DD_(in Germany)

In recent weeks I've seen comments here saying that owning an Audi implies a certain amount of expectation that things will go wrong. Kind of like a love/hate relationship. I infer from these comments that it's a bit like owning a 60's British sports car. You expect things will go wrong but you accept it because you love it.

Is it the general belief that they're less reliable than an equivalent BMW or Mercedes model ?

I'm thinking about what my next car might be. I expect I'll upgrade around August next year (when my guarantee runs out). I know I can extend it, I'm just starting to worry that maybe Audi ownership has a higher expectation of problems happening. Or maybe it's just the C5.

I know 10 months in advance is a bit crazy to already have a short-list (so sue me), but here it is (in order):

2005+ Audi A6 Avant 3.0TDi Quattro (C6)

2004+ BMW 535d Touring (it'll keep up with an M5 in a lot of situations)

2004+ Mercedes E320CDi/E420CDi Estate

I've "dissed" the C6 drive in recent weeks, but after driving one yesterday that wasn't an allroad, I realize it's not at all what I thought. All my previous comments apply only to the allroad ;-)

Paracaidista2.7T

We know better, currently have BMW and have owned various M-B's. SSDD.

DD_(in Germany)

I wasn't expecting Toyota/Honda level of reliability, but would like to know if I'm expecting a significantly more expensive ownership than my other German cars.

77'911

We find our Audi's have been very needy when it comes to parts. Having said that, quattro is well worth it. Ours Porsches have been dead reliable and are a 1/4 of the price to maintain compared to the Audi. The Benz's that were in the family were quite pricey to repair as well. The BMW's we've had have been bullit proof and moderate as far as maintenance costs go. For me, BMW's tend to be more reliable due to the fact that they are fairly simple machines. The same could be said for some Porsches. Audi's component quality could stand a bit of upgrading.

Paracaidista2.7T

Considered, yes. Reality no.

Paracaidista2.7T

pricey. Then it was really pricey. (928S4 & 911T)

schnellmb

<center><img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/45563/525xi.jpg"></center><p>
I've tossed my service records for my 03, but my 02 A6q Avant remains in the stable.

The 02 had only a few problems...
-delivered with a faulty fuel gauge sending unit
-delivered with a faulty front pass seat heater switch
-warped rotors by 8K
-on of the rear back up sensors went kaput

That's it to this day.

My 03 was a problem child. Within it's first year, it visited the shop over 10 times. Leaky headlight washers, brake light switch problems, cam position sensors. The car visited the shop over 30 times in 2 years w/34K miles.

My 07 525xi has been flawless (built 12/06), took delivery 1/07. No unscheduled visits. No problems. Dealer service (only to replace the wiper blades) has been excellent. It has 9K miles.

Out of all my cars, the BMW has been the best. My 98 A6 Avant was in the shop constantly.

Boston Driver

Don't know, and I don't care...I love my Audi!

THM

2nd

GBW

and this is a place for help, so problems may seem worse than they really are. Also, these were expensive cars - $35,000 to $50,000....replacement parts will not be cheap, and because of the exclusively of an expensive car, many times OEM is the only option.

That said, recent M-B's have had significant electrical issues, BMW's have had turbo issues etc...all european brands have taken quality hits in the past few years.

Any of the premium european brands will be expensive to maintain, and they will all have some expensive issues. I personally feel MB, BMW and Audi will provide similar ownership issues, but they also drive differently....drive what makes you happy...