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Signing off (for 2014 RS7) at now 160,000 miles on 2007 S8
Continues to perform and look as new (as I know from having put every mile on it), so rather than accepting the demeaning trade-in value (notwithstanding the foregoing) I am gifting it to an enthusiast with a young family at my church.
I then hope for the same from the (as yet unseen) RS7, due off the boat next week (likewise Daytona Gray, etc.)
I already own an instance of the RS7 engine so can speak firsthand of the efficiency improvements (last spring I updated my weekend car to 2013 Bentley GTC V8 which verges on 20 mpg in leisurely driving mix), but even with sport exhaust it (nor I'm afraid even RS7 with the same) will likely never approach the aural satisfaction of the SENS8tional MTM exhaust on the V10...
Regards to the (other) faithful here on D3 S8,
SENS8
Hit the nail on the head, I have the Milltek exhaust on the S8 V10 and I find myself driving with no music through town. This is rare for me in any vehicle but I enjoy the tone of the exhaust over anything else.
I am curious in regards to your misfire's, Failing ground strap? Any information on this as I am having misfire issues that I cannot seem to trace, new plugs recently, always good fluids and gas, I even had the motor scoped for carbon and was told no cleaning was necessary. If you have information on this or a link to someone that does I would be anxious to check it out.
Congrats on breaking 150k great milestone and phenomenal news for other S8 owners.
Not an S8, but there was an S6 at Audi Warwick (RI) with 200k miles this summer and I think someone on the board purchased it. So with some care, these V10s can go the distance!
"I am gifting it to an enthusiast with a young family at my church."
I hope it is a VERY responsible family that drives with caution!
Hit the nail on the head, I have the Milltek exhaust on the S8 V10 and I find myself driving with no music through town. This is rare for me in any vehicle but I enjoy the tone of the exhaust over anything else.
I am curious in regards to your misfire's, Failing ground strap? Any information on this as I am having misfire issues that I cannot seem to trace, new plugs recently, always good fluids and gas, I even had the motor scoped for carbon and was told no cleaning was necessary. If you have information on this or a link to someone that does I would be anxious to check it out.
Congrats on breaking 150k great milestone and phenomenal news for other S8 owners.
With just under 75,000 miles my S8 generated some fault codes which indicated misfiring. The dealer sprayed the carbon-due fouler or whatever. But within a week or two sudden mis-firing became so extreme that unburned fuel accumulated in one of the catalytic converters and literally blew it up, necessitating that the car be towed.
In replacing the cat converter the dealership responsibly tried to identify the root cause. I think I first got a new engine-control computer unit but that didn't fix rough running in the dealer shop, so they consulted AoA troubleshooters. The result was that (as I understand it) they installed an INCREMENTAL ground strap between the engine and (I guess) the chassis (but I don't know how aluminum may have a bearing on this) and there has never been any problem since then. I don't think there ever was any carbon build-up. All of this work was covered under "emissions" warranty.
I bet for under $100 you could get an incremental ground strap installed to either easily solve your problem (if the cause is the same which seems likely to me) or at least to harmlessly rule it out, forever.
To be clear, I am now at *160,000* miles. 8,000 miles after last oil change, one quart was needed.
What do you mean "maybe"??? It's the best car I've ever owned! I probably won't get to more than 125K on mine but I try to share mileage pretty evenly with a 911. Every 5 years I upgrade one or the other which means they each must last 10 years. I'm due for a 991 the next time around but I hope they keep making the S8 so I can enjoy an upgrade to this amazing machine. The D4 looks incredible in every department but exterior styling.
The last line says it all about the D4. "...in every department but the exterior styling." I was in the Ingolstadt plant last month. Man, you talk about a religious experience!!
Not an S8, but there was an S6 at Audi Warwick (RI) with 200k miles this summer and I think someone on the board purchased it. So with some care, these V10s can go the distance!
"I am gifting it to an enthusiast with a young family at my church."
I hope it is a VERY responsible family that drives with caution!
I had planned to replace it with D4 S8 at first availability, as I did with this iteration and last, BUT this car is still going too strong, with everything working and almost looking like new (and, I am addicted to the MTM exhaust song).
The V10 has used altogether 7 quarts of oil between 10,000-mile changes, and none recently. I average 17 mpg in fairly spirited driving mix.
At just before 75k miles (hence under "emissions" warranty) there was an elusive problem with failing ground strap that caused engine to miss and one cat converter to explode. Obviously there was no long-term issue and to me it would appear that carbon buildup must be merely urban legend.
My unscheduled maintenance has consisted of upper control arm bushings, two air suspension "struts", and both headlights, over the years.
If I've jinxed the vehicle by virtue of this very satisfied report, and it thus falls apart tomorrow, it owes me nothing. But upon assessing that it will apparently fetch under $20k in trade, I just put (only marginally needed) new Conti tires on it and suppose that I will keep it for another year at least. I could make the case that these cars are not expensive if one uses them "fully".
Sadly, this is a story without a happy ending. I was the second owner of this amazing automobile. On May 22, 2014, there was a massive hail storm in the Reading, PA area where I was working at the time. I was on the third floor of a three-story building and it sounded like horses running across the roof of the building. The hail ***** were between the size of golf ***** and baseballs.
When the storm had passed, it damaged every car in the parking lot. My S8 was lucky that none of the windows had completely shattered (which prevented water from getting into the interior), although the windshield was cracked to the point that it was difficult to see out of.
Every body panel had multiple deep dents. My wife later counted 137 dents on the hood alone. I drove her home one last time - it was the saddest car-related experience of my life.
The next morning, I took it to a local body shop for an estimate. A few days later, the estimate came in. My insurance would have totaled the car if damage exceeded 70% of its value; the damage with a roof, hood, trunk, windshield, etc. replacement exceeded the value of the car, so it was totaled. Its mileage - which SENS8 and I both saw as a badge of honor - certainly didn't help extend its life.
However, knowing that the car was mechanically perfect and an amazing car, I accepted the insurance settlement but requested a salvage certificate for it, thinking that I might be able to have it repaired on the cheap. I got the salvage certificate and showed the car to a paintless dent repair guy - he said that aluminum doesn't have metallurgical "memory" as sheet metal does, so every dent would require quite a bit of labor to remove, I wouldn't be happy with the result, and it would be cost-prohibitive to repair the car.
So I sold it for a bit more than the salvage value that the insurance company withheld to a guy who owned a local body shop and whose son is an Audi aficionado. They kept the car for a few months and sold it on Craigslist, and I haven't heard anything since. I really hope it's still on the road. I can still hear that MTM stainless exhaust going through tunnels in my memory.
I now drive a 2013 C7 S6, and I love it - but it's no D3 S8.
12-10-2013, 02:55 PM
Signing off (for 2014 RS7) at now 160,000 miles on 2007 S8
