Tarak Chadaram

Hello Guru's,

I know this had been discussed on various threads but none of them couldn't answer my questions.
I own Q5 Premium plus 3.2 and it is due for 55k Service maintenance. Checked with local Audi deal and everyone quotes me appx 740-800$ for55k and if I Choose Audi care which covers 55k and the 65k asking price is 982.32$.

I am not will to throw so many dollars for just checking the vehicle.

I am a second owner and when I bought the vehicle its done with 35K maintenance for 25k odometer reading. So my vehicle always short by 10K miles to the actual service maintenance window. ie at 26k odometer done with 35k maintenance, at 35k miles done with 45K maintenance and now odometer reading is at 43k and due for 55k maintenance. I am not sure whether to do with Audi or a local shop or just wait to till I complete 55k maintenance. Can some one please help me with below questions.

1) Is it worth to choose Audi service than local shop
2) If I have to choose a local shop, can some one recommend where do I can show the vehicle in ATLANTA, GA.
3) or its really recommended to do 55k Maintenance or should I have to wait till I reach 55k odometer reading?

Regards,
TJ

Cabal_san

I think that Audicare service is not only mile dependent but time. Hence why 35k done at 26k. Car must have sat for awhile.

Tarak Chadaram

I think so. I bought it from a local dealer(not audi) and when i look at Car fax it seems the car sat for a while between aution date and deal bought date.

stuven

I am the original owner of a 2011 Prestige 3.2 Q5. This is the way the service schedule Has worked: The first service was at 5000 miles. Subsequent services were at additional 10,000 miles or one year, intervals whichever came first. We put about 10K on the vehicle every year, so for us, the 10K/one year requirement pretty much matched up. Once or twice, we went to 13 or 14 months, but I would not wait for as much as two years for your actual mileage to catch up with your 55K service. For one thing, even with synthetic oil, I don't think it's a good idea to go anywhere near that long between changes.

We had Audi Care for up to 45K, but we were not happy with the two dealers who were doing the servicing. So, we went to a local shop for the 55K service, one that specializes in VWs and Audis. This shop was highly recommended, and I believe that they did as good (or better) a job as the dealer would have. The cost was less too, about $500 if I recall correctly.

To sum up, I would not wait much more than a year from the 45K service to get the 55K one. And, if you can get recommendations for a local shop that does Audis, I wouldn't hesitate to take your vehicle there. (Of course this is MHO; we'll see if others disagree.) Unfortunately, I can't recommend a local shop unless you want to bring your Q5 to L.A. for servicing.

BTW, the 65K service will be my last with the 2011 Q5. I've got a 2018 coming (I hope) in early September.

Tarak Chadaram

First of all, i would like to congratulate for getting 2018 Q5. Wish good luck.

Would you mind telling me the local shop name in LA, I want to check if they have a franchise in Atlanta.

Regards,
TJ.

stuven

Thank you.

I believe that the guys I now take my Q5 to only have the one shop, in Pasadena. They were mechanics at the local Porsche-Audi dealer who decided to make a go of it on their own. In any case, the shop is called European Auto House on Walnut St in Pasadena CA. If you find a shop by that name in Atlanta, I suspect that it is not affiliated with this one.

auntrout

I'm also in So Cal and European Auto Hause sure has some great Yelp reviews. I'm a good 30 miles south of Pasadena but may have to make the drive to European Auto Hause after I'm out of warranty to get my Q5 worked on. BTW - where do you plan to take your new 2018 Q5 while you are still under warranty. I've received mixed messages about Audi dealer closest to me when it comes to their service department. TIA

stuven

The potential problem with European Auto House (and probably almost all independent shops) is that they don't offer loaners. They will drive you to a location in their "local area" when you bring your car in and then pick you up when the work is done. Loaners are one of the benefits you get when you pay dealer service prices.

It seems that all our relatively local Audi dealers get mixed reviews on Yelp. For our current 2011 Q5, we used the service departments at Rusnak of Pasadena and Penske of West Covina when the vehicle was under warranty, but we had issues with our assigned service advisers at both. A friend of mine, who has used Rusnak service for his A5, A7, and Porsche Macan, likes a particular service adviser at Rusnak, so we'll try him and them for our new Q5 (if it ever arrives).

auntrout

Thanks. A buddy of mine takes his A6 over to Circle Audi in Long Beach which is not his local dealer, but has had good results with his service adviser. I'll probably start with them.

Tarak Chadaram

Yes you are right. There were not in Atlanta. I will find out some shop this week who works on European cars.

Regards,
Tarak.