Crushing Cupra Depreciation?

[RCS2K4]

Dont get me wrong peeps, I really do enjoy the time spent with my Leon Cupra. I've had 3 Seat's back to back, and really do admire the way the brand is constantly getting better.

However I have recently been in the company of a Nissan 350Z for the past month now, and I really want my own one - something different to anything Seat can offer

Checked the finances for a solid £10K deopsit, and was good to go, thinking "Yeah, the PCP on a £29K car less £10K wont be to different to how much the Leon costs". I'm glad I was sitting down...

The Leon's PCP settlement come in:
£13,250.17 - Not to bad, Cupra's are worth that...

Then they delivered the P/X price for the Cupra:
£0.00 - What the ?

The long and short of it was, the 11 Seat dealers I listened to the business manager call, all refused an underwrite on it. To hurt even more, the local Seat dealier has a Leon Cupra 2008/08 reg retailing with 2500 miles on the clock for £14,250 He said based on that, they will possibly take a gamble, and buy it without an uderwrite, and offered £9,000 for it. that will see half of my deposit cover off negative equity in the Leon, and cause the PCP of the Nissan to go some £200+ clear of the Cupra's per month.

They didn't know whats up, as they said on the books, my car was showing £15,200 in clean condition, but will only offer what anyone is prepred to pay for it.

It was a similar story at Audi against a new TT Quattro - They wasn't intersted in buying my Cupra (Never intended to buy a TT, but makes for a good comparisson). Has anyone else had difficulty selling a Cupra on P/X at all?

Needless to say, I told the Nissan dealer to sit on it...

 

[ZBOYD]

Current financial climate, the dealers are on their arse, people are tightening their belts. Many dealers are going to the wall, and people are trading in gas guzzlers for economic cars.

Long and short of it is that the dealers don't want gas guzzler stock they will have difficulty shifting, so they either refuse them or they give poor used prices. I have a local VW dealer near me that has about 7 bargain basement Golf GTI's on his forecourt at the moment.

Obviously if your someone in the market for a GTI, Cupra etc and have the cash there are some absolute bargains to be had at the moment.

I decided long ago that this car would likely be the one I would hang on to for sometime anyway, so I'm not too fussed on the residuals really. Cars of this ilk are fast becoming the domain of the rich anyway to be honest, fuel and tax rising all the time.

In my case I've got a great car that I love to drive and I'm in no rush to get rid of it.

As and when financial confidence returns they may balance out and actually increase or even hold on to their money.

 

[Hurdy]

I feel your pain!

R32's in good condition at a year old that cost people £27k+ are being offered under £15k

Similarly Edition30's are popping up on the second hand retail market at £18k and they were Mainly over £24k, so gawd only know's how much the owners received at trade in time

The last car I traded in cost me £22.5k and I got £13.5k at trade - less than 12k on the clock and only just over a year old - and that was when the economy was supposed to be bouyant!!

 

[RCS2K4]

While I understand market conditions are awkward, The fact of the matter is, if I was ever mad enough to accept the £9k offer, for the 9 months I have owned the Cupra from new - It's lost:

£1200 per month!!!

That has to be able to take an award for the fastest depreciating car in the UK, approx 53% of the value wiped off during the time I have owned it

Someone will get a bargain somewhere, and it's not like I am actually trying to downsize neither...

 

[RCS2K4]

On another note, is the Leon's guarenteed future value worth the paper it's printed on when she's 3 years old? At this rate, it will sail way past it by 18 months!

 

[Bainie]

I have just traded in my FR , 11 months old, RRP 19k with the options and have been offered anywhere between 10-14 for it .. The 14 was on an overpriced car so wasn`t a "real" offer as such . The only bonus is to do what I did and buy a car under a year old, as it will have taken the same hit !

 

[SSimpson3]

i really wanted a 350z aswell but didnt think i could keep up with the fuel, tax, insurance and general maintenance, how much do you think you would spend on these???

 

[Al]

Any/every other similar car is gonna be hit the same although maybe less so for low emissions high mpg cars.

You can get reasonable spec 08 plate Mondeos for under £10k FFS, only a few months old with a smattering of miles.

