locks you into a specific dealer (usually). Why not get the VW extended warranty or self-insure?

$695 for tint? There are plenty of places in Sydney that will do a quality job, with premium materials & a lifetime guarantee for $300-$400. Try Rob at Hunters Hill Window Tinting - he has a mobile service.

$1k for roof - bike racks? Shop around as the dealer will fit whatever they can get their hands on as they probably have no idea about what is good & what is rubbish. Have you had roof mounted before? They scare the daylights out of me. Consider towbar mount roll-on racks.

Personally, I'd go with Option 3 as it has bi-xenon lights. I'd aim for $25,500 with a tops of $26500.

[JB's Dub]

From my history working at a dealer, i'd go option 2 with the factory/alianz warranty. The warranty can only be added if the car is still under factory warranty and will be accepted at any VW dealer you go to.

As the others have said, source your own tint and accessories, you will save a fortune. Option 3 would be good if it were a lot cheaper, Yes, xennons are awesome, but for 2k more you get a younger car with the more powerful engine.