Any advice for buying a used van from VW dealer?

huw169

Black 199 Shuttle
VIP Member
T6 Guru
Hi All
I've been lurking in the background for a while with the odd post.
Currently have a 2001 T4 with 174k which is great, but it is time for an upgrade.

I would like a Kombi, but the std headlights are crap, speed limit issues, and they are much more expensive than shuttles.
I've seen a 2019 LWB Indium Grey 150 DSG Shuttle local to me in the VW dealership, but I have not bought from a dealer before.

Any advice from you experienced buyers?
If I offer a lower amount, will I be laughed out of the place? How does it work?

It's £25k Gross with 12k miles, but fairly basic. No cruise control (but i'd want to fir MFSW anyway), and no parking sensors (but has the 5" touch screen so I could fit a reversing camera). I've already inquired about these and been given some chunky quotes. I've also asked about the warranty work that has been carried out.

I just have no idea how to start the conversation about cost.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Many thanks
Huw
 
I'm no expert but i would scour the internet looking for similar age/spec van's and see what prices similar vans are going for....

I only bought direct from a dealer once and it drained the life out of me.... 5 hours of my life dealing with a knob (excuse my french) and it was like pulling teeth trying to get anything discounted.... most of their vehicles are priced similar as they use a national database... but if you can find one at another branch or competitor cheaper... then that'll have them competing for your business....

The T6 i spec'd and bought exclusively through autoebid and so my only interaction with the dealer was to get the keys.... Bliss... :)

Good luck and let us know how you get on....
 
On VW Used there are always a few vans showing as ‘Gross’ ie no VAT to add, so basically 20% cheaper!
 
I agree with Jason re researching prices on a national basis. I travelled from Preston to Reading to get the right van. I was in at the Preston main dealers (Swansway) this week for a service. The chap there told me that they were desperate for used stock which isn't helped by the delays in new builds. I guess that this won't help with the used prices.
 
With current demand, getting a discount will be hard. I couldn't get one before the current situation although my van was at a good price to start with. I did find dealer prices did vary quite a bit though so research everything.
I have a Shuttle and their is only two specs. The basic one is IMHO pants and only for commercial use. The other SE is good but with loads of available upgrades so that's a problem. I got Cruise control and upgraded steering wheel controls plus rear aircon which I wanted and the better headlights. I suspect getting LED lights wont be easy. Yep 3 types on lights available, the basic H4 ones are super pants and a disgrace to VW
 
I found haggling with them difficult, however get them to extend the warranty and throw in a 3 year service package, full tank of go go juice, mat's etc.
 
I had a great experience buying mine - 17 plate Kombi LWB 150 Highline - got a discount to take it to nearer to what I wanted to spend and no hassles - others I went to weren't as helpful though
 
I bought mine ex demo with lots of extras .....

and 1 key feature was heated seats and there weren’t many of this around
 
Make sure you look at the multi point check list before you buy. See what work they’ve done to the van in order to bring it to the approved standard and ask for the paperwork To back this up. They should do any mechanical repairs but aren’t obliged to do body work, but do need to advise you on any body damage which is highlighted in the MPC.

They issue and extra years warranty and I had the dmf changed under the extended warranty so it’s pretty good
 
Hi All
I've been lurking in the background for a while with the odd post.
Currently have a 2001 T4 with 174k which is great, but it is time for an upgrade.

I would like a Kombi, but the std headlights are crap, speed limit issues, and they are much more expensive than shuttles.
I've seen a 2019 LWB Indium Grey 150 DSG Shuttle local to me in the VW dealership, but I have not bought from a dealer before.

Any advice from you experienced buyers?
If I offer a lower amount, will I be laughed out of the place? How does it work?

It's £25k Gross with 12k miles, but fairly basic. No cruise control (but i'd want to fir MFSW anyway), and no parking sensors (but has the 5" touch screen so I could fit a reversing camera). I've already inquired about these and been given some chunky quotes. I've also asked about the warranty work that has been carried out.

I just have no idea how to start the conversation about cost.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Many thanks
Huw

Hi @huw169 ... if you buy on Hp shop around ...i did get a good deal with Hitachi Capital ( now 3. 9%) and you can over pay...Also if it’s a big investment look at GAP insurance...5 yrs policy in case of right off ...but don’t get VW there expensive
Make your money work for you...:)
 
Hi @huw169 - I tried to buy a low mileage T6 from a main dealer. All that I dealt with were awful. In the end found a lovely Deliver miles T6.1 from East Coast Vdubz for less than a used t6! Give them a call. Great to deal with, independent and invested in their product...
Hi All
I've been lurking in the background for a while with the odd post.
Currently have a 2001 T4 with 174k which is great, but it is time for an upgrade.

I would like a Kombi, but the std headlights are crap, speed limit issues, and they are much more expensive than shuttles.
I've seen a 2019 LWB Indium Grey 150 DSG Shuttle local to me in the VW dealership, but I have not bought from a dealer before.

Any advice from you experienced buyers?
If I offer a lower amount, will I be laughed out of the place? How does it work?

It's £25k Gross with 12k miles, but fairly basic. No cruise control (but i'd want to fir MFSW anyway), and no parking sensors (but has the 5" touch screen so I could fit a reversing camera). I've already inquired about these and been given some chunky quotes. I've also asked about the warranty work that has been carried out.

I just have no idea how to start the conversation about cost.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Many thanks
Huw
 
If buying a shuttle, two things I’d recommend;

check insurance as some insurers class them as a minibus So can be expensive
Try and get a 3 zone air cone model, they can get a bit hot in the back, with all the glass

I’d recommend LEDs, as mentioned above and an SE model.

Coming up to September there should be some deals abouton second hand vans

good luck with your search.
 
Don't let them up sell extras like paint protection, wheel and tyre insurance and the like. They make a lot of money out of adding them into deals.
 
Just to close this out, I had a really easy experience with Breeze Portsmouth.
They offered a price, which to be fair was already very competitive and matched my expectations, I stalled for a day so they knocked another £500 off, stating it was a one day offer if we close by end of day - yeah, sure it is... I expressed a concern that I wasn't sure the van was for us as I had some reservations, so stalled a little longer. Went back a day later with an offer £500 less due to my concerns, and they said no.
Realised I was at a price I was prepared to pay. Got it services and topped with fuel, AdBlue, etc and deal done.

On reflection, and looking at the market, I think I got an amazing deal.
Chuffed to bits!
 
I found that with many places, second hand vehicles are typically priced to sell because that price is what gets people in. So there might not be much discounting on top. Ultimately, if you like the van and the spec, and you knew the price in advance, you surely would have been happy with it on paper before you saw it right?

I found looking for a van the right spec to be tricky, I had a list of stuff I wanted and had to rank them as some things are harder to find than others and can't really be retrofitted (like a twin slider or a DSG box)
 
I've bought three 'Used Vans' from dealers over the past thirteen years (plus one new ordered one) and always had a good experience.

The current one bought from Worcester Van Centre is a 66 plate LWB Highline T6 Kombi which had 17 miles on the clock when we bought it with LED lights, this was purchased in October 2016.

As others have said I don't think there is much room to deal for a 'cash reduction' but there may be some scope to lever some 'treats' out of them.
 
I agree with Jason re researching prices on a national basis. I travelled from Preston to Reading to get the right van. I was in at the Preston main dealers (Swansway) this week for a service. The chap there told me that they were desperate for used stock which isn't helped by the delays in new builds. I guess that this won't help with the used prices.
I travelled from Milton Keynes to Reading for my van last year - good bunch of guys down there :)
 
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