If you are thinking about selling, your best bet would be a private sale to be honest. Either that, or keep the Cupra and ride it out a little longer.

Imagine how 225 TT owners will be now that they are in the £400-£440 a year tax bracket.

Edit: By the way, the Nissan will be taking a bigger 2nd hand hit than the Cupra, and you will find that with your Cupra being tuned, it will be faster than the 350Z too.

 

[Al]

By the way, I am with Z, although I was, and still am planning to sell when the car is around 3 years old which is still a good lot of time away from now.

When I do so, i will sell it privately as you are guaranteed to get ripped off by a stealer unless they are struggling to meet targets in which case they will throw you a deal like I got with my current car.

Next time out, I am planning to get a leaser as I cant see it costing any more than buying, plus there is not a huge capital outlay involved. The money used to buy the the car (a depreciating asset) would be better off in a mortgage for something that is much less likely to lose money although even housing stock is falling in value in these current turbulent times we live in.

 

[phil3012]

I am part exing my Cupra and when the deal was done at the end of August they were very nervous.

At that point you could throw the book out of the window as it was way way out of date. I even paid for the proper Glass's quote and that was way out. Halfway between the Whatcar and Parkers quote for part ex value was about right.

In mid August a dealer told me a Cupra loses £500 a month.

RCS24K what plate is yours on?
Some SEAT dealers round here have Cupras on the forecourt for mad money though.

 

[P0LKR]

I am part exing my Cupra and when the deal was done at the end of August they were very nervous.

At that point you could throw the book out of the window as it was way way out of date. I even paid for the proper Glass's quote and that was way out. Halfway between the Whatcar and Parkers quote for part ex value was about right.

In mid August a dealer told me a Cupra loses £500 a month.

RCS24K what plate is yours on?
Some SEAT dealers round here have Cupras on the forecourt for mad money though.

What have you p/x d your cupra for?

 

[Stuart83]

i really wanted a 350z aswell but didnt think i could keep up with the fuel, tax, insurance and general maintenance, how much do you think you would spend on these???

To be honest the maintenance isnt v.expensive. My mate has a 54 reg one which he's had for about 2 1/2 yrs now, and the servicing, parts etc are actually really cheap.

The tax and fuel however are a different story...

 

[phil3012]

I don't want to go into exact figures until I've taken delivery of the new car, but looking at todays valuations it's not a bad deal.

I could have got a lot better deal if I'd have taken delivery of a car for 1st September from stock rather than a build to order. Getting a TT.

The thing is dealers don't know what the market will do at the moment. If a car is available they know what another dealer will pay for it, 2 or 3 months down the line they have no idea.

There was a point in the early 1990's when hot hatches became virtually worthless. Not saying the same will happen again but it's a possibilty.

 

[BagFullOfLeon]

I managed to get a good trade-in price for my dec 2005 Leon 140 TDI sport, but only because I am trading up to a cupra K1. This means that:
1. The dealer was getting a sale
2. He was getting a seat car
3. He was getting a car he could easily shift (car with good fuel economy yet some sportyness)

From my point of view I'm keeping the Cupra K1 for 3 years, because I know I won't get a good trade-in price for it. It's a big black whole for money.

 

[Al]

£500 a month is a lot if it is remotely accurate. However £500 a month is £6000 a year, so what they are saying is that the car is worth only a few thousand by the time it is three years old.

I was hoping to get £9k-£10k for mine come change time in about a year from now when it would still be under 3 years old, but looks like that may not be possible. I would be very surprised if it was worth £5k-£7k at 3 years of age.

Another good reason to lease a car I guess as the most you can lose then is the monthly leasing amount plus any deposit.

 

[phil3012]

£500 a month is a lot if it is remotely accurate. However £500 a month is £6000 a year, so what they are saying is that the car is worth only a few thousand by the time it is three years old.

I was hoping to get £9k-£10k for mine come change time in about a year from now when it would still be under 3 years old, but looks like that may not be possible. I would be very surprised if it was worth £5k-£7k at 3 years of age.

Another good reason to lease a car I guess as the most you can lose then is the monthly leasing amount plus any deposit.

