Yet another Audi question-Allroad 2.7
 

My daughter is need of a college car. She wants 4wd, and we've been searching for Subies. There is a local dealership that I've worked with before that does salvage highish end cars-lots of hail repairs, and flood cars. Reputable work, we bought an A8 there. So, they have an Allroad 2.7 with 75k on it for $6,000. Seems like a lot of car for the money. However, the air suspension scares me, and I know nothing about the 2.7. So, throwing it out to braintrust...SmileWavy

Flooded 2.7T (twin turbos, 5v-heads, quattro, slushbox?) *with air suspension*. What can possibly go wrong?

The torque converter of ZF5HP19, turbos, leaky valve covers, the suspension...of the top of my head. Probably much more.

This wouldn't be my first choice for a college car. Both the 2.7 and Allroad are maintenance hogs (gotta