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Comments
We have just concluded the first VW PHAETON Owners/VWOA Corp. Meeting...
First ever such event that I am aware of...All VWOA top brass in attendence.
The PHAETON is alive and well...2006 PHAETONs being ordered. BlueTooth availablity on the orders due late Q3 into Q4 for both 4 & 5 Passenger configurations. OnStar no longer available due to the analog/digital conflict.
2007 in the design studios for a modest refresh...Dealer body handling PHAETON will be reduced only to those totally committed to the product & Customer.
The Lease as been the financial instrument of choice...very well supported by Volkswagen Credit...
You can now go from..."Why to Wow"!!!!
Ours is Silver with the anthracite interior. Got the comfort and cold weather package, the technology package, the keyless access and the premium sound system. See my post earlier today about the financial lease details. I probably did not get as good a deal as others claim on this forum. But I am satisfied and that is what matters.
I have no concerns about them canceling the car at this point. They have to do a better job promoting it, else it will go away. Hard to imagine a car this good not having a market, however.
i too had the same concerns as you about the future of the phaeton. that is why i leased mine. my test drive, research and lease convinced me that this was a reasonable choice for the next 3 years. after all, under a lease what is your exposure on the future of the car? if vw supports the residuals under a lease i think you are safe. and you still have the option to buy out the lease if it looks like a good option in 2008.
driving the car on a daily basis has convinced me that this car deserves to survive. but the slow sales and lack of visible support by vw is a concern. however, it you check out the vwvortex discussion about the auburn hills, michigan, phaeton get-together just held last weekend members appeared reassured that vw has a long-term purpose and plan for the phaeton. i sure hope so!
The Phaeton is a better car than the D2 series A8L so it should at least hold value in that ballpark. It's also a better car in many ways than the new design D3 A8L. Year - old A8's are averaging $62,000 asking on AutoTrader!
If I own it, I can mod it.
Good to talk with you this morning!!! Welcome aboard!
Not so good was the repaint of the right half of the rear bumper that originally had a scrape or two on the surface.. Now there's way too much orange peal and dirt in the paint. What's the solution here? Wet sand in a few weeks and apply a clearcoat? I'm totally baffled on this. Maybe just stop looking at that spot for a while. :sick:
Dealer said bring her back in a month and they'll fix it.
Might go for a new plate "PHNTLY"
I like these. Will look even better on a Long Wheel Base car like mine.
Well we had our first So. Cal. Phaeton GTG this morning at 9 AM.
In attendance was Steve C., Steve D., Mike, Bob, and me, Rick. Mike had a coulple of family members drop by as did Peter the service mgr from Timmons just for a minute.
PC Dave had to reschedule until next time because of a change in his business plans.
Initially we all met one another and did the usual chit chat. As Michael M. might say, we have some real keener's in our group.
Steve C. had done some minor mods to add a radar detector and a rear DVD system for his children. He also outfitted his trunk with lots of Phaeton items along with a bottle of champagne in a Sterling Silver bucket.
I brought everyone up to speed on what was said and the tech day at AH GTG. I also, discussed my lunch meeting with Miles the owner of Capo VW.
We all agreed to continue to meet once a quarter. Steve C. mentioned that VW had an up coming GTG in Irvine, possibly in August which would match our next GTG and said he would follow up on the info for that event and give us the particulars. In addition, Mike said he would look to schedule our next meeting on PCH near the Cove, a local hang out.
I'm going to work on getting us a website even if it is only a few pages just so that there will be a destination place for us So Cal types to post our cars and event info.
It was suggested that we do a drive to the wine country and Mike and Bob agreed to gather the info for that event.
Capo VW has graciously agreed to lend us there conference room with TV, DVD, VHS and a White board and kitchen for future meetings and events.
I let the group know that Miles was behind us and that he provides Phaeton loaners to Phaeton owners and there service depart is ready to helps us in any way possible with our Phaetons.
As we begin the journey to building a Phaeton club locally we all agreed to help VW promote the Phaeton. As Mr. Hunt indicated he wanted to do viral marketing. Well, here we are. All present said they would be happy to show off their Phaeton if a dealer needed some help with a potential client. ARE YOU LISTING VW?
We are your new Ambassadors!
I had to leave after about an hour and twenty minutes but the rest of the group stuck around and continue to build relationships.
