imminent S3 purchase - some advice required!

[the_player]

Wondering if any of you S3 owners might be able to answer a few questions that I have regarding the purchase of an S3. I think have a found one at a main dealer in Bolton - black, 225bhp, RS4 type wheels, chrome mirrors and 6cd/bose going for 21,495 (no cruise, arm rest, heated seats or satnav) - 19,000 mileage .

Firstly - is this a good price for one (I ideally want main dealer so as to lease it on a PCP type plan) ? Any advice on best leasing plans also welcomed (can't really afford to buy cash so private is out of the question)

What are the running costs like, specifically tyres for the 18" rims and average mpg (I'll be doing around 25,000 a year mostly motorway as this will be my company car so I need to make sure the 12p a mile comes at least close to covering it).

Anything else I need to bear in mind ?




Thanks


Ben.

 

[nervus]

Hi mate, that specification is very similar to mine, except mine is imola yellow and i have an armrest whoopty doo. I looked at p/exing mine in november and dealer offer me £19K and it truly is immaculate. I think that car is at least £1000 to much to be honest but beggars cant be choosers. i bet most dealers would only bid £18 on the same car if you wanted to trade it! robbing feckers!

I see an average of 30mpg using it moderately for work mid week and knocking round the doors at weekends! Ill see 38mpg midweek and 22mpg-ish weekends.

As for tyres, if like mine its on michelin PS2's ive done 20k miles and there is still 4mm of tread so they should see 40k miles all round but will all nees replacing together at £135 - £155 each! check it on the longlife service and it has been carried out 19k miles is around the maximum and the 4WD haldex service should be carried out every 20K miles so make sure this hass been too, its around £80 ontop of a standard service which is £280!

i think thats about it.

 

[StevieBogan]

Ben,

you haven't said what yaer it is.

Sounds V-expensive unless its like a 04 plate!

Spec doesn't sound too hot either I'm afraid. Most S3's I've seen have at least heated seats.

Bear in mind, there cars were only £24,400 when new!

 

[the_player]

Good point - I haven't

It's a 53 reg (ML53 NFO) - if you go on audi.co.uk and then search for s3 its the only one at Bolton. What price do you think its worth then ?


Ben.

 

[ImS3ola]

If you must buy from a main dealer, what about THIS one Ben. It doesn't have the 18" RS4s (which can be added after) but it's cheaper and look at the mileage.

 

[The Slug]

Yeah be patient man, lol, took me a good 6 month or more for mine to arrive. Nothing worse than impulse buying, but hey what the heck, lol!

 

[ianhg]

look around for some cheaper more speced up ones. i saw one at a audi dealers that was 19k and didnt even have a cd player!

 

[Welch]

I would agree it seems a lot but then it is low mileage as well.

if you are doing that much mileage then why not buy one with slightly higher miles, save yousrelf some money then change it after a year.

I got a 51 plate red S3, 18 " RSTTs, arm rest, Bose, heated seats (cream leather) private S3 plate, FASH, with extended audi warranty for 14.5 k all in. came with new wheels and tyres so well pleased!! only fault I can find is a loose front headlight washer cover!! big deal!

Car has just got over 50k on it which is sweet FA for a 3.5 year old german car!! I won't do that much mileage anyway and only plan to keep it for year to 18 months tops so it will be on average miles anyway!! prob then go E46 M3 or 996 if I can stretch to me toes!!

Like who does 12k a year anyway these days!! so out of date just to keep stealers and traders in the money! bit like braking distances and speeds on motroways but don't get me started on that one!!

Black does fetch a premium as do stealers cars with FASH.

have a hunt around and go private std if that is what you want as I decided that as S3s are so well built.

N

 

[the_player]

Cheers for all of the advice guys - I can honestly say I am well and truly confused as to what is the best option now! I think I will certainly look into the option of maybe a cheaper one - I would like to do it the most cost effective way if poss.

The deal I got offered from audi was 2.5K trade in on my GTI6 and then a personal lease plan over 3 years (9,500 residual at the end) with the option to hand it back regardless of mileage. This worked out at 400 a month. Id much rather pay less than this if poss but ideally want a black, 225 with silver leather (and as many options as poss!!!) and still in warrantee. Any ideas how to sort it?


