Audi reliability - is it really getting better?

[onewhippedpuppy]

When we move on from our Mazda5, a Q7 is at the top of the list for consideration. Nice SUVs.

[speeder]

I have a cousin who just can't get enough of the Audi Q7. They have leased about 5 of them since they came out, (they have a bunch of kids), and a couple years ago they had matching his/hers identical grey TDIs.

I took pictures of them, these are two different cars:



What can I say? They're eccentric.

I asked her how she knows which one to jump in when she walks out the door and she said that she just hits the remote and gets in the one that blinks. I guess they're having good luck with them.

[aigel]

Boy - a couple of TDI Q7 leased must be a great way to burn through a bunch of cash every month.

G

[SilberUrS6]

Originally Posted by aigel

Boy - a couple of TDI Q7 leased must be a great way to burn through a bunch of cash every month.

G

^^^this.

Add the word "forever".

[speeder]

I guess it's all relative but yeah, not the cheapest way to move people around.

It's a data point, though. Five different Q7s leased for 3-4 years each and pretty good luck. I was just there not long ago and they were down to one Q7 but replaced the other with an A7. So another Audi.

[pavulon]

Originally Posted by aigel

Boy - a couple of TDI Q7 leased must be a great way to burn through a bunch of cash every month.

G

I hope their depreciation curve resembles the arc of a falling stone only because I think that I would love to own a used one! That may change after driving one...which I've never. From the outside I think they look good but also appear as though they could have a lot of blind spots and sub-optimal outward visibility in general.

[speeder]

I drove the first two they had back in '07 or so, a V-8 gas one and a V-6 gas. I have to say that I did not love them at all, just really disconnected and uninvolved. I realize that it's an SUV and not a sports car but still a really bad driving experience. The steering wheel felt like it was connected to some call center in India where highly trained workers were relaying the instructions back to the tie rods.

They sure look good, though.

[Yorkie]

Originally Posted by speeder

I drove the first two they had back in '07 or so, a V-8 gas one and a V-6 gas. I have to say that I did not love them at all, just really disconnected and uninvolved. I realize that it's an SUV and not a sports car but still a really bad driving experience. The steering wheel felt like it was connected to some call center in India where highly trained workers were relaying the instructions back to the tie rods.

They sure look good, though.

I drove one for three years and totally agree. Not a great driving experience (preferred my RR or the wife's MDX) but it sure looked pretty. Brake pads and rotors were very expensive as I recall and it drank a lot of gas (V6) because you had to cane it everywhere.

[Palum6o]

Bringing this thread back to life in case someone wants to research a failing sunroof drain on a Audi Q7. We were quite shocked this week over our repair bill, at approx $7K. That's right.... $7 GRAND!. On the Audi forums, this issue is nothing new. We always knew it affected the '07 models, and I believe there was a class action suit against Audi for this... never expected this to happen to our '08.

The drain tubes will fail, causing the water to leak inside the car. It happened so subtle that we never noticed the wet carpets - it's been raining a lot in Norther California over the past few weeks. We realized something was wrong when we got stranded, car wouldn't start. Battery seemed to be dead.... turns out a lot of water entered the floor, battery and circuit box are conveniently located under the driver's seat.

Turns out, the water damage turned into an insurance claim, approx $5K. Mildewed carpets front and back have to be replaced, battery and circuit box. Parts were about $2200, labor was the other half at $180/hr.

I'm responsible for the faulty drains however, was told not to worry, parts may cost a couple hundred. Well that didn't include the labor... which now I'm looking at $1,700. My car is all apart, insurance claim was processed, but now I'm stuck with this huge bill on a car with 80k miles on it. We were just thinking of trading it in on something else too.

What a bummer.

These cars are fancy junk. Yes, they are a pleasure to drive and be seen in. Best to lease them new under warranty, dump when done, then move on to another...

PS... filed a claim with Audi USA to see if anything can be done.

[unclebilly]

Audi - German word for don't own off warrantee.

[Steve Carlton]

Originally Posted by Palum6o

Bringing this thread back to life in case someone wants to research a failing sunroof drain on a Audi Q7. We were quite shocked this week over our repair bill, at approx $7K. That's right.... $7 GRAND!. On the Audi forums, this issue is nothing new. We always knew it affected the '07 models, and I believe there was a class action suit against Audi for this... never expected this to happen to our '08.

The drain tubes will fail, causing the water to leak inside the car. It happened so subtle that we never noticed the wet carpets - it's been raining a lot in Norther California over the past few weeks. We realized something was wrong when we got stranded, car wouldn't start. Battery seemed to be dead.... turns out a lot of water entered the floor, battery and circuit box are conveniently located under the driver's seat.

Turns out, the water damage turned into an insurance claim, approx $5K. Mildewed carpets front and back have to be replaced, battery and circuit box. Parts were about $2200, labor was the other half at $180/hr.

I'm responsible for the faulty drains however, was told not to worry, parts may cost a couple hundred. Well that didn't include the labor... which now I'm looking at $1,700. My car is all apart, insurance claim was processed, but now I'm stuck with this huge bill on a car with 80k miles on it. We were just thinking of trading it in on something else too.

What a bummer.

These cars are fancy junk. Yes, they are a pleasure to drive and be seen in. Best to lease them new under warranty, dump when done, then move on to another...

PS... filed a claim with Audi USA to see if anything can be done.

Sent you a PM.

[tincob]

I have a 2010 A4 B8 and one of the LED's on the speedometer is blinking on/off randomly.

It's going to suck to pay all that labor just to replace a frickin LED so if it's not too difficult to get at it, I wouldn't mind doing it on my own.

Anyone know or can point me to a DIY how to thread?

I found ones for earlier series but not for the B8 series.