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Tips and advice on buying a 2004-2005 Audi A8L (my first audi)
Hey, I decided to join Audi world recently to be more educated on Audi's since this is my first time ever actually owning an Audi. The car I'm after is a D3 Audi A8L, most of the cars I've looked at are 2004's since there are very few A8's in my area, and most of them are 2004's. I've had my eyes on owning one since 2010 when I first watched transporter 2 and 3, the time has finally come to actually buy one and I'm both excited and extremely nervous. I know there is a lot to go wrong with these cars if they break, one of my biggest fears is the air suspension struts going out, and the drainage system.
I recently went to see one, and it was a terrible start (my profile picture)... First off the power steering was done on the car, I struggled to turn it, and secondly, foot to the floor the car accelerated very poorly. I will be going to see another grey 2004, but this one looks much cleaner and the dealership looks very good, have even talked to a customer who bought a 2006 A8 and heard nothing but good things. But the only alarming thing I heard from him as he saw this car when he went to buy his 2 months ago, and he said the rear suspension looked like it was sitting a bit low, but it wasn't slammed to the ground. Here's some details about the car, the vehicle currently has 165,059 kms on it, very minimal wear and tear, paint is in excellent condition, but the only thing I notice is in the picture to the bottom left of the speedometer gauge there is a car shaped light with a down arrow... does that mean the air suspension is lowering or the air suspension has failed (picture below)
My second question is how should I go about inspecting this car myself? What should I look out for? What are some main points on this car I need to pay extra attention to? Now obviously I will get a pre-purchase inspection done on this car, but don't want to waste time and money doing it on a car that's just not worth it. Overall I think this specific A8 is priced very fairly at $7499 CAD.. looking forward to hearing back!
The green suspension light means the suspension is low. If the car is in dynamic, that light comes on the first few seconds to remind you the car is lower than normal. If it stays on, it means your suspension has a problem! Inspecting this car is much the same as any other, you already know to be aware of potential suspension woes. Beyond that, the usual check for leaks or shoddy workmanship, check for any damp in any of the carpet, signs of misaligned body panels, and check the function of every feature you can find.
Gotcha. Wanted to ask what you think of the price and mileage? And wanted to ask if you know how much it costs to replace one air suspension strut on this car?
Well no one replaces just one strut, but if they did it would cost about $1,600 for the OEM part and 2 hours labor. As far as rebuilt or non OEM dampers, they're cheaper but the record is spotty. Search this forum to educate yourself. If you are serious about buying a 2004 vintage D3, I'd look into local Indy AUDI specialists in your area because you're gonna need one, and using one for a PSI would be wise and a good way to start a relationship.
The green suspension light means the suspension is low. If the car is in dynamic, that light comes on the first few seconds to remind you the car is lower than normal. If it stays on, it means your suspension has a problem! Inspecting this car is much the same as any other, you already know to be aware of potential suspension woes. Beyond that, the usual check for leaks or shoddy workmanship, check for any damp in any of the carpet, signs of misaligned body panels, and check the function of every feature you can find.
On my '04, the suspension light stays on in dynamic/lowered mode. Owned the car for over twelve years now.
A common saying is that a low-priced used German car is usually one of the most expensive cars there is.
As for replacing one strut at a time; On these cars, it is common. I replaced one (actually, I had a dealer do it since it was only an hour labor charge and the part was so much more $$$ than the labor charge). They said to just replace the one. Anyway, the next one to spring a leak was almost eight years later. I went with OEM new as the car is still in great shape to me.
Oh ok, the ride on this car is absolutely amazing... feels like a your driving on a cloud even 15 years later. But the thing is I was told the car wasn't completely slammed to the ground like it would be if it were broken... but these are all things that will be checked out in the inspection. Will be going to see the car Saturday morning, will definitely post an update!
03-14-2019, 12:54 PM
Tips and advice on buying a 2004-2005 Audi A8L (my first audi)
