Theo · Internal · noindex

Car upgrade — costed comparison v1

Trade the 2019 Toyota Corolla Hybrid for a premium German coupe. Best-guesstimate finance model, live DoneDeal market prices, and three priced options. None of the Toyota Finance numbers come from the agreement (still unseen); the market prices are real listings from today.

2026-05-26 Author: Theo Garza v1 · guesstimates Target: ~3 months

Bottom line

Positive equity in every scenario (~EUR 4,000 central). Net spend on a 2021-22 BMW 420d or 2022 i4 lands at ~EUR 31,000, monthly delta +EUR 330 vs today. Audi A5 is ~EUR 3k more for the same job.

A. Toyota Finance — modelled settlement

Known: monthly EUR 297.92, ~15 payments made. Unknown (assumed): HP (Victor said "agreement to own"), 5-yr term, 8% APR.

VariableAssumed
Finance typeHire Purchase
Term60 months
APR8.0%
Original amount financed~EUR 14,700
Payments made15 (~EUR 4,469)
Payments remaining45
Remaining principal today~EUR 11,556
Early-settlement today~EUR 11,500-12,000

3-yr cross-check: if it's a 36-month term, amount financed is ~EUR 9,500 and settlement drops to ~EUR 5,800. The 5-yr fit is more plausible for a 2019 hybrid bought 2025; modelled on that, flagged both.

B. Corolla trade-in — live DoneDeal today

ChannelLowMidHigh
Private asking (DoneDeal)17,50019,00020,500
Dealer trade-in14,00015,50017,500
Live comparables on DoneDeal
  • 2019 Luna 1.8 Hybrid, 52,400 km — EUR 21,950 (Denis Mahony Toyota)
  • 2019 Sport 1.8 Self-Charging, 107,000 km — EUR 19,950 (Naas Road Autos)

Black hatchback is neutral spec. Hybrids hold value unusually well in Ireland: low road tax, PCO/family demand. Victor's car sits at the higher-mileage end of the curve.

C. Trade equity — three scenarios

equity = dealer trade-in − settlement

ScenarioTrade-inSettlementEquity
Conservative14,00012,000+2,000
Central15,50011,500+4,000
Optimistic17,50011,000+6,500

All three positive. No rolling-negative-equity trap — the Corolla covers its finance with headroom in every case. Equity becomes the deposit on the next car.

D. Target cars — live DoneDeal today

BMW 420 Coupe (G22) — front-runner
VariantYearMileageAsking
420d M Sport2020mid30,995
420d M Sport (central)2021-2260-100k km33,000-37,000
420d xDrive M Sport2021high spec39,950
420i M Sport2021low41,900

420i (petrol) is ~EUR 3-4k above an equivalent 420d; rare in Ireland.

Audi A5 Coupe / Sportback — rival
VariantYearMileageAsking
A5 Coupe 2.0 TDI S-Line2021125k km32,995
A5 Coupe 2.0 TDI (central)202275-95k km38,000-40,000
A5 Coupe 2.0 TDI mild-hybrid202364-103k km42,000-45,000
A5 Sportback S-Line TDI2022top spec49,900

Sportback (5-door) is ~EUR 2-4k above an equivalent Coupe in Ireland.

BMW i4 (electric Gran Coupe, G26) — dark horse
VariantYearMileageAsking
i4 eDrive40 (central)202278-99k km33,000-38,000
i4 eDrive402022~30k km45,995
i4 eDrive402023low38,000-52,000

Same money as a 420d. EUR 120/yr road tax (vs ~EUR 270 on a 420d) plus the Chief-AI-Officer signal of arriving in an electric premium German car.

E. The deal — central case, three options

Trade-in EUR 15,500, settlement EUR 11,500, equity EUR 4,000 as deposit. New finance 5-yr HP at 8% APR.

BMW 420d M Sport · 2021
EUR 628/mo
net EUR 31,000 · +EUR 330 vs today
PICK · BMW i4 eDrive40 · 2022
EUR 628/mo
net EUR 31,000 · +EUR 330 vs today
Audi A5 TDI Coupe · 2022
EUR 689/mo
net EUR 34,000 · +EUR 391 vs today
Running costs to add on top
  • Road tax: 420d EUR 270/yr · A5 TDI EUR 200/yr · i4 EUR 120/yr · Corolla EUR 180/yr today.
  • Insurance: typically EUR 200-400/yr more on a premium German car. Quote needed.
  • Servicing / tyres: BMW/Audi service EUR 600-900 vs Corolla EUR 200-300. Budget +EUR 600-1,000/yr.

F. Recommendation

Theo's pick

BMW i4 eDrive40 · 2022 · ~80k km · ~EUR 35,000 asking

Second pick: BMW 420d M Sport 2021 at EUR 33-35k if the i4's range or charging logistics don't fit (i4 real-world range ~350 km, fine for Mayo-Dublin return with one fast-charge stop).

Third pick: Audi A5 TDI Coupe 2022 at EUR 38-40k. Best-looking of the three but EUR 3k more for the same job.

G. Bet-weights confidence

ClaimConfidence
Corolla settlement is EUR 11,000-12,500 (if 5-yr HP at 8%)70%
Corolla settlement is < EUR 7,000 (if 3-yr HP)25%
Corolla dealer trade-in is EUR 14k-17k85%
Positive equity in this trade95%
BMW i4 is the best fit for "CAIO presence"70%
Net monthly delta lands EUR 300-400 above today75%

H. What still sharpens the price

  1. Toyota Finance: HP or PCP, term (3 vs 5 yr), real settlement figure. One screenshot of the AIB app DD detail, or one call to Toyota Financial Services, answers all three.
  2. Budget ceiling on the new car.
  3. EV (i4) viable, or stick with diesel/petrol?

None of these block the trade direction. They only sharpen the price.