tcoble33

I've been dreaming and planning for several years, and I think it's finally time to pull the trigger on a pre-owned A7. The problem is that I'm looking for a VERY specific configuration (Prestige, Innovation package, Sport package, B&O stereo, specific color/trim combo), so it's not likely that my local dealership is going to have one just sitting on the lot. I'm scouring online sites, but am coming up empty so far. I'm patient and don't mind waiting until the perfect car comes along, but I'm also eager and don't want to let the right one get away!

So, are there any dealerships, car finder sites, networks, etc. that are known for being able to track down the exact car that someone is looking for? Any known bogus sites/services to stay away from? Any recommendations or tips would be hugely appreciated!

Mitchmark00

I wanted a similar A7 and talked with my local Audi dealer/ salesman about it. My thought were he will never find what I wanted, but low and behold, a week later, he called me and one just came in off lease, so you never know. Talk with your local dealer and hopefully they will keep an eye out for you.

tcoble33

Thanks. I talked to my local Audi dealership yesterday and they're going to search within their "network" - which I take to be a relatively small sub-set of Audi (and possibly other make) dealerships. Fingers crossed that they'll find a match for me, but I wouldn't mind casting my net a bit more broadly.

tenspeed

I was in the same searching position about year ago. Most of my searches were on internet used car sites such as:
ListingAllCars.com | Find Classics, Pre-Owned and New Cars
https://www.cars.com
https://www.cargurus.com
New Cars, Used Cars - Find Cars for Sale and Reviews at Autotrader
https://www.audiusa.com/dealers-weba...searchType=cpo
Tri-State Audi Dealers | New Audi dealership in ,
New England Audi Dealers | New Audi dealership in ,

I was looking for a early A7 Prestige with everything but the B&O system. I found that many listings showed the wrong model information so look at the Premium/Premium Plus cars to see if they actually have the Prestige option with the S-line exterior in the photos.

We wanted a red car with the nougat interior but Audi doesn't make that combination. We ended up with a white 2012 with the nougat interior and have grown to really like the white.

Where do you live and what year A7 are you looking for? I wanted LED headlights, the Advanced Cruise control and Prestige. It got so I could tell by looking at the front end picture if I should pass or check the listing closer.

the_duke

+1 I used the same sites to find my A8. I wanted Balao Brown interior which is pretty rare. Took a little while but I finally found one. Of course it was almost 2000 miles away so that was a hassle but I'm very happy with it.

tcoble33

Excellent, thank you! Some of these sites are familiar - others, not so much. I'll dive right in.

I'm in the Nashville, TN area, but am kind of hoping to find my A7 relatively far from here so that I can take a few days off of work and make a road trip/vacation out of picking her up. Spend some quality time getting to know the new member of the family and all that...

The 2012-2013 models tend to be in my price range. Color-wise, my first choice is Daytona Gray, but black would be a close second. Black interior and the Ash inlays. That color combo seems to be fairly common, but ones with the Prestige/Innovation/Sport/B&O combination only seem to be hitting sites like Auto Trader once a month or so. I know I'm limiting my options by having such a specific wish list, but I think the wait will be worth it.

And I feel your pain with all of those inaccurate listings! Nothing worse than thinking you've found a car that meets all of your requirements, only to discover after looking at the pics that someone at the dealership was less than diligent in writing up the descriptor. I'm beginning to think that the ability to accurately describe a car is becoming my litmus test for whether that's a dealership that I'll be inclined to do business with.

SpectreGadget

I ended up finding the order guides for 2012 and later. I ended up learning more than most sellers knew about the car, but it helped me keep sane when lokoing through all the cars for sale to know exactly what was on it. The 2012 model year (and 2013 to a large extent) didn't have a great deal of options, so seeing a picture of the steering wheel, light switch, dash, and exterior is enough to determine which options are on the car.

I looked and found a private seller with almost everything I wanted on the car. I also wanted Grey, but this ended up being a great deal, missing only the cold weather package (it was in Florida), and in Phantom Black. I bought the car, and really love it. Still would have preferred grey, but the Phantom Black is quite beautiful when cleaned, and the previous owner had taken great care of it.

Good luck in your search!

the_duke

If you do find one you are very interested in you can use the Audi customer service chat and with the vin# they can email you the monroney label for the car. It's a good way to verify the options and such. From my experience even a lot of dealers don't know what options cars have for sure.

https://www.audiusa.com/help/contact-us

tcoble33

And in much less time than I expected. An exact match to my wish list and a GREAT price to boot.

Ironically, it's located in southern Florida and there's the small matter of a hurricane headed straight for it tomorrow. I'm hoping it clears out by Friday afternoon as expected so that my flight doesn't get delayed. Granted, the people who live down there have infinitely more legitimate reasons for wanting the storm to pass through quickly, but after nearly 4 years of waiting I'm going to indulge in a little impatience too!

mcgaskins

I had almost the exact same wish list, and I looked and looked for about 6 months. I ended up driving a Porsche Macan S, and I decided that was probably a better fit for me anyways. One day before I bought the Macan, my perfect A7 showed up locally for about $8k less than blue book. I went and drove it, and it just didn't feel as good as the Macan so I skipped it and went with the Porsche. It was kind of a bummer, but I think the right thing happened in the end.