Ben

 

[Welch]

Mikey's is a nice car as well!! got to be worth a look in!

the blue is very dark too.

 

[The Slug]

Nice ride hes got, gotta be worth a look defo!!

 

[C_Audiboy]

How are you doing Ben? It's Chris from sunny Glasgow (U checked out my S3 last week).

It takes time to find the right one (3 months in my case) so bide your time and you'll surely find the right cost and spec.

My opinion is try and find one from an independent garage, not from a main stealer. That way you can still get trade value on your car, saving you any hassle trying to sell it.

I guarantee you'll pay AT LEAST 2k less on the same car at an independent. I'd say 16k will get you a nice S3, with FSH and importantly still within the 3-year warranty period.

That leaves you the remainder of the trade-in from your car to finance the S3. Get an bank loan for the remainder - interest rates are cheap as chips at the moment. Just stretch the loan to what you can afford.

I don't fancy these lease drive plans - interest is too high plus you usually need a final payment before the car is yours.

BTW MPG is poor if you do a lot of city driving. I spend most of my time sitting in traffic and return low - mid 20s. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/shocked.gif On the motorway is much better though - over 30 MPG.

Good luck mate.

 

[IanL-RS3]

I got a 2001 S3 38k miles black with black leather, chrome mirrors (now nicked!), standard alloys, minted condition, but needing new tyres (as they hadn't been changed all at once) and 2nd major AVS service for under £14k.

Private sale. At a dealer i'm add a year, adding 25miles and not really gaining anything.

I guess your situation is different because you are racking up the mileage and want a buy back guarantee.

Just to confuse you further.....what about a A3 1.8 Turbo Diesel Quattro? It can be chipped to about 190 (i think) and will give you much better mpg and save you quite a bit on insurance and fuel. But offer a pretty good drive.
Only problem is they are like hens teeth!!

 

[6monthcarman]

Try www.swancar.com and check out the yellow S3. It is very well specced up (Bose, 6 Disc + 1 in dash, Armrest, Half Alcantara, Cruise Control, Autodip Mirror, 18" RS4s, Tracker, APR 4 stage adjustable chip etc) and is an excellent drive. It was mine i got rid in June 2004 and often regret it. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif

 

[the_player]

Yeah - I am starting to think that 21.5K on an S3 is probably not the wisest move - especially if I can manage to work the figures so a bank loan hits the same monthly figure.

Mikey your car certainly does look nice! Whats the exact spec? In terms of Alpine DVD what exactly does it consist of - i.e. just dvd, or do you have the screen, tv tuner etc? Can't say I'm overly impressed with the BOSE either so defo want to either transfer my existing ICE or ideally retro fit sat nav (or buy one with it all in)... I'll hopefully work the figures out in the next few days of what I can afford...

Im defo set on the S3 (well originally at TT but decided its too girly!) so I don't think I'll go down the diesel route.

Cheers for the advice by the way Chris! I'm back up in Glasgow on Weds/Thursday so I'll pester you some about your S3 then /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif


Ben

 

[the_player]

That is a nice spec mate, although (don't take this personally), I don't really want a yellow one - autodip mirrors sound cool though. What does the APR chip push the bhp up to though? How did you find it affected the mpg?

 

[17AUG2002]

sorry for stealing this slot but i have just seen a S3 2001 AUDI AUDI S3
Nov 01, 6 speed 210bhp, 33000 Motorway miles. Excellent inside and out. Top spec: Xenons, Bose, 6cd in dash, sunroof, rear parking sensor, black leather heated recaros, Centre armrest, Thatcham Cat1 alarm+immob, tracker. FASH. Last service @ 30000, next due @ 49000. 12 months MOT. 22 months extended warranty and breakdown recovery remaining(worth £600). Much loved car; baby forces reluctant sale. 33000 miles. £15995.
IS IT WORTH IT?

 

[17AUG2002]

SORRY THE CAR IS IN GREY is that a good colour