Recently I have been searching for another car… specifically a MK1 TT roadster or B6 S4 Cabrio. I’ve always known that a dealer wouldn’t give you much $ for a trade in, especially on an 11 year old car. I’ve checked the kbb my car, a 2002 3.0 with 79k 6spd quattro sport. ~$6,400. I never expected it to be quite that low yet. I keep my car clean, but certainly not show status as it is my only daily driver and this time of year sucks. It’s got a few mods and can be put back to stock in a weekend.
There was a 225TT ALMS edition at a local Hyundai dealer. It had 10k less miles, and was in a bit better shape exterior wise. Interior, no pixels missing and the rest wasn’t bad either. They had it listed for $13,800. I loved it tho! I talked to the dealer about my car, they had the new car appaiser check it out and they came back with a number… $4,500. They were willing to give me $5k. I smirked. They proceeded to ask me did I know I have a check engine light on? I chuckled and told them yes, most likely for a bad 02 sensor - really it’s more likely for the cat’s but I wasn’t going to divulge that info. Needless to say, I didn’t do anything about the car, and it sold the next morning.
I went to another dealer (Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep) and they had a 04 3.2 TT Raodster with 68k, listed for $16,300. Nimbus Grey with Baseball Glove interior in good condition. Needed a new cluster as many pixels were out. Worn stereo buttons, and sand all over the trunk, not a very clean detail job from the dealer. Test drove it, and even tho it wasn’t as spunky as the 1.8T, it was really neat to hear the 3.2 burbling out behind your head with the top down. This dealer talked a few numbers, but didn’t look at my car. they were going to give me kbb value for it. I was more happy, but still knew I could do better with a private sale. They were at least willing to work on both prices, unlike the Hyundai dealer. As I drove off, and couldn’t see the value the extra power or DSG transmission offered between either the 225 1.8T or my 3.0V6. Needless to say, I’m not looking at mk1 3.2 roadsters anymore.
The final destination was a Chevy dealer with a 04 S4 Cabrio, silver with black 6spd. 73k for $20,300. It was in fairly good condition, no worse than my car exterior wise. Interior, the climate controls were all worn off, and the door grabs were scratched and just waiting to peel. Test drove it, and OMG I WANT! This was my first experience with the S4, and have fallen in love. SO MUCH TORQUE! most fun test drive I’ve ever been on. Came back to the dealer, and checked the car over a bit closer. The trunk didn’t open unless you hit the button on the remote. I popped it, and water comes draining out everywhere! Uh oh… It had been raining a couple of days ealier, and I could have expected a bit around the trunk seals, but it was coming out from behind the trunk liner, the handle inside to close the trunk and down the hinges. Not talking a few dribbles either. However it got in there, I can imagine that’s the culprit for the trunk release not working. I talked a few numbers with the dealer, and told him what other dealers and kbb value was. He was surprised at how low the it was, and even tho he didn’t know a thing about Audi’s, he looked up what other 3.0 A4’s were selling for at auction’s around the country. With similar mileage in the estimated condition to be the same, $7-8.5k! I was much happier! However, he informed me straight up that the dealership would not sell the car for anything less than what was listed. He also told me they owned the car for $18,300. At that point, I knew I wasn’t going to buy the car, and he asked me some reasons what I would be worried about with this particular S4. I told him the primary issue being the trunk and water leakage. The second primary issue was to make sure the timing chain and maintenance had been done, otherwise it would be another $1-2k job to replace as you had to pull the motor. He simply responded well that’s interesting. As I left, I definitely noticed the difference in engine/transmission, and was astonished by how big it actually was. My A4 was the next step below an S4 at the dealership, and it just proved how big the gap was between A4 and S4 in driving experience.
So there’s a long winded story about my car’s trade-in value from a dealer. I’m going to try and find a clean example of a 225TT Roadster to test out, as well as another S4 Cabrio. Just to compare the difference between 1.8T Coupe and Raodster. Also cause I really think I want an S4, but still scared of the potential maintenance headache the 4.2 could be without records.
I do love my 3.0, but just getting a bit bored with the 4 door sedan aspect. I will continue to mod the 3.0 until I’m satisfied, or that I’m done with the project. I don’t really need a completely practical car as I’m 25, and it’s only ever me and 1 person. I don’t haul around everybody or a lot of stuff either, so the drop top sounds great! Plus, donuts in the snow with the top down… 