£500 a month in the first year is about right, matches roughly the quotes I was getting for part ex. The difference between in part ex against a stock car and a build to order of just over two months wasn't that much but bit far off.

With my last car (Celica) the value really steadied off between years 2 and 3. I think it only lost £1500 in a year, maybe less.

 

[Jase7]

£500 a month in the first year is about right, matches roughly the quotes I was getting for part ex. The difference between in part ex against a stock car and a build to order of just over two months wasn't that much but bit far off.

With my last car (Celica) the value really steadied off between years 2 and 3. I think it only lost £1500 in a year, maybe less.

I had amazing luck with my Celica 190 I had before my FR, I paid 7k for it on a 2000 plate with 60k miles and sold it 18 months later for £6750 when it was still in mint condition and had done 70k miles! Was absolutely chuffed with that, cost me almost nothing.

Paid 14k for my 06 FR on 25k miles in Feb, so guess it's probably worth about a tenner now lol ;-)

 

[ZBOYD]

Trouble is its a self destructing business model at the moment, people like me that 12 months ago bought a £20k car won't have any confidence in buying new ever again. People are loyal to these businesses and make large investments but then they shoot us in the back. Over time the used market will stagnate too, as fewer new models will be entering the market.

So all the manufacturers and dealers are shooting themselves in the foot really, but it's because they are frightened they will go out of business due to the banks being jittery about credit in all forms. Like all businesses car dealers and manufacturers borrow investment from the banks, and if the banks are not loaning and supporting businesses they will struggle when times are hard.

But it's the current financial climate that is fueling this depreciation. If the markets get turned around and the banks get more confidence then over time the used prices will plateau or even recover for good examples.

As I said earlier, if your in the market for a new car and have no trade in to consider, then now is a good time to buy new or used. Great deals to be had.

 

[JonoUK]

Totally agree with ZBOYD.
My Leon (FR TDI) was new when I bought it. As was my previous car. I'll never buy a new car again. Ever.... unless the dealers stop abusing us. I can sort of see where they're coming from, but you'd be mad to buy a new car, when a nearly new (1 year old) example will cost you half. Also, the tax hike isn't gonna put me off a so-called gas guzzler. The extra £1000 over 3 years or whatever it may cost is more than offset against the massive savings for an awesome car. Even if fuel prices increase, the initial outlay on purchase price reduction will probably cover that.

I just hope that the markets have stabilised in 1.5 years when I come to get rid of mine. Actually I don't really care - I'm gonna hand mine back to the dealer and not pay whatever's left at the end of the 3 years. It'll be out of warranty and I'll just try to pick up a bargain for cash.

 

[phil3012]

Totally agree with ZBOYD.
My Leon (FR TDI) was new when I bought it. As was my previous car. I'll never buy a new car again. Ever.... unless the dealers stop abusing us. I can sort of see where they're coming from, but you'd be mad to buy a new car, when a nearly new (1 year old) example will cost you half. Also, the tax hike isn't gonna put me off a so-called gas guzzler. The extra £1000 over 3 years or whatever it may cost is more than offset against the massive savings for an awesome car. Even if fuel prices increase, the initial outlay on purchase price reduction will probably cover that.

I just hope that the markets have stabilised in 1.5 years when I come to get rid of mine. Actually I don't really care - I'm gonna hand mine back to the dealer and not pay whatever's left at the end of the 3 years. It'll be out of warranty and I'll just try to pick up a bargain for cash.

Good plan depending what car you go for. If you want a recently introduced model, the only real option is to get one new.

My last 2 cars I have had very little chance of picking up a used one. When I ordered my Cupra it hadn't been out that long and there were very few on the used market. Those that were would have been almost as much as a new one due to the 12 week wait at most dealers during that time.

The TT is even worse, at the time of order a search in Autotrader would bring up 13 accross the while country. Most above RRP and on demo at dealers. I couldn't even test drive the car I was buying unless I'd travelled 100's of miles let alone buy one. I've actually saved money by getting a new one. Okay so the specs are slightly different but I'd be paying £1000's for stuff I didn't really want.