farmerjones

Interested in the paint, interior colors, and options packages for the 2019 year. Seems like it's been a slow dribble this year for Audi to lease 2019 information. Have I missed it, or is the TT order guide for 2019 still not availabe for the US?

I had intended on purchasing my 2016 off-lease, but it's looking like the residual value is so high it will make zero financial responsibility to do so. If that's the case, I may need to attempt the tricky process of ordering a car for delivery that overlaps with my current TT coming off lease. Given the endless production delays on port holds this seems to be a very risky approach. Sadly, the likelihood of finding a car on-lot that I would want is rather low and likely I would do an Exclusive order this time around.

GaBoYnFla

I had a similar situation when I got my TTRS last year. I had a 2015 TTS Comp Pkg and the lease was ending Feb 2017. I had a TTRS deposit down awaiting delivery since Oct 2016. As time ticked on, I got more and more anxious. I did get Audi to extend the TTS lease for 6 months....and I sold the car to the dealer 3 days before the TTRS came in (I had equity in the lease). They gave me a loaner till it got here in late August 2017-a Etron. I asked for a 2nd extension on the lease which Audi said no too. So I sorta understand your predicament.

Fun101

Following this post. I'm in the same boat...lease is over end of May 2019. This is my first leasing experience and I've gone this route because my kms in 3 yrs typically get close to warranty. Farmerjones, I was surprised to read that you leased since your TT was so individually appointed. I'm sure you will miss it.

Personally I'm prepared to rent a car if necessary to bridge a gap between cars.

I'm intrigued by that Riviera Blue I've seen in the TT.

farmerjones

Thanks, it is a unique car. To me the Design Select package offered many features of Exclusive order for a fraction of the price. The Murillo Brown, in my opinion, is one of the best brown interiors from any manufacturer. Id does not surprise me that Audi is now offering this color on the Q7 this year...it's fantastic. The Anthracite trim color, trie-contrast stitching and extended leather package just sealed the deal for me, hence special ordering 1 of 16. Toss in the APR tune for some serious acceleration and it was the perfect car for me.

However, since I'm such an enthusiast I am always looking to "change it up" every few years. Hence the leasing. I worked in the auto industry for quite some time, so I'm pretty familiar with the finical aspects of car ownership. I thought the residual % of my TT lease was reasonable to pay at lease end if I wanted to buy it, but now cars with half the miles are selling for less than my residual value and 1 year`newer.

To be honest, after attending the Audi Driving Experience I'm ready to spend my life's savings on a R8 V10. I'm trying to fit together the puzzle of model year changes, off-lease return volumes, and the value of my car in anther 1-2 years. I thought buying it may be an option, but no matter how much I enjoy the unique color palette of the car, it's silly to spend thousands of dollars to buy it when I could just get another used TT for thousands less.

I'm somewhat sad no other car really excites me more than my TT right now outside the R8. I guess that says a lot about how nice the TT is to live with. The S4/S5 option just doesn't seem to live up to the excitement factor of owning the TT, no matter how bad I want to convince myself. I just can't see the value of the RS5 in relationship to it's price tag. Just too few changes for me over an entry-level car. The new A6 has an interior I really love, but going to a 4 door that big seems unlikely for me. The new Q3 interior I also like, but I have no need for an SUV. The R8 is killer, but a lot of money, so am I really ready to spend my money in that way? Maybe...when you are single you have options to waste money on a car that I don't want when i'm retired...I want it now, LOL.

Perhaps there would be another great options for another TT lease. But the options and colors seem to be changing dramatically, hence why I'm so curious as to the 2019 order guide. I know Exclusive would be super fun, but it seems to be pretty expensive in the end for just a lease car. I wish buying my car off lease, driving it for one more year and then moving to an R8 with some financial savings of being in my TT for 4 years would be the best option. Sadly it doesn't look to be the case this time. I was hoping for a few more "mid-life updates" for the 2019 year as well. Seems kind of silly to turn in a car and get another one virtually the same. Sometimes being an enthusiast is hard work, or it can suck, LOL.