All in all I would say a good time was had by all and that we're looking forward to meeting again as we continue to build the Phaeton Group.
Capo VW said they would begin to let their Phaeton Clients know we are here and I encouraged them to use us especially when they have a special event so we can all show up in Phaetons to help support them.
Thanks again to Bob for suggesting the location. We got to see a few nice classics come thru the lot.
Yes we took pictures and I will send them to Michael M. for posting later this evening once I'm back home.
Those wheels are you see are standard on the S Line package for the A6, and also on the S4. They're also available on the A8 (19's) with the sport package
The Audi wheels are the best so far though. Thanks for the compliment on them!
Dealer fixed the orange peal in the bumper repaint he did prior to delivery. Unfortunately the detail man left sanding marks on the chrome bumper strip just above the area he wet sanded and polished. Claimed he didn't do it, a juvenile delinquent no doubt, but of course! VW is famous for their service and I haven't been disappointed. They deserve the reputation, fer sure! :sick:
According to my dealer, XM is not an option until 2007 model.
Any thoughts?
Get the PIE X3 and the special cable that Christian makes then you can have your choice of 4 inputs your existing CD Changer, and 3 others. It attaches at the rear of the CD CHANGER.
The restyle attempt shown above uses gloss black electrical tape to mask off the lower 2/3 of the beltline trim.
I"ll get pounded on the lease, but the A6 will go (only 10,000 miles on it). I love the Phaeton--absolutely love it, but I've leased my last rig. I was looking at a new V8 5 passenger with the comfort/tech and stereo upgrade. Is a $66K target reasonable? BIG ISSUE--right next to the 2005 was an 04 (silver) with the same equipment, 18K miles and a $49,000 asking price (without any haggling)! That's got to be $20k+ depreciation in less than a year!
I want to buy v lease for more flexibility. My concern is horrid resale value and the fear that they'll stop producing it. My other option is to go back to the A8 but that will be at least $5-8K more. Advice is appreciated.
By the way, I love the car. It ain't perfect, has a goofy lag in transmission in normal Drive mode, which goes away at the trade off of some smoothness in Sport, but it is a great car.
Sales are down for ALL VW carlines due to poor Marketing & Ad Support...
Use the Tip mode and you will not experience any lag at all...
You state: 99% of all automobiles are depreciating assets...
Of course they are, but my point in response to a potential buyers post is that the resale on a Phaeton in a true market may be a lot worse than the implied resale used in a lease calculation. As you surely know, a pre-set depreciation percent and the associated residual value set in a lease may have no relation to the real life experience in 3 to 5 years when you try to sell what you bought. True, the owner may hold on to the car forever, but in comparing lease vs buy you need to carry out this calculation as part of the value comparison. Real life hurts the "buy" calculation in my opinion.
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You say: Sales are down for ALL VW carlines due to poor Marketing & Ad Support...
Since I believe you work for a dealer, I am sure you have this right. But the facts are what they are and have a major impact of the real market value of the car now and in the future. Sales may be down for ALL VW carlines, but they have been a disaster for the Phaeton from the get go. People aren't buying them on the show room floor, why will they rush to want to buy a used one in the future? This reluctance cetainly has an impact on what a dealer is willing to negotiate as a price for both an outright purchase and a lease. I mentioned it to make the point that the advantage is in the buyers court on this car no matter which way they go.
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You say: Use the Tip mode and you will not experience any lag at all...
Now here I have to take issue with you. True, Tip mode fixes it, but it shouldn't have to be "fixed" in the first place. As you may have noticed from my name, we have traded notes on this before. It is still the biggest, and I would state as a matter of plain fact, the most disappointing aspect of this high end car. I am at about 10k miles and it is just as bad as the day I took it home. The normal automatic Drive mode ought to provide a sweet ride as is the case with every other competitive high-end offering, including the A8. I have three friends that own them (hint, I am one of the four guys profiled in the recent VW owners magazine as the "Phateon Phoresome" so I have a users group to compare notes with). VW has either a bug in the transmission software or simply programmed it to try to get to 6th gear in the fastest possible time. It makes for a lousy ride in Drive. It is only addressed by Sport or Tip. Sport burns gas, holds you in 3rd or 4th at speeds where it is annoying to listen to the engine whine, and to have to self select your gear, regardless of how much fun it can be occasionally, it is a heck of a price to pay to fix a poorly designed transmission. Lots of fun doing that in traffic sipping coffee!
