audijim113

Help please. Discussion (argument?) with wife. Posted here many times in last couple years. Driving 2000 A8L with 230,000 miles. I l love the car and nothing Coming up on another timing belt service interval and cam tensioner shoes on passenger side should be replaced. (whole tensioner on drive side done last year). Car MAY be worth $2500 as it sits even with thorough, complete maintenance records. rebuilt tranny at 125000, New fuel pump at 200,000. Suspension is good, new bilstiens, most arms changed in last year.

Given the economics, it will cost me about $3000 for service in next six months. (too old, too out of shape to do this stuff myself but have a good indy mechanic that will do it reasonably. If I put $3K in, everything will be a known quantity. Car looks pretty good and everything works except sun roof.

So, I'm looking at a 04 to 06 A8L and thinking $8 to $10K. Wife says, "why do you need an Audi?" Can I find something that cost less? I tell her I need a car big enough for my large, (5'11" - 330 lbs, very unflexible body). Even the new (04-06) A8s seem to have a lower roof line and my torso/neck doesn't bend for crap.

I think a Q7 would do the trick but don't think I'll find one under 10K. Oh, yeah, I live in Michigan and definitely wouldn't want to go without quattro or some kind of all wheel drive. So, If you were looking at anything that might be a replacement for 2000 A8L, what would it be?

Razman

A D3 S8. Oops, I forgot that the requirements were non-Audi and under $10K.

I've owned three Subarus, which includes my wife's '01 Forester. The Outback I had felt more solid than the Forester, but neither compare to the D2. If I had to go back I'd cry. Even with a manual tranny, the Outback (4cyl) is anemic at best, got only 3 more MPG, and only redeeming quality was AWD. Quality-wise it was a fine car but a much different and less engaging driving experience.

After owning my '00 FL A8L, I can't go back. I say fix yours and drive it to the dirt. Get a few more years out of it and then sell - and get another Audi. Especially one with a v8. The four cylinder cars I drove growing up in Minneapolis wouldn't get warm on those really cold days; I'm sure your D2 does just fine.

Eric

deabionni

As a northern Michigan driver, the reason we have 2 Audi A8s in the driveway is that we don't have to worry about the body rusting out on us. Our driveway used to have BMWs in it, but I switched to the A8 after both BMWs started showing signs of surface rust. After switching to the A8s, it is very nice to know that these cars will last as long as I'm willing to put the required maintenance into the vehicles.

Owning a car in northern Michigan that can last through our salty road months is a definite plus over any other car that we could purchase.

twentysevenlitres

I find it interesting when people start thinking that because their car isn't worth much money anymore, its no longer economical to keep it.
I tend to disagree. Owners tend to know their cars reasonably well, and know whether their car is basically sound or a junker.
A junker is probably not worth keeping (other than for sentiment or rarity).

However IMHO if your car is going to cost $3k in regular maintenance to bring it back to near perfect, then why susequently spend another $7-8k to upgrade the car? Especially one you dont know and will probably have to spend more money on?

Save yourself the money and divert a few hundred into getting your sunroof fixed!