24th Feb 2007, 10:07

I had written earlier on this thread about my AUDI A6 2.7T. The saga has continued. The drivers side window problem - I had that. There is now a fix from Audi - but no recall notice despite the inherent danger a driver's side window that gets frozen in the open position.

As to the odor: absolutely no luck despite the replacement of the cam seals/gasket.

One trip to the local Audi dealer tripled my resolve never to buy another Audi: bad attitude and high prices makes for a lousy business model.

Did I mention having to fix the entire front end!

Never, ever again.

26th Feb 2007, 11:45

I added the Feb. 22nd, 2007 comment about the consistent repairs. True, every car needs repair and maintenance. However, some needs more than others. If somehow someone is to take a general sample among the population of Audis in a particular year, I believe there will be overwhelming evidence that these cars will be proven unreliable.

If you look at the consumer reports (2005 to 2006) issue, CR rated Audi as below average in reliability. Consumer Reports even have a section on the history of the Car's reliability. Every year, Audi has been rated below average or much worst than average. To be fair, Benz, BMW received poor rating in reliability as well.

To add a general comment on repairs, not every one is good with their hands or mechanically inclined. Like you said, it is a luxurious / premium car. I have taken it to gas stations and independent mechanics and they want to charge a premium as well. Some even go as far as calling up the Audi dealer in my area to inquire about labor rates and hours involved.

I've read books on mechanics and cars, and they seem to suggest bringing your car to a discount auto franchise, such as Midas, Amco, Meneike to do the repairs. Anyone have any experiences with that?

26th Feb 2007, 13:34

Interesting comments vis a vis Audi A6.

I am very pleased with Audi as a car, as my wife and I own an A6 2000 avant and an A4 1.8T. Love the cars. Wonderful.

However, I do share some of the woes of the cost to maintain the A6 in particular. So far the A4 seems very cost effective. The A6 has had the cam belt changed at the prescribed mileage and all services done according to the normal plan.

My advice is to get a second opinion and get standard maintenance like oil changes and even brakes done elsewhere. Dealers vary, some care, some don't. If they are busy and have sold a lot of cars and have a full maintenance schedule, and you get your car back late on a regular basis, you may want to check around a bit. There are other service people around, car mechanics who care about their reputations especially if they service a neighborhood. There are others who will hose you with work that does not need to be done.

Personally, the maintenance cost bothers me. But I just love the Audi's. So I will stick with them for now, and be selective about who works on my car depending on what needs to be done on it.

26th Feb 2007, 22:41

I am the original poster of this chain. I thought I would check in to see what's new. The trail of complaints is both amazing and scary to me, so I am glad I did not keep the car past its warranty.

However, I do miss having an Audi. Just not the last A6 I owned.

12th Mar 2007, 22:53

My mother had the 2002 A6 3.0 Quattro and loved the car when it was running perfectly. She had several of the known issues with the oil leaking, fuel system relays, CV boots, tie rods, etc. and did find that an independent shop was much better equipped to deal with the vehicle than was their local Audi dealership. The shop they go to are German specialists and kept the car in good working order, but when the cycle of repairs was a continuous barrage of the same parts over and over again, she opted to get rid of the vehicle to save her sanity.

Having grown up with Mercedes, BMW, and Audi, they are excellent vehicles overall, but they can be pricey to maintain. All have suffered declines in recent years in quality and build from the vehicles I remember as a child in the 1980s and onward, and, as an aside, my parents still have one of the legendary Mercedes diesel wagons with over 300k miles on it.

One thing people seem to forget is that Hondas and Fords are cheaper to fix because the respective companies sell more of the vehicles. Audis are not as common overall and as such reflect a more unique market segment that is not without its costs. Buying one used, you may pay the price of a Ford, but with the maintenance of a German luxury car. Always look at the original price of the car to gauge your maintenance spending, since pricier cars usually have more sophisticated features that are more costly to maintain/replace.

Another thing to check is the shop rates at the dealership before you commit to paying for repairs out of warranty, since such rates are usually the highest labor rates around. Also, be sure to check to see if the shop charges by the book-hour or actual time hour. The repair manual may say that a repair is 2 hours, but in reality it takes 45 minutes to fix with something else, but they usually charge the full book rate. That's how you end up paying for 8 hours of labor to fix the vehicle, when they probably spent much less time on the car.

Be judicious when you are spending your money, since you are not at the mercy of the dealership. And, if one delaership is bad, check another since it can just be the mechanics or manager at one dealership who can ruin an ownership experience.