Big discounts on Routan again

[VWroutanvanman]

My local dealer is advertising $10k off on 3 2012 Routans, 2 SE w/RSE, and an SE w/RSE & NAV. Makes me want to trade in my '10 SE w/RSE, except these big discounts have eroded the resale price on Routans, mine valued at $15k (EDIT: trade-in value) with 28k miles. Have other areas been hit as bad? I would assume it's the same all over. These sale prices are a great deal for someone wanting a vehicle with S-P-A-C-E.

PS.....I'm in southern Florida

[thenew3]

My local dealer is advertising $10k off on 3 2012 Routans, 2 SE w/RSE, and an SE w/RSE & NAV. Makes me want to trade in my '10 SE w/RSE, except these big discounts have eroded the resale price on Routans, mine valued at $15k with 28k miles. Have other areas been hit as bad? I would assume it's the same all over. These sale prices are a great deal for someone wanting a vehicle with S-P-A-C-E.

PS.....I'm in southern Florida

Yup, same here in central CA. Last month dealer had several SE w/RSE that stickered at almost $35k discounted to $18k. and all other Routans in stock were $10k off or more.

Was very close to signing the purchase agreement when I saw how quickly the value of them drop. Then decided to wait a while. My 5 year old Passat still had more than 50% original price and my wife's 6 year old passat is still showing as nearly 60% what we paid for it when it was new.

We saw several 2 year old Routan's with less than 20k miles selling for the mid teens, meaning they've lost 50% or more of their value in 2 years.

[58kafer]

These are not vehicles to get into and out of quickly that's for sure, you'll take a beating. Plan for 6 years or better of ownership. We're not quite 2 years and and 36K already---the folks who don't drive the mileage up are the ones suffering the most. Drive the socks off it!

[PaulAP]

Not all dealers are offering deep discounts...
Check out this one for sale at Clarkdale VW in Vancouver.
2009 Volkswagen Routan Execline - 68,897 km - $52,355

... yes, that's an 09! Or maybe the values are going UP!

I took screenshots, because the links will go dead when they sell it

http://www.clarkdalevw.ca/PreOwned/P...b-a08500799580

and in case you think the ad might be wrong, here's the AutoTrader link.

http://www.autotrader.ca/a/Volkswage...howcpo=ShowCPO

[clintg60-16v]

The reason Routan values drop so fast is because they are Chrysler products. Sorry, don't mean to be flippant. But it is what it is.

I might be in the market for a used one in a couple of years. But new? Not until it's a complete VW product.

[Zambee500]

The reason Routan values drop so fast is because they are Chrysler products. Sorry, don't mean to be flippant. But it is what it is.

I might be in the market for a used one in a couple of years. But new? Not until it's a complete VW product.

I'd go one step further and say it's because the Routan is a Chrysler product with a VW badge. Cross-badging has that effect. It's not to knock the Routan per se, at least any more than a DGC or CT&C. Remember, the Routan was supposed to be a step up from the Chrysler T&C with a ~5% MSRP premium, but a fairly well-loaded Routan sells new for about the price of a mid-level Dodge Grand Caravan.

The values are going to drop so fast because VW is pricing them 6-11k under MSRP. Who is going to buy a 2010 SEL Premium w/ 38k miles for about the same price as a brand-new 2012 SEL w/ ~0 miles?