downsize from F30 330d

[Tommy_Here]

Hi all,

Due to several reasons, ( financial being a big one ) I'm looking to downsize from my current 64 plate F30 330d with 40k miles, heated seats, sunroof, professional media, cream memory electric seats and I'm looking to go down to a GTD. £500 a year I'll be saving on insurance + the better fuel economy from the Golf. I will also be looking to get £3500 back in my pocket ( both dealers have agreed to this ) but I'm stuck on the below:

MK6 GTD:
2011 Plate
47,000 miles
Tornado Red
manual 6 speed
5 door
Full service history
Black leather heated seats ( which I love! )
front and rear parking sensors
Sat nav/Traffic with the large media screen
diamond cut alloys
£10,695
PX for my car £14,000

MK7 GTD
2014 Plate
66,000 Miles
Black exterior
Manual 6 speed
5 door
Full VW service history
cambelt + water pump recently replaced
normal cloth seats ( not heated unfortunately )
Professional Nav
front and rear parking sensors
diamond cut alloys
folding mirrors ( which is a plus as I'm sick of doing it myself for my car! )
£10,995
PX for my car £14,500 also this is only 60 miles away vs 290 for the MK6!

I love the Tornado red, but then I would also welcome the lower tax for the MK7 ( I've had a red golf before so wouldn't mind a change I suppose )
Also no heated seats.. is that a dealbreaker?

like I mention, it's £500 a year saving on insurance and also I would be looking at £3,500 in my bank which would help go towards more important things right now.. what's your thoughts?

 

[[TW]Fox]

I would be very surprised if you're going to realise anything like the savings you talk about and I'd question the logic of the whole change.

It seems odd your insurance even costs 500 quid in the first place let alone would be 500 quid less by swapping to a Golf?

 

[Tommy_Here]

I would be very surprised if you're going to realise anything like the savings you talk about and I'd question the logic of the whole change.

It seems odd your insurance even costs 500 quid in the first place let alone would be 500 quid less by swapping to a Golf?

it's more the running costs, and the additional money I could do with right now due to unforeseen circumstances..

I'm 26 with only 3 years NCB so for a 3 litre BMW it's an absolute fortune and has hardly gone down from last year!

 

[dlockers]

WBAC the bimmer, take Uber's everywhere, and find the Golf you want to live with.

 

[ahenners]

It seems odd your insurance even costs 500 quid in the first place let alone would be 500 quid less by swapping to a Golf?

Possibly an area specific thing. I'm in the NW (though not Liverpool) and I can't generally get a decent insurance quote on a BMW either. A 330d for example, would cost double (£700) what my Octavia VRS costs to insure, with double the excess too. So there is every chance OP can save £500 p/a as he's younger than me with less NCD.

Still agree with the rest of the post though, not sure the overall saving warrants the suggested swap to a GTD.

If it must be either OP, MK7 over MK6.

 

[Dis86]

You're really not going to notice a huge difference in running costs tbh. This screams false economy.
If things are that tight sell the bmw and go carless if possible or get a 2k runaround.

 

[Tommy_Here]

Thank you all for your input really appreciate it! I guess I'll have to have a think about it

 

[Supernova]

I wouldn’t buy a 7 or 10 year old VAG product to try to save money.

It looks like your annual mileage is quite low? It’s often cheaper to stay with the car you have when annual mileage is low.

 

[Gaygle]

You're really not going to notice a huge difference in running costs tbh. This screams false economy.

Yeah for sure, there isn't anything vastly more expensive from a 330d than on a Golf GTD. The power from the 330d and the excellent iDrive is easily worth the small amount extra over a GTD.

With your insurance, I presume you shop around and get various quotes/add parents on to bring the cost down etc? If not, this could be the most pain free and easy way to save a few hundred quid. Also, do you need that £3500 for anything right now? Do you have any other contingency savings already or are you desperate for the £3500?

 

[Django x2]

You're unlikely to realise any savings doing this