Gluhwein

Hey guys. I am new to this forum and am currently nearing the end of my BMW 128i lease. I did European Delivery back in 2012 and thoroughly enjoyed it. On my recent Christmas vacation to Bavaria I stopped in at Audi Forum in Ingolstadt and was blown away by the facility. Maybe not quite as artsy a building as the Welt, but definitely a first class and impressive operation. I recently read that Audi has rescinded the advance VAT payment and I just may be ready to jump ships.

Can anyone recommend a dealership in the Eastern PA or Northern New Jersey region who is familiar with and competent with European Delivery? My BMW dealership pretended to know what they were doing but only my due diligence and continual help from the Bimmerfest fans prevented me from overpaying and getting ripped off on a number of issues. Any suggestions would be appreciated. I have 11 months to go on my lease but I want to do this very carefully to get the best deal.

I'm looking at the A3 only because the A1 is not available in the USA. Perhaps it will be? And before I go any farther, is the A3 part of the ED system?

HerrK

Can't help you with a PA/NJ dealer familiar with ED. But according to some recent paperwork from Audi that I gathered as part of our upcoming Q5 ED this was one of the Q&A's

When will the A3 Sedan be available for European Delivery? - The A3 Sedan will be introduced to the (ED) program in June, 2014

Regarding the VAT. What Audi of America said is - that they no longer require the dealer to collect the VAT for AOA. They give the individual dealership the option of collecting the VAT. Audi ED paperwork is not up to BMW standards yet. All they need to do is include a form for the "Buyer" to sign off on stating that they agree to pay the VAT tax should they not return the car in or overstay the 90 days. The dealers are still wary of taking the risk. I hope this changes before we do our final payment in late April for our May ED, but for us it is not a deal breaker.

Happy Audi shopping!

alatsacto

Based on most experiences on this forum, VAT check was collected as a deposit but was never cashed. While I can only speak for myself, my dealership only collected the check in case we didn't drop off the car within 90 days.

For for me, I had initially thought I wouldn't place any money down on the car initially, and instead keep that money in the bank as basically my VAT deposit. But when it came time to finance the car, they wanted $10k down. So while I had the money in the bank, it may have become an issue for us if they had cashed it and I had to start paying my credit card bills from the trip.

LukFilm

Audi dealership in Larksville, PA (http://www.wyomingvalleyaudi.com/index.htm) and ask for Jason Young or email him to jasony AT wyomingvalleymotors DOT com. He is doing my European Delivery and gave me a GREAT deal on my S7 which will be ready May 8, 2014.

Gluhwein

I really love the A3 convertible and loved seeing the Audi Forum in Germany, but crikey, the brand really seems to fall short when push comes to shove. Months later and still very limited help gained from this forum. The tip on Jason Young was good, except now he's gone. Meanwhile, I have emailed 8 different dealerships in the tri-state area (PA,NJ and NY) and none have bothered to respond to my build and pricing request. I'd at least expect someone to tell me my numbers are unrealistic or something. BMW advisors are falling all over themselves trying to earn my business. I may have to settle for a less sexy car in favor of a company that actually seems to want my business. Very disappointed.

gforaker

Yes, BMW dealers seem much more aggressive on ED. I can't figure out why, since Audi dealers would seem to make more on an ED sale. Perhaps much of the discount comes from the dealer rather than the parent company like with BMW and Mercedes. Maybe a former dealer employee could help us with the behind the scenes business details.

Anyway, at least here in Ohio, dealers have agreed to only offer the standard discount, so no price competition. I got almost no response for bid requests. I had to actually go to the dealership and talk to them.

HerrK

OMG - what a novel concept.

I guess I am just old fashioned. I always go to the dealer to talk to them. I am not always out to squeeze the last dollar out of them. I do my homework, no matter what brand I'm interested in. I question them and like to see how truthful the sales and service staff actually respond. That is where I spend my money with those that seem most knowledgable, honest, and sincere.

Realistically, Audi overall & especially ED sales are quite small in comparison to BMW. So most Audi dealers have no clue and have likely never been involved in an ED sales. They would rather sell you a car off the lot at full MSRP, even if they ultimately make a few more dollars on an ED sales - which they will. I fould the Audi ED process much easier, although not as seemingly financially lucrative as BMW comparison, more on that later. If you truly want one via ED go in and talk to them and make sure you are fully aware of noted discount per the model your interested in (all models are currently at 5% off MSRP). If you don't have any Audi history don't expect anything beyond the stated ED Discount. Audi does have Loyalty discounts but then you have to be a current Audi owner. No different from BMW.

A comparison of the Q5 (not ours) comparably equipped (as close to apples to apples) BMW X3 had the Audi Q5 cheaper by about 5%. So IMO that negated the "better" BMW ED discount. BMW couldn't match the power train combo or ED. I find the Audi material a bit higher quality and the Audi leather is truley more supple comparded to BMW. We've been extremely pleased with our Q5 TDI so far. Beauty & sexiness I guess is in the eye of the beholder. I still am alos happy with our Z4 which in my opinion is far more beautiful and sexier than the TT, but it's not perfect either. Happy shopping.

Fithian

Of the five dealers in the Philadelphia area, Audi Wynnewood has the best pricing on European Delivery. MSRP less 6%. No VAT check.