i was looking for a car for a friend.
found out Phaeton is traded at camry's price.

is anything wrong with them? other than they are not popular.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/NAVIG...QQcmdZViewItem

 

A Buddy of mine has two of them...they are an absolute steal to buy and VERY nice cars. The idea of an expensive Volkswagen just never caught on and so values of them are in the gutter. If he's not afraid of the resale and everyone thinking that it's just a big Jetta then he'll be fine and very suprised at how nice they really are.

Andy

 

WOW - talk about a depreciation hit.

 

Used German luxury sedans are cheep (I'd even say almost all used luxury sedans are relatively cheep compared to their new car price). That's a fact.

VW Phaetons and Audi A8s both carry a price tag of $30K as 2004 models with moderate miles on the clock. BMW 745is and Mercedes S classes join them at $35K.

The Phaeton and the A8 are both the same car with obviously the same used car price. The Cayenne and the Touareg are the same car as well, but Porsche can charge a premium in the US; VW or Audi can't.

 

hmm this is a tough one... depends on your friends taste... The same money buys you a same year S4 with the same engine but not detuned. An A6 with the 4.2 from the same year comes in again at the same money. Granted the phaeton has a bit more luxury if that is your preference.

 

pl,
Funny you ask, I was at that shop this weekend. I bought a 325CI Cab from them last month. I had them look at my 996 to see if they had interest (fishin'). That VW was not at the Irving location so I could not see it but I have been following that car since I bought the BMW.
If you read the reviews, most people rave about the car, even as much as saying nicer than any BMW,Jag, or Audi they had previously owned.
Only negative I have read was on wiring and other technical problems. That is a 1st gen car I believe so may be prone, but I would assume it had most of the bugs worked out by now.
Sounds like a pretty good price. Looks pretty sweet too.
RB

 

Not entirely true. All are NOT created equal.

A8 is all aluminum. The Phaeton is not.

And if you look at the S class; it's residuals are always higher then the BMW or Audi's of the same model year, condition and mileage.


That having been said; if you can get a Certified Pre Owned Phaeton, it'll make a heck of a car. It's gorgeous inside. But beware of NON CPO'd cars.

 

in fact, one thing he noted is "low-key"
i think this is the car for him, as long as it's reliable.
will keep your guys posted.

 

That's actually right. The Phaeton weights 650lbp more than an A8 with the same engine, but beside the used material, there is not too much difference.

I usually look at the lowest used car price nationwide to get a feeling about the market. There are much more S classes out there than 7 serie BMWs (and there's a successor of the S class on the market), which is in my opinion the reason why their used car price seams to be on the same level; entry price for 2004 cars with approx. 50K miles is for both: $35K; Audi and VW start both at $30K.

 

VW were dumb. Right car with the wrong badge

 

With any of those cars I would NOT buy a non CPO'd car. No way..... asking for trouble.

One minute your car cost's $35, the next you're putting $10k for a new electrical system into it. ouch.

 

they are a bit more popular in here new england where reserved wealth is often preferred over conspicuous consumption. very nice cars. As with the A8, i heard they can be expensive should the electronic gremlins show themselves. otherwise, as long one intends to drive it till it dies (to avoid depreciation), they are great cars.

 

i like the price for the numbers that the vw is putting down.......

 

35K for a V8 is about right and 40K for the W12.

This is a great car to have at the prices they are going for.

Remember under every Bentley today is a Phaeton. Even the radio is the same.

Get it!

 

I'm with Orient Express - "get it!"

But beware - the depreciation hasn't stopped. It'll continue to fall like a rock.