SCarGuy

There is no order guide for a 19 TT at this time

Vegas-roadster

Unfortunately, all of the press releases and auto magazine articles of the TT 2019 refresh to date are about the euro version of the TT and Audi USA has not announced what we will get. Audi USA did a press release but it was just a variation of the Euro version press release. For example, some features/options on the 2019 Euro TT were already standard features on the US TT, like 18" rims standard. The exterior changes are minimal, the grill and rear diffuser are different and the most notable changes. The S-Line and TTS have added large air scoops to the lower inlets that look aggressive or ugly, depending on your taste (I'm in the fugly camp). No changes to the base TT color pallet so the only blue will be Scuba. I don't follow the TTS but I think it will get a new blue and red paint option (i.e. Scuba is not a blue option on the TTS). Much is being made of a new commemorative baseball interior being offered but it is a very poor imitation of the original Mk 1 baseball. The Mk 3 baseball is merely brown seats with yellow thread stitching. As with the Mk 2 refresh, some 2018 options will become standard equipment in 2019 US version. The 2019 will have a new tranny with an extra gear.

Relative to your situation of possibly buying your car to keep for a year, as I posted in another thread, I firmly believe that used Mk 3 TT prices are going to drop by at least 20% over the next 15 months so I'm projecting that you will take a big depreciation hit holding a car for a year. As I said in the post, the monthly TT sales numbers in late 2015 and all of 2016 exceeded the average monthly sales in the prior 8 years by about 50% or more. The sale of new TTs in 2017 and 2018 have returned to "normal" of around 2000 a year (in fact 2018 is lower than that and would have been a disaster if not for TTRS sales). Prices of used 2-3 year old TTs in the US are presently at the highest I've ever seen because no new TTs were made for the US in 2014 and most of 2015 (The 2015MY stop gap models sold in the US were manufactured at the end of 2013 before the Mk 2 line shut down and were sold in the US in early 2014). When the Mk 3 was finally sold here, there was the usual boost in sales to get the "next new thing" and about 60% of those sales were leases that are ending in the next 15 months. The bottom line is that in the next 15 months more TTs will be coming off lease than were sold new in 9 of the past 10 years which will flood the used TT market.

farmerjones

If TTs drop in value another 20% that would make it one of the worst retained residual values in the entire luxury car came. I can't see that happening. If that were the case certainly Audi would have to adjust residuals for leases or they would be laughably incorrect. If that were the case you would see lease payments closing in on $1,000/month, and there is no way that would happen relative to payments of other cars in it's lineup. That would take a slow selling car to a no-selling car.

I can agree, however, that the large number of lease returns about to begin seems likely to lower their value, but 20% seems extreme. That would make a 3 year old car around off-lease retain like 35% of it's MSRP....there is no way that will happen I don't think.

Vegas-roadster

The used TT market will go where the public sends it. Relative to residual value on leases, it would not be the first time that Audi and other manufacturers' finance arms set an artificially high residual value to get cars off the lot.
Because virtually no new TTs were sold during a 15 month period in 2014 and 2015, there are very few 1-3 year old TTs for sale which has boosted prices for 1-3 year old roadsters (the model I follow) about 10% (compared to a year ago) to around $39K. Since the average Audi dealership is now selling less than 1 new TT a month (and a large chunk of those are TTRS), and about 1800 TTs are coming off lease in the next 15 months, I expect roadster prices to drop to the low $30s in the next 6-9 months. It would not surprise me to see prices in the high $20s in 12-15 months. Coupes sell for less than roadsters.

Still, that is better than 50% of MSRP and there a lot of low mileage 3 year old luxury cars going for 50% of MSRP. I bought my wife's 3 year old MB E350 with 15K on the ticker for 50% of MSRP. Check Jag and Maserati prices for some real used bargains.

farmerjones

If they fall another 20% in value they will be WELL below 50% at 3 years. Some how we are not looking at the same numbers I guess.

Vegas-roadster

Today, used 2016 low mileage base TT roadsters are asking about $39K, a 20% reduction from that would be $39K x (1-20%) = $31.2K . MSRP for a new 2016 roadster without shipping and options was $46.4K so depreciation will be $31.2K/46.4K is 67% or a 33% depreciation. Most 2016 roadsters on the lot had an MSRP of around $50K because of shipping and options. $31.2K/$50K is 62% or a 38% depreciation. Used roadsters would have to drop to the mid-$20s to get to 50% depreciation from new prices. Used coupe prices are less but so was their MSRP so the numbers work out about the same.