Mercedes A-Class vs BMW 1 Series vs Audi A3: which has the best resale?

The Mercedes-Benz A-Class, BMW 1 Series and Audi A3 Sportback are all premium hatchbacks that hail from Germany and are popular in SA. But which one has the best resale value?

According to True Price MD Darryl Jacobson, the victor is clear.  “The A-Class is in a different league to the other two German vehicles. Its resale value is much, much better,” he says.

The True Price team attends hundreds of bank repossession auctions each year to gather data about prices paid on auction. This data is used to provide SA motorists with free vehicle evaluations. The data can also be used to provide highly accurate resale values, as Jacobson explains.

“Using the data gathered on bank repossession auctions, we are able to generate a statistically valid resale figure. It is expressed as a percentage of the original retail sales price,” he says.

Using this methodology, the A-Class is the clear winner in the resale value stakes. “It achieved 76.69% while the runner-up, the 1 Series, attained 68.74%. The A3, in third place, obtained 66.46%,” Jacobson says.

This result came as no surprise to Jacobson. “The Audi is a good car, boasting a comfortable ride, great handling and practicality. And, yes, it is popular. But, when it comes to vehicle auctions, bidding is far from vociferous. This could be thanks to the fact that the product is dated.”

The same could be said of the 1 Series. “Like the A3, it’s a bit long in the tooth. While it has a good infotainment system and it is often the car of choice for people who want to make a statement by the car they drive, the current 1 Series just cannot compete with the A-Class. It will be interesting to see how the 1 Series – featuring front-wheel-drive for the first time – fares when it arrives in SA in October 2019,” he says.

And then there is the A-Class, which was launched in SA in 2018 and won the 2019 AutoTrader SA Car of the Year title. “It’s the showstopper at any bank repossession auction,” Jacobson says.