A good friend of mine is a driving instructor, and was recently discussing his forthcoming replacement car. His current car, which both he and his pupils love, is an A3 Tdi Sport 140 3 door in white. '09 with 127k miles. Never missed a beat and spends most of its life gently cruising up & down the A65 between Kendal & Skipton in N Yorks.
Routinely serviced at the main dealer, plus new clutch, belt & pulleys at 110k. Totally pristine both inside & out, although no extras such as leather or sunroof.The new A3 was its potential replacement, until he discovered it had an electronic handbrake, so he will be getting another of the same.
Would you be tempted by a car with this mileage if the price was right, and if so the nearest guess to his asking price for a private sale gets a Blue Peter badge?
And no I'm not tempted. I love my beemer too much.
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>> The new A3 was its potential replacement, until he discovered it had an electronic handbrake
Anyone knows what happens if you try to take a test in a car with an electronic handbrake? And what about auto-release and even auto-hold?
Hill starts (up/down hills) is very easy in my car these days. :-)
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I believe ('cos someone said so here last month) that the rules now permit electric handbrakes for the test. My reading is that LL's friend simply regards a lever handbrake as a better tool for teaching, and I'm inclined to agree.
(Thoughts on persuading a reluctant spouse that a car without a parking brake lever will not kill us all are welcome, but that's probably another thread.)
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Interesting choice for a learner vehicle. I wouldn't have thought the DMF would have stood up well to the rigours of learner driver clutch abuse. Was that the first clutch replacement at 110k? Did it have a flywheel as well?
As to whether I would buy it, yes, for the right price. 127,000 miles is nothing on a well maintained modern car.
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>> Would you be tempted by a car with this mileage if the price was right
No. Why on earth would I want an A3 when I can get a Golf for much less money, which is basically the same under the skin and will cost much less to buy and run?
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Because your personal taste finds the touchy-feely bits of an Audi more appealing than those of a Volkswagen, or a Škoda, or a Seat. (Is Seat selling anything any more? Seems to have sunk without trace.) Not everyone chooses the suspension components and gearbox first, then doesn't care what seat they'll be sitting on or what steering wheel they'll be holding.
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>> Because your personal taste finds the touchy-feely bits of an Audi more appealing than those of a Volkswagen,
Now you are sounding like all those motoring journalists who seem obsessed by the feel of the plastics in the cabin (Like the rest of us care). :-)
This argument only has any sort of resonance with me if you can say to yourself that the extra premium of a nicer interior (and snobby badge) is worth it. With bog-standard Audis, this is not the case - but only in my opinion, of course.
Cars like the TT, for which VAG don't have an alternative offering, are an exception to this rule.
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I don't think 'obsessed' is fair. (Smiley noted.). No-one calls you obsessive if you take some trouble over choosing the carpets, curtains and upholstery at home, but in many weeks I probably spend more time sitting in my car than I do on my sofa.
The type of person that reads motoring magazines and frequents websites like this one assumes that everyone else must know or care about the mechanical similarities of platform sharers. Some out there do care about the badge, but plenty more judge a car on whether it does what they want, including whether it's nice to be in. A Golf would be nice enough for me, but if a driving instructor finds it's good for business to have a car people want to be in (plenty seem to run Minis for this reason) then I can understand that.
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Good Points, WdB. Truce.
I think the driving instructor mentioned by the OP would prefer the Golf as well, if only because of its conventional handbrake.
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Yes, if the price is right.
Asking price? £6999.
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No need for a truce, Londoner - it was an amicable exchange of views, that's all. Happy to shake virtual hands and agree to talk about something else, though.
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I reckon the advertised price would be a lot higher, £10750 or thereabouts.
I wouldn't expect to see any wear on the car at that mileage.
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127,000m = barely run in (if cared for)
£9500
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I haven't a clue to its worth, but would be interested if he will disclose the use which its been put to potential buyers.
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His previous learner car was a Golf GT Tdi. Cheaper to purchase than the A3, equally reliable when 'retired' at 3yo with 150k on the clock, now being run by his better half and nearing 200k miles on an '06. The A3 has more kudos than the Golf, although the latter had more options fitted such as leather seats.It would appear that more pupils wish to learn on the A3 than his previous Golf, and are prepared to pay a little extra.
In response to an earlier question, the initial clutch lasted 110k miles, and yes gb, he will fully disclose the fact it was used for learner instruction when it goes on the market.
He briefly considered a Scirocco as replacement, but decided against on the grounds of reduced rear visibility.
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The problem with learning in a diesel is that the pupils get used to the easy clutch control, the ability to move off without throttle etc. When they switch to a petrol, perhaps after passing their test and the first car is a small -engined petrol supermini, for instance ( Low group insurance and all that), they have difficulty adapting to the need for balancing the throttle against the clutch to move off. My kids have just passed their test and several of their friends comment on this aspect, worth considering when choosing an instructor.
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Like me changing to a petrol shopping trolley after 12 years of VAG turbo diesels!
Ooops! Stalled again.
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And perhaps that the Scirocco looks like a squashed toad and would put off as many customers as it pulled in. Anyway, to return to where we came in, it's only a Golf, innit?
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>> he will fully disclose the fact it was used for learner instruction when it goes
>> on the market.
Good for him, i wonder if all those ex BSM Corsas, then Fiat 500's, now Corsas again are described as ex driving school when they get sold as one owner jobbies via network Q or whatever the current name is.
Presumably he has sold school cars before, does it knock the value much?
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IIRC they register them under all sorts of odd names to disguise who the previous owner was, so I imagine that unless you specifically ask then they wont tell!
I also imagine that the sales guy wont know where it was sourced (or care)
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That used to be true, but even in the days when BSM used Metro's they started to show BSM as the first keeper.
Tbh, getting an ex BSM or AA car is very similar to buying ex rental - the school keeps it for about 6 months and then outs it for a value not much less than the heavily discounted price they pay.
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Tongue in cheek I have asked him if he should consider a 335d as his next driving school car. Now that I would be interested in.
Such a shame he is getting another A3 Tdi 140. Very different to the Triumph Toledo I learnt on!
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Audi A3 Sportback - How high a mileage would you buy? - rtj70
