Buying a 10+ year old car what could go wrong?

[MontuckyFried]

I thought you'd decided on a RX-8?

I pretty much had but after learning more from you guys, holding out til the right example. Found a couple cheap local ones already but super riced out. No way. Haha

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[bushman]

Bushboy just bought a 2011 Audi A4 prestige package with 34,000 miles. We'll see how this pans out.

[Aldo]

Congrats b boy. Nice car.
It can work out a few ways.
Here’s hoping for a b mills way.


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[MontuckyFried]

Bushboy just bought a 2011 Audi A4 prestige package with 34,000 miles. We'll see how this pans out.

Only 34K on the clock?! Niiice. That's gonna be a sweet ride.

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[skaredshtles]

Only 34K on the clock?! Niiice. That's gonna be a sweet ride.

And it will definitely build some character...

[MontuckyFried]

And it will definitely build some character...

Haha. Yup. Whether it's bleeding your wallet paying the Euro shop (or worse, the dealer) or doing it yourself (like how I roll), an aging A4 can make a grown man cry. That said, I'd be all over one with that low of miles and vintage. It shouldn't be too bad in all reality.

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[BmillsSkier]

Congrats b boy. Nice car.
It can work out a few ways.
Here’s hoping for a b mills way.


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I continue to be impressed by how well this allroad is built. Prior BMWs I've owned of this age (and some even way younger) and mileage were long scuttled to the dealer on a trade or worse, to BMW themselves.

I think there continues to be an general association with early 00's Audis and their issues that hangs on around here despite the fact that from say, the B8.5 model on (2013) they are pretty reliable little sleds.

It's ok, I still think a Taurus SHO is only 20 years old too.

[basinbeater]

I finally bought a daily driver. 2014 Merc e550, 80,000 miles. Right size, appears to have been well maintained with good service records, looks sharp, very very nice inside. Fast. 4.6l twin turbo v8. AWD. Time will tell if this was a wise decision or a poor one.
I like black cars, but was kind of ready for the ease of silver... But hey.

[4matic]

I finally bought a daily driver. 2014 Merc e550. Fast.

Welcome. Great car. Do you have an option list? Airmatic?

0-60 4.5 is pretty good.

[basinbeater]

Here they are.

[4matic]

Nice car. Lots of options. Heated Steering Wheel is $$$. My favorite option. The active multi contour seat is nice to.

Split folding makes ski travel easy too. Big plus

[shroom]

what year/model allroads should i avoid or seek from 2010-2016ish? or more broadly vw engine configs? simplify my research for me plz

[BmillsSkier]

I finally bought a daily driver. 2014 Merc e550, 80,000 miles. Right size, appears to have been well maintained with good service records, looks sharp, very very nice inside. Fast. 4.6l twin turbo v8. AWD. Time will tell if this was a wise decision or a poor one.
I like black cars, but was kind of ready for the ease of silver... But hey.

Sharp car BB!

what year/model allroads should i avoid or seek from 2010-2016ish? or more broadly vw engine configs? simplify my research for me plz

13-16 for Allroads. That’s B8.5 gen with full-time 60/40 full time rear-bias Quattto and they got the TFSI sorted. Mine has been incredibly reliable.

[Aldo]

I’d add on allroads ; don’t be afraid to pay up for mileage and tangible service records.

Edit - that’s not just for allroads obviously- it’s every Audi and for that matter every car out there. But specifically knowing where it came from and who was working on it how often is the key. We don’t like surprises. There’s plenty of folks out there who’ll throw the marque under the bus ; vag has earned plenty of the flak - but there’s also a ton of Audi owners out there who had the wrong person working on it, didn’t service it properly or had unrealistic expectations on maintenance/ownership costs.

There’s also a lot of owners out the like bmils and buster and ice , shirk and all the other freaks I’ve forgotten around here who swear by em….

Good luck!
Enjoy!


Just exactly perfect.

[Timberridge]

Re: Allroad. Unless I'm building a lowrider, I'm never buying anything with an air suspension again. I'd pay more to get coil springs. Completely unnecessary and a pain in the ass.

BB: Congrats. Funny how 18" rims seem small these days. I'm a fan though. The whole setup is lighter and cheaper than 20-21's and the suspension doesn't feel like a conestoga wagon's every time you hit an expansion joint.

[shroom]

appreciate the quick responses. i have been staring at gx/lx for my wife so understand the air tax, i’ll look at a4 as well. i drive a 4runner and have convinced myself we need a better highway car (and decent seats, awd or full time 4wd) as the primary (wife commutes 40ish miles per day i wfh). low/mid teens allroad seems to be best used bang for buck in my area, or q/sq5 about $10k more. i haven’t driven either yet. i owned a chop shop ‘05 passat 4motion that was everything you hear gremlin wise but also solid as hell driving. my takeaway was to pay up for dealer maintenance/minty on the next used one if buying vw. any other thoughts appreciated, thanks again.

