This black Audi appears intact despite being sold at an insurance auction.. But the 2012 car has a hidden drawback…
In Ukraine, a 2012 Audi A5 costs from 14 to 20 thousand dollars. And in the USA, at the IAAI auction on January 30, 2024, it was sold with difficulty for 25 “bucks”. This was reported by the auction statistics resource AutoAstat.. Externally, the coupe is almost intact, under the hood there is a 2.0-liter engine, all-wheel drive, and a sports manual transmission.
On the used car market in America, such a coupe is also not given away for nothing – it is valued at $8,847. So why is this particular car so cheap? There is not one reason, but several of them at once.
Probably the main drawback of this car is that it is from the category of “submariners”, that is, it is drowned. The effect of water on a car cannot be assessed immediately, especially from a photograph, but it is quite noticeable. Iron parts rust, the motor gets water hammer, carpets pick up moisture and become moldy, and electronics short out and become glitchy.
That is, cars after a flood are a lottery that can fail at any time. In addition, this exhibit does not even start, does not show mileage on the odometer, and generally has no signs of “life.”. And this is a serious sign that it is better to sell the car for spare parts.. But is there a big demand for parts for such a rather rare model? Hardly. And this is another reason for its low price.
However, even if it is disassembled, how to sell spare parts? There is no new post office in the US, and FedEX is quite expensive. Moreover, the car is located on the small island of Kahului in the state of Hawaii, that is, somewhere in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. A package with a hood from there to the continental USA or Ukraine will become “golden”. That's why this sunken 2012 Audi A5 sold for $25. The side mirror from it costs more. Add to this the auction fees and delivery to at least a larger island – and then it becomes clear that the sale of wheels from this Audi is unlikely to cover all the costs.