GETTING the specification right on a new business car can be a complicated process.

It's been a while since I changed my company car but I can just about remember the dilemma. I get asked this question often and whilst there are different answers for different models and price points, here is just one example on a volume product.

Let's take as an example a big seller from Audi (as I happen to have the price list to hand) - the Audi A3 2.0 TDI S line 3dr. (I've chosen the S line over the SE as it retains a higher percentage of its value.) What would you be tempted to add to this car?

Metallic paint? Perhaps sat nav, sunroof and various techy gizmos? The answer is that the car needs some boxes ticked to make it stand out; but not too many as a fully specified car may cost many thousands of pounds extra and will only ever be worth a dwindling proportion of the more you tick. I'd suggest a perfect new car order (and a perfect used forecourt car in three years) would be…

White paint: Yes for the princely sum of nothing, the best paint to choose on the S line derivative (or BMW 1 Series M Sport) in this model range is base white. Why spend approx £500 on a metallic colour when this paint finish will achieve the same, or close to, a metallic black variant when the time comes to sell? If the car was an SE you would plump for base black over white as white suits the sport derivatives more.

Alloys wheels: The car already comes with excellent 18 inch alloys and the extra £195 to upgrade to a different design is purely a personal choice. This extra cost will see nothing being retained in one month, let alone three years.

Sat Nav: My choice in this sector would be to leave this box blank: £635 or £1615 depending on the system will see perhaps only 50% at best of the original cost new being retained in three years' time. Not too bad but, in my opinion, outside of the premium large, sports and 4x4 sectors you would be far better off with a TomTom or similar.

Leather trim: Yes and it's a value option on the S line which comes with cloth/leather as standard, so the full leather trim is £685. In three years, I'd expect this option to still be adding £500 to the used car value and make the car stand out more in the sea of leasing cars which will have cloth/leather trim.

So what else would I choose?

Personally I would go for Bluetooth (for £240) and parking distance control (at £295), perhaps allied to heated seats (at £245). The stereos in modern cars are great (especially when I think back and compare to the one in my Mk1 Golf GTI in the late 80s!) and retained value levels on upgrading is very low. Also avoid anything to do with safety. It may be great for your own self preservation but retains nothing on the used market.

It costs £1465 to add these options and, in a standout and sellable colour with which the market isn't yet saturated, they would deliver the best combination. I predict this car will sell easily at resale time and for a price that retains most of its £1465 worth of options. Certainly, as a three year old example in the current market, this car would be comfortably worth at least £1000 more than the silver variant with no options and even more over a car with a poorly chosen metallic colour...

Further information

If you would like to read more of Richard Crosthwaite's insights on the premium used car sector, then go to the editors blogs at www.glassguide.co.uk