Should I order a petrol engine for my new Audi A4?
If I ordered a new Audi A4 with a petrol engine, would I lose out much in two or three years time when I trade it in? My annual mileage is less than 8,000km.
John S. (Limerick)Oct 2014 Filed under: choosing new car
Expert answer
Hi John,
OK, there's a balancing act to be done here. There's no doubt that the CO2-driven diesel stampede since 2008 has driven up the values of second hand diesel cars and driven down the values of their petrol equivalents. However, that is starting to change, and cannier buyers (helped in some part by investigations and comparisons by the CompleteCar.ie team - blowing our own trumpet etc. etc.) have shown that the overall cost of buying and running a petrol engined car can actually be lower than that of a diesel, especially for those drivers on relatively low mileage like yourself.
In that sense, I'd be well in favour of getting the petrol one, but there is a caveat to that - the A4 is very much a business market car, and therefore most of its prospective buyers, new and used, will be expecting to see a TDI badge on the boot. If you're buying on a lease or a PCP with a guaranteed future value, then that's not such an issue, but the answer is yes, you could well lose out a little on depreciation over a few years. Probably not a lot, but it's a moving target at the best of times.
Can I suggest this? Instead of an A4, have a look at the A3 Saloon. It's admittedly smaller, but it is also prettier, better to drive and good enough to win Family Car of the Year from the Association of Professional Motoring Press (APMP). It can also be had with the excellent little 150hp 1.4-litre turbo petrol engine and should be somewhat less sensitive to the diesel/petrol tug of war when it comes to second hand values.
Let us know which way you go anyway.
Neil Briscoe - Complete Car Adviser@neilmbriscoe