[BmillsSkier]

I think we need to clarify a few things for Shroom re: Allroads.

There's 2 kinds (pre-2020, when the new A6 Allroad came out in the US): the old A6 Allroad (99-05) pictured above in its natural environment by Aldo, and the A4 allroad quattro (09-present).

The old A6 Allroad is the one with the airbag suspension, and all the other quirks that it became commonly known as the most complicated car ever made by Audi. Ice has documented his extensive service records here. Once sorted, they're tanks.

The A4 allroad quattro is a much, much simpler car that is based on the A5 platform, lifted a bit and until the current generation of Ultra Quattro (2016), offered full-time allwheel drive with a 40/60 bias to the rear.

Common maintenance items for the A4 allroad quattro are: carbon cleaning of the engine, a steering column recall (drive by wire gave a notchy feeling at 12 o clock center; it should be noted that Audi's drive by wire is the best of any I've driven and feels no different than a mechanical setup - point it, and it goes there) that should have been addressed in all of them back in '14.

When I went out of warranty at 100k I did a top-end refresh (plugs, coils, timing chain, water pump, air/oil separator, carbon cleaning, and an APR Stage 1 tune). She spins like a top and I'm constantly amazed at how it doesn't have any of the creaks or groans of similar mileage other euros I've owned. It's very sneaky fast and the ride is excellent. When I first got it I had to remind myself to look at the speedo as 85 mph feels like 70 in most similar sized cars.

Let me know if you've got any other questions.

[Mazderati]

2014 Merc e550, 80,000 miles. Right size, appears to have been well maintained with good service records, looks sharp, very very nice inside. Fast. 4.6l twin turbo v8. AWD.

Like this body style a lot. Post more pics when you can.

i have been staring at gx/lx for my wife so understand the air tax, i’ll look at a4 as well. i drive a 4runner and have convinced myself we need a better highway car (and decent seats, awd or full time 4wd) as the primary (wife commutes 40ish miles per day i wfh). low/mid teens allroad seems to be best used bang for buck in my area, or q/sq5 about $10k more. i haven’t driven either yet.

You may already know this but a) 2014+ base and premium trims have rear springs standard; only the luxury trim has rear air suspension, 2) the 460 air system is solid; lots of people with 100k+ miles and no issues, and d) parts are cheap and easy to replace when needed. The savings go in the gas tank.

[oldnew_guy]

Slight derail from the excellent Audi education.

I’m driving an 11 year old TDI Sportwagen. Since moving to my current location, I’ve been low speed rear ended leaving only marks from the license plate (person texting, surprise), had someone dent the shit out of the left front quarter panel with their door or grocery cart, curbed the right side below the passenger door (my fault) and most recently had a truck with hitch back into the front of the car while I was sitting in it in a parking lot.

Am I totally crazy to just let this all go on a 10+ YO car? I could in theory have gone after the rear end and the most recent front end collision drivers, but I just don’t see that I’m going to bump up the value of the car and it’s a total pain in the ass to deal with the car in a shop over a fender bender. I don’t have plans to sell the car for another few years. In my mind I see all of this getting fixed and then immediately getting hit again.

[basinbeater]

Oh yeah, no airmatic on this one. I kind of wanted it, but it is a known wear out item around 100k, so i won't worry about that.
Edit, now that I bought a car, what am I going to look at on my phone?

[basinbeater]

Wife snapped a pic while I left the house this morning. Gotta give her credit, she knows I'm a car junky, and she is playing along. I think she is happy that it's not 20 years old like all my other cars.

[Timberridge]

Slight derail from the excellent Audi education.

I’m driving an 11 year old TDI Sportwagen. Since moving to my current location, I’ve been low speed rear ended leaving only marks from the license plate (person texting, surprise), had someone dent the shit out of the left front quarter panel with their door or grocery cart, curbed the right side below the passenger door (my fault) and most recently had a truck with hitch back into the front of the car while I was sitting in it in a parking lot.

Am I totally crazy to just let this all go on a 10+ YO car? I could in theory have gone after the rear end and the most recent front end collision drivers, but I just don’t see that I’m going to bump up the value of the car and it’s a total pain in the ass to deal with the car in a shop over a fender bender. I don’t have plans to sell the car for another few years. In my mind I see all of this getting fixed and then immediately getting hit again.

Just get a bunch of these and stick them over all the dents.

[liv2ski]

It is up to you, but I would of had it repaired, especially if someone else did the damage. That is why we are all suppose to have insurance.

[basinbeater]

You need to call the cart narcs. Shopping carts crashing into the car IS NOT OK.
https://youtu.be/0yLJSZ1bO2c

[BmillsSkier]

It is up to you, but I would of had it repaired, especially if someone else did the damage. That is why we are all suppose to have insurance.

True. While cleaning up body work on an ageing car is usually a near-zero ROI, I will always make exceptions if the damage is the result of someone else. Of course you've got to consider the negative side effects like a ding on your carfax, but you can find workarounds for that.