Audi to bolster A8 resales

It wasn't as exciting as the R8 Spyder in white, but Audi's 'Guaranteed Future Value' program will be heartily welcomed by those who lust after the new A8 and have been scared off by the depreciation from new.

Audi MD Uwe Hagen officially announced the new program -- effectively a contract with the new-car buyer to buy back the car at trade-in time for an agreed value. This is a tactic to uphold the car's resale values in a market sector that can be highly vulnerable to declining resale prices, due to low new-car prices in the first instance. It's the price discounting of the new car used to encourage buyers to purchase the car in the first place that exacerbates the slide in the car's retained value when it comes time to on-sell it to another owner.

"Our general opinion is we are able to handle new cars and we are able to handle used cars," explained Hagen. "So we are convinced that the car will stay in this process; we are able to achieve the best price -- so by knowing this... I have an idea what a car, after three years, should have as a value. We secure this value so that there's no risk with the customer. When the customer's going to buy this car, he knows exactly, when he is giving the car back to us that there's not one point he is at risk..."

Accident damage is the only issue that might void the agreement between the vehicle's user and Audi.

"Handling those cars as used cars is a challenge," Hagen continued. "You can't do it everywhere, so we will do it at centralised [dealerships]."

That prompted the Carsales Network to question whether the program was a loss-making exercise for Audi, just to bolster brand image through massaging resale values.

"No, not when you do the whole business in the right way," Hagen insisted.

"You have to address the customers and give the second owner the feeling that the value of the car is good, so that he's prepared to pay his amount of money..."

Conversely then, does this argue against the reportedly common practice of discounting the guts out of high-end luxury sedans sold by German prestige marques?

"If you do this [discount new-car pricing], yeah... then you have a problem."

So will Audi commit to selling the new A8 without discounting the price?

"We [won't] do some business," Hagen answered. "We keep this price stable and we try to convince everyone that we are giving more than just a car and a price."

Read the latest Carsales Network news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at the carsales mobile site