5v/cyl

Audi, and most other German cars, are great vehicles for anyone when they are still under warranty. Once the warranty is out they become great buys for a DIY person. It's unfortunate that dealers and many indy mechanics see dollar signs when a German car pulls up and rapes the owner. This is also why they lose there value so fast as they age and scares many owners away.

I bought my A4 for $1500 and it was a mess. Dash lit up like a x-mas tree, ran like crap, no timing belt history, and needed brakes. It would have easily cost $4000+ to have it all fixed, but I DIY for only $750 + beers. As a result I have only $2250 invested into a car that runs, drives, and looks perfect and has been that way for the last 2 years and 30k miles.

Sorry to hear about your leaving Audi. Maybe you'll miss it later and come back with another.

nickwh

I live in Morris County NJ and can vouch for the cost of repairs. There are no inexpensive places to get your car serviced in NJ, just variations of expensive.

My car is 8 years old with only 60,000 miles and I also have leaking valve cover gaskets. I will be getting it fixed soon (for $700 at an indy, the dealer wants $1500). I dread what they may find next. I keep telling myself the repairs are cheaper than a car payment.

I don't understand how anyone can say a German car is more reliable than a Japanese brand. The statistics just don't support this claim. I know I will be going to a Japanese nameplate next, that is for sure. I always wanted a Quattro but I'm more than over it. The depreciation and repair costs (not to mention regular service), are just too high for the average working man to bear. I appreciate all of the driving characteristics of Audi, but at the end of the day it's just transportation. At my local dealership I still overhear all the complaints of other owners (I should say lessees) of the current generation cars: motors burning oil, brake problems, electrical, suspension, bent wheels, you name it. Under the aesthetically pleasing skin it's all the same crap.

Thanks but no thanks!

4Driver4

It absolutely shocking to me that you wouldn't try to DIY this job and save yourself $500. I guess the economy is doing much better in NJ than the rest of the world.

nickwh

It's more shocking to me that you think a random stranger would have the desire to tear into their car's engine. Of their daily driver no less. Sorry, I only have one other car, and it's my wife's Honda Pilot. Maybe if I didn't live in NJ I could afford to pay the car insurance for nine vehicles and play shadetree mechanic every weekend.

2.7Lturbo

Nick... ive had NONE of the problems that you speak of...

reliable does NOT mean you do zero maintainence and drive th car into the ground.... these motors are bullet proof if you maintain them.

dont be upset you have to pay alot of money to take care of the car.. would you complain if you ad to spend alot of money to take care of a lamborgini? how about a G5 jet? get where im going?

the more complex the more it costs to maintain, does not mean its unreliable

jcman

$7,800 in a 10yr old car with fewer than 100k miles, WOW!
Not trying to be a ***** here but either you have trusted the wrong indy or the went to the dealership without mention, I've owned several Audi's (not new) over the past twenty five years and already knew that after a certain point in time no matter what the miles are you are going to spend money or "your" time doing the repairs = "Saving Money". So if you paid the car off in four years you had six years with an average of $108.33 per month of repairs spread across, this could of been very different and that's a drag for you.
You are misrepresenting some other points here too about these cars and who buys them, I'll break it down like this:

Tier 1) New or lease buyers, don't worry about anything for the duration
and move on after the typical depreciation sets in. Or keep it
until the wheels fall off with high miles after "doing the usual
repairs" that are required.

Tier 2) Buy CPO with a short time warranty buffer or roll the dice on a
four year old mid-mileage car "Cheap vs. New" and do the work
on it your self.

Tier 3) The Buyer who finds the 6yr old plus car with over 100K at a steal,
Yes the brave and young with a true ambition to reverse time and
make all the wrongs right "God Love Them" cause they are here now.

So what is my point you might ask?

Well, You are suggesting that no one should buy an Audi based on your ten
years as an owner and obviously you are not mechanically inclined and that's OK but hey come on opinions are like rear ends wide facts are another. Leaving something behind with reason for something else like
"returning to my roots" would lead most to construe that you never really felt at home after five years of ownership. But hey, hope you enjoy your new ride in all fairness and don't let an Audi blast you in the winter, cause they will.

4Driver4

It's more about the desire to avoid paying out $500. ;-)

devinsixtyseven

Sorry to hear you had so much trouble with the maintenance .

I do understand that not everyone has the time, facility, or inclination to perform their own maintenance...but be warned, if you are one of those people, you will either need a large maintenance budget, or you should consider a less-complicated vehicle.

Many of us only maintain one vehicle as a daily driver, and perform simple tasks one at a time due to our own busy schedules. Frankly, I'd prefer to see fewer guys investing hundreds on orbital buffers and wax kits, and a few more open hoods on a Saturday morning.

...Because, gentle readers, whether you have actually "babied" your car depends almost entirely on how it has been maintained, and has almost nothing to do with how it's been driven or cleaned. That little old lady who only drove her car on alternate Sundays to church, well, I bet she never cleaned the throttle body once, and had no idea there was a massive tear in the engine air filter seal.

I know the previous owner of my car was unaware of those items, and he's a good guy who had the car regularly maintained by an independent shop that charged a mint!

-Sean

2.7Lturbo

^^^^ good point sean.... i know i baby my car. premium oil, weekly tire inflation check, weekly fluid checks, wash and wax every week, just did my rear pads and rotors. did the timing belt and aux coolant pump a couple months ago. going to be doing the front control arms (they dont need it but i "feel" like my steering is not as tight and the car wanders a bit )

i to see guys that wash and wax their car every week and think that that is babying it.... i cringe as i watch them take a cold turbo car and peal out of the neighborhood with no warmup cycle

massboykie

2.7, Totally with you on that! And that would be the guy that bitches and complains that the turbo cars are crap and are not reliable because he needed a turbo job...

Hey Alex, I feel bad for you as I think your inde has been taking advantage of you. I agree with the others on here that the mecahnics see $$$ when we drive up. Maybe not all, but most.

As far as parts cost goes... I buy my parts (mostly OEM) online and with a little searching you can find good prices. As it turns out I now buy most my parts from a nearby dealership, that offers parts online for a lot less than walking up to the counter. So there are definitely savings to be had, unless it is something that needs immediate replacement you have options.

Anyway, I bought my A6 CPO and once it came out of warrantee I made sure to keep up the maintenance. So far the most I spent was on the T-belt ($1500). I now have 80K miles on her and the most recent thing I did was a new oil cap, PCV hose assembly, coolent sensors and a crank position sensor which ran me +/-$300. $0 labour, which is very handy! To be honest I think I paid more on Mods than for maintenance since I've had her!

Good luck with your new vehicle I hope you have better luck with it.

Cheers
Massboykie