3rd May 2008, 20:41

I got my 2001 A6 Avant 2.8 Quattro two years ago, and unlike so many other people here, I have very little negative to report. Many things I cannot blame the car for really.

I have visited this forum before, and when I smelled what would be best described as burning oil, I knew what was waiting for me. Thankfully, I don't rely on an Audi dealership for repairs as there is a small car repair shop in the neighborhood specialized in German cars (Porsche, BMW, Mercedes and Audi). So it is much cheaper, as you can imagine. The people were also smart enough to inform me, that it would be a good time to replace the timing belt while they were at it. Cost of the adventure was less than $1,000. Nevertheless, I agree that this flaw should have been resolved in the 2001 model, after it became apparent years earlier.

The next thing which broke down was the cup holder in the center console, which, when you look at it and see how cheaply and flimsy it is made, is clearly an afterthought. I don't recall finding this in the A6s I have seen in Germany, so it was probably added specially for the US market. Right now it serves as a holder for my sun glasses. :)

Third, passenger side control arm and bushings needed replacement. However, had I not driven into that 9 ft. deep pothole, none of that would have been necessary. Number 4 on the list is a shot speaker in the driver door - apparently, max. volume and a monster bass can do that to speakers. Finally, the auto-dimming rear mirror has decided, that the night lasts 24 hours a day.

The car is now 7 years old and has 83K miles on it. The interior is still almost spotless, not even the hot Florida sun could do harm. The leather still looks practically new, and squeaking noises are no where to be found. Steering as direct as when it was new, and the brakes work smoothly and do an excellent job (btw, no problems with the rotors whatsoever on my car). I have had the opportunity (and pleasure) to drive a brand new Infinity G35 Coupe (2007 model) and I was hugely impressed with the performance and handling. However, I was surprised that a 40K Car made in 2007 felt cheaper from the inside than the 7 year old Audi. A 2005 Acura TSX was also disappointing in terms of ride quality, noise levels and materials used in the inside. Sure, both cars are cheaper relatively speaking (my Audi was probably close to 40K in 2001 and the current equivalent model is 55K easily), and I consider them more reliable than the Audi, however, I was expecting something more from 5 to 6 years of car development in terms of the sheer quality of the ride.

There's only two things really I would like to change on the car: A slightly stiffer suspension and an altered power distribution of the AWD drive system in favor of the rear (60:40 instead of 50:50) for better handling.

So, do you want to buy this car? I think, if reliability is what you're after, not really. You would be better off with a Japanese car along the lines of Infinity, Acura or Toyota, all excellent cars. However, if you are looking for a treat, something to behold, and are not afraid for higher maintenance cost because you know you are getting something in return, then should take a look at the Audi A6 (Quattro models only, of course).

This is a brilliant car.

15th May 2008, 15:52

I have a 2001 A6 2.7 Quattro and have bought it October 2007. Was wondering if anyone knew of any site where we could go through the service manual to troubleshoot some engine error codes. Also, a person earlier suggested getting a diagnostic reader for the laptop... where would you suggest buying one and how much would it be, if anyone knows..?

Thanks, Great car.. I enjoy driving it.

31st May 2008, 10:55

Last August I bought my dad's A6 2.7 Turbo. It had been a reliable car for him, with the worst problem being a bad wheel bearing. His Audi dealer "fixed" it for him but -- oops -- installed it backwards somehow, so that it failed a couple of months later.

Anyway, he did get it fixed correctly finally, and sold it to me for just 8 grand. It had only 64,000 miles. We certainly love driving it here in NH -- it's a smooth, powerful car and the Quattro is great in the snow. However, a couple of months ago I noticed that when I first start it up in the morning, put its Tiptronic in Drive and apply gas, the engine would rev a bit but the car would hardly move forward for 3-5 seconds.

This syndrome became more pronounced and frequent over the past weeks and I took it to my trustworthy mechanic (trained Audi/VW fellow) who said it was a bad torque converter. Apparently the ZF torques converters of the 2000-2003 or so Audis have a known defect -- poorly designed seals that leak internally and screw up the functionality of the unit.

Replacement TC's, which have an improved design, cost about $950 and, since the tranny has to be removed, the repair is estimated to take 17 hours. Any way you cut it, it's at least $2,000 and I've read that Audi dealers typically charge $3K+ for the job.

MY mechanic called his buddy at the Parts Dept. at the local Audi dealer, who said they sell about two TC's a week, so common is this problem. I thought I should flag this as an issue... I'm a bit surprised no one in this forum has mentioned or apparently experienced torque converter failure, since it seems to be an acknowledge problem elsewhere on the Web.

Also, given the somewhat low mileage of our A6, I'm surprised the TC has given up the ghost so quickly. Hope the turbos last longer! I've been using synthetic oil since I bought the car -- maybe that will help.

Andy - Southern NH.