OT: Buying CPO - Maximize Value

Hello All- In the very near future I will be in the market for a couple new daily drivers. I am thinking of going with CPO Audi or BMW. I have never purchased a used vehicle. I feel like a fish out of water. I have always leased new cars. I am thinking that I can maximize my dollars and minimize my losses by going with a 2-3 year old CPO vehicle. My goal is to balance the situation. I want to have a vehicle with a recent body, and I want to minimize my losses when I go to sell the vehicle after 3-4 years of ownership. The vehicles will only be driven about 12k per year. If you had the same goals, what criteria would you look for in a car? 1. How many model years old? 2. How many miles? 3. Audi vs. BMW? A4 or 3 Series? A6 or 5 Series? A8 or 7 Series? Is there a sweet spot with miles and years old that seems to work best? Thanks, -Ryan

Ryan, speaking from experience...the BMW will hold its value much better. Even as a CPO, Audi's simply do not hold their value over time. Stick with the Bimmer. The value, driving experience and maintenance costs will put a smile on your face. C.

If you are looking to maximize savings, then find a BMW that is out of warranty. Don't get CPO and save money by buying from a non-BMW dealership or an individual. Take the money that you saved (over a CPO car) and set it aside for repairs (which will be few but expensive). It seems to me that once these cars hit 4 years old and there's no warranty, the prices drop significantly. I too would stay away from Audi. I'm on my 12th BMW - I have a great love/hate relationship with them. If you cannot do minor repairs by yourself, then I can see the attractiveness of a CPO, but you are paying a hefty premium for that, and unlike Porsche, BMW has a deductible and (like Porsche) it doesn't cover everything. Actually, it covers less than the Porsche CPO. I would try to find a car with around 30K-40K miles. This way when you sell it in 3-4 years it still has relatively low miles. Stay away from the 7-series; your best bet for resale is the 5 series, the 3 series are much more common and easier to find. Example: When shopping for my GF, the local BMW dealer had a 325 CPO for $28,000. We ended up buying a comparable 330 (bigger engine, more features) for about 5K less from a Volvo dealer. The 5K in savings will more than make up for the few problems that we've had - several of which would not be covered under CPO anyway. HTH, Michael

When going for a non-CPO, I assume that it is a good idea to have a PPI? I like the new E90 body on the 3 series. Is it a good assumption that I would get a much better value on an E46 body, being that the depreciation hit has been taken? Why does the BMW hold its value so much better than the Audi? -Ryan

ALWAYS, always, always...get a PPI from a qualified shop. Audi's reputation for little problems has lasted since the '80's. Sadly, while you can find great deals, the depreciation of those cars is terrible. BMW's are simply more reliable, imo. Electrical gremlins seem the to be primary problem with Audis'. I have owned 3 of them. After owning 3 BMW's, I would choose BMW over Audi any day... Audi's owned in order: 1985 Audi 5000S 1996 Audi A4 2.8 2001 Audi TT coupe Q225 BMW's in order: 1998 BMW E36 M3 coupe 2002 BMW E46 M3 coupe 2004 330i sedan Good luck... C.

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I won't speak for anyone else, but in my little world, the BMW holds its value better because its engine is oriented in the proper direction.

I think the best used car value on the market today is the Audi S8. My local Audi dealer claims it is the most reliable car Audi has ever built, bar none. All aluminum body, motor and suspension, factory tuned motor, suspension and brakes and at the time the only car that passed the 5-star safety rating for all 5 passengers. 360 hp, 186 mph top speed (if the 155 mph speed limiter falls off) and 21 mpg average. These cars were $70-85k new and can be found in great condition for ~$20k. I have 4-yr unlimited mileage warranties on mine, so peace of mind in case something breaks. I also live in snow country and I'm a competitive ski racer, and I hate to be late for a race! The S8 never disappoints. Take a test drive of all cars you're considering and one will float to the top- good luck in your search. I think buying a used car makes so much more sense than leasing a new one, IMO.