But, I still love the car!! Really. I just think leasing is a smarter move until the market sees this car as a better value.
The only 4 cars I'm considering are the Phaeton, A8 (or A8L), CLS500 or LS430. I think for resale, the order would be reverse of the listing above. In order of price, the LS 430 would be cheapest (they have the most margin to play with), followed by the VW, Audi and MB (the CLS is new, hot and in demand).
The LS is the safe bet (reliability/residual) and the MB is the most attractive, but probably the least practical as it's basically a 4 seater without much more room that my A6. The Audi residual sucks, too. My A6 2.7 S Line stickered for $49K last year. All the trade valuators are calling for $31K 13 months later, impacted by a new model in 05. Still love the Phaeton but don't like the fact that used 04's are being listed for $49K, while similarly equipped A8L's are at $61K.
0.00011...Equivilant APR = 0.264%. A taste over 25 Basis Points!!!
Residual Values
Terms of 24-36 Months...And I wouldn't worry about letting anyone else predict the future; this is the Value from Volkswagen Credit, and they are your bank...
Regarding the Tranny...Your PHAETON tech can smooth this out for you, at least most of it...This is a VAGCOM computer adjustment...
And, finally...PHAETON sales are weak here in the US...We market worldwide.
In 2004 we met 80% of our target...right around 2000 units...This year that target is 1000...As I mentioned before, Marketing & Advertising $$$ are key here. Just spend one night from 8-11:300 watching network TV and see who is spending the BIG BUCKS...It certainly is not VWOA...And this problem was specifically addressed this past weekend in Germany.
From my own experience, and I sold more PHAETONs last year than anyone else in the Western Region of the US, the PHAETON customer is more concerned with Service than Price...And that is what they get from me...Great Technicians so the PDI is done thoroughly & expertly, and I personally road test each one before delivery. After that the customer never comes back to Dealership except to say Hi!, or bring a friend...They never come back for Service/Maintenance; we go to them...
That's the way to go - buy a used one for $10-$15 less than an A8L.
But for the money, please test both the VW and the Audi A6. I have had over the years both (I had the A8, too).
My new A6 3.2 is hardly a hot rod -- so if you have the where with all to afford -- look at both the A6 4.2 and the Phaeton.
Either one will be a treat. The Phaeton certainly will be MORE lux -- but the A6 with the same 4.2 might be more fun.
If that matters.
monthly payment...
Better to say take it off (or put it back on to be correct) to the selling price up front an recalc the lease. Divide the cap cost by the number of months and compare it to the monthly price with out a cap cost, and you will know what it is a "saving you", which ain't much, and you get to keep your money.
Now, ready for the biggest reason you don't want a cap cost, let alone one in the multiple thousands of dollars range?? Cause it is not covered if you total the car. Any money you put down as cap cost will be ignored by your insurance company if you have a total loss. You are only insured for the amount less the cap cost. ie, the amount you are leasing. Can you spell GAP. and no, it's not covered by GAP insurance.
The big message though is this: know how to calculate a lease using paper and a simple calculator before you start messing with the dealers finance guy. It is amazing how quickly the landscape evens out when they know you know the factors in a lease and how they work. It is really pretty easy to do. Good luck.
One good up front thing to do though is to get the "Wear & Tear" Warranty from JM& A the VW Warranty folks. This is Lease specific and covers the Leasee for up to $5000.00 and 1000 over miles @ $.20 a mile. All inclusive, including tires.
Check to see what the stores policy is After the Sale...
A 36 month Lease would normally max out at 45,000 miles and not 50,000,
although you can prepay miles...
The resale on Audi A8's has gone up quite a bit since they redesigned the cars back in 2004. 04's on Ebay are going for 60 grand or so. But when you're spending 50k on a used car, finance rates come into play. A brand new 55k A6 4.2 quattro @ 2.9% is not that much more that a used 50k 04 Phateon @ 5.5%.
I'd rather have a new A6 4.2 Quattro that a used Phaeton. The A6 might be tad smaller inside that the Phaeton, but I think it's a better looking car, inside and out.