T6.1 discounts

[Eber123]

Good morning Mbenne,

In general in the past we thought about this. But, for one reason ot the other, I am not comfortable doing this.

If I spend so much money I prefer to buy the vehicle from a dealer close to me in the believe that the servcie will be a bit better - it seems I kept a bit of inocence from my childhood.

Have I said that it seems to be the case to some extend. With the Tiguan and the Ocean leaving with the dealer for service, I alwyas get a car free of charge. This is not always the case. Normal lights and wipers I got changed for free, and waiting time for looking after issues are very short. Just some examples.

I did not understand the Irish car industry. 2012 we bought a Tiguan and a Polo at the same time. Well, for me that was a lot of money. We went to many VW dealers in the greater Dublin area. Do you think it was possible to negotiate a deal? No! Before that we bought Toyotas. Getting a Toyota Avensis Verso, high spec. Same thing.

During a visit in Germany we went to a VW dealer. After the "good morning" I got already 15 % of the list price - haven't even started negotiations. Saying that we live in Ireland, no problem give us a few weeks and we get for the same money a right hand steering wheel car.

I wait until April / May when the weather is better and the first T6.1 arrives on the Irish shore. In the meantime I want to have a very good look at the T6.1 in February in NEC Birmingham.

Regards,
Eberhard

 

[mbenne]

We wish you all the best in your search for a new vehicle

 

[grainflow]

Good evening Mark,

I did send the VW dealer a list of my preferred configuration for the new T6.1 and deducted EUR 50.000 for the trade-in.

The price was an assumption based on the km driven, specification, condition and the price I payed for it 2.5 years agon (by the way, from the same dealer).

The VW dealer got back to me confirming that my calculation was not too far off.

Looking back 2.5 years ago I did not get any discount for the T6. Have I said that it was a pre-registered van (with just 123 km on the clock) for a price I couldn't complain.

I believe that if I manage to get the money from somewhere and start serious negotiations the figures will be a bit better. I might get EUR 5,000 more for my T6. But even than (please don't understand me wrong) but even EUR 5.000 more trade-in leaves me with aditional EUR 25.000. For that kind of money you get a new car (even from VW).

On CarZone I saw yesterday a T6.1, 150 HP, DSG, Ocean, two colours for EUR 81.000. Hello! It is a camper van from VW and not a Bently! But on the other side, at the momet it seems to me that there are not a lot of T6 California on offer in Ireland and T6.1 have an insage price tag. But to be fair, the standard specification is a bit higher than in the past.

Best of luck looking for a California. Do you plan to get an used T6 Beach, Coast or Ocean? Do you plan to by new? In what corner do you you live? The more VW dealers are around you, the higher the cances to shop around?

Regards,
Eberhard

Hi Eberhard,

Thanks for your reply. It's difficult to gather pricing information on used California's in Ireland as there's virtually none for sale so I'm trying to figure out what offer would be appropriate as soon as one does become available. I've looked at plenty for sale on this forum in the UK but a couple of things keep putting me off.

Firstly there's no way (that I can figure out anyway) of knowing how much VRT would have to be paid when importing one from the UK to Ireland. From what I can see I would have to buy it, drive it home and apply to have it registered here and wait for a random quote (I'm guessing approx €6-7k for a 2017 Ocean DSG). I know it's 13.3% of market value here but how do you work that out with none available. That makes it difficult to work out finances in advance.

Secondly, I don't really need an Ocean. We would be happy with a coast due to the cost savings (and I think I'd prefer the manual roof) but again none available here or in UK. Only necessary options for us are DSG gearbox and night heater (the latter which we can obviously retrofit)

Buying new is not an option for us, hoping a few second hand Cali's come up as soon as the T6.1's start getting delivered.

Regards,
Mark

 

[Eber123]

Hello Mark,

I agree is difficult to figure out the prices of used California (whatever version) in Ireland. Prices from UK can only be a guide. Also I agree it is not straight forward to figure out how much tax has to be paid for an import.

We went for the Ocean because I liked the storage space, fridge, cooker and sink. We used it a lot during the summer holiday, but even when we are on a day trip. The heating is very effective (well not nessearily in the upper bed) and keeps the van nice and cosy.

The drawback with the Ocean is that it is always fullly loaded. The Ocean weight is about 2.5 t. This of couse has impact on the consumpiton. I recorded the consumption during 2019, which was 7.7 l. I think this is a good number for the van.

I will go over to the Camping and Caravan show in Bermingham in October (can't wait) to have a look at the T6.1.

Never the less. The VW California Ocean is a wonderful vehicle, which I have not regreted to have purchased (it is my daily drive). I still love each kilometer driving in it.

Regards,
Eberhard