Solid advice so far. You say you have leased new cars in the past. One of the big advantages of that is always having a new car that is under warranty. You've probably had few issues and the ones you did were covered. Not so much as you go into the older car scenario. I would prefer to go with a 2-3 yr old car that still has some man. warranty and can be CPO'd to extend it through the time I plan to own the car. It's taken most of the depreciation hit by the third year, but is still in relatively new condition if you find the right car. It really depends on your tolerance for the aggravation factor of having a daily driver that may be in the shop a couple of times a year to keep it running.

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agreed and by this logic, you can pick up a used audi at generally lower prices than what'd you get at bmw land. audi will always play second fiddle to bmw/merc, though they've been doing better these days than ever before (R8). and until my net worth is well into the multi-millions, i really don't care to have a nice daily driver. i rather enjoy my current combo of having a durable, anonymous 4x4 truck and a not so anonymous, sporty coupe called the 911.

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To each his own, Ben, but I'll never understand why people buy really nice cars only to keep them in the garage so they can drive something else most of the time. My 996 isn't my daily driver, either, but only because I'm provided a vehicle by my company. Given the chance, my only car would be the 996. And strangely enough, I've found that driving a black 996 is pretty anonymous in and of itself. Most people just don't seem to notice it, which is fine with me.

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I have a 1996 Audi A6 Quattro sitting on the side "just in case we get 3 feet of snow" but I just got a set of winter wheels and tires for my 996 C2. I just can't bear not driving it all winter

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Yeah, I find that odd also. I drive mine every single day, multiple times a day. Can't imagine wanting to drive something else and leaving my 911 at home.

I just picked up a 2004 BMW 545 Sport w/6 speed with 34K, CPO for another 2 years/100K and 100K maintenance for $35,900. That is less than half the sticker and they even paid the first two payments and gave me 1.9% financing. I agree that going the CPO route is a great way to get the most for your buck. BMW will run these 1.9% specials with first two months paid every once and a while to cut inventory . If you are financing, you will end up paying about the same for a CPO car than a private sale that is a few grand less since the rates will be in the 7-8% range.

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That sounds like a great deal

[QUOTE=UserA;4778253]I just picked up a 2004 BMW 545 Sport w/6 speed with 34K, CPO for another 2 years/100K and 100K maintenance for $35,900. That is less than half the sticker and they even paid the first two payments and gave me 1.9% financing. [QUOTE] Half the sticker? The 545i was over $70,000 new?

I have gone the Audi CPO route seveal times. The latest was a 2006 A4 with Stasis kit (about $6000 extra in brakes, wheels and suspension). The car only had 8,000 miles on it when I bought it. It came with the remainig 3 years of the original new car warrantly including free service and then an addional 2 years up to 100,000 miles. KBB said the retail value of the car without the statis kit was about $3000 more than I paid. Those are the kind of deals you need to find. As far as resale value of Audi's, they are not quite as good as BMW. The Wall Street Journal has an article today though that shows the Audi listed as 9th best for resale at 42.6% after five years. Number 1 on the list was VW at 48.1%. BMW came in second at 45.6%. 3rd and 4th went to Acura and Honda. Porsche came in at 5th place with 44.9% Subaru, Lexus, and Infiniti filled in the space between Porsche and Audi. Toyota came in 10th after Audi. Still a 3% point difference between Audi and BMW in not really a big deal. Basically you should find the best deal you can with the kind of car you want. The more and longer the warranty the better off you will be.

also when you get an older car the less of a difference you will see between the trim lines. in 98 you could get a 528i for ~40k. The sticker on my V8 540i sport was 55k. when they were both 6 years old in 2004 you could get the 540's for ~17-19k or you could get a 528i for ~15-17k. it was a no brainer for me. lots more options and way more torque. 3.5 years later and 100k more miles and my car is worth less than half what I paid for it. Fine with me. It cost me 10,000 bucks to put 100k miles on it. The first guy that put 80k on it at a cost of ~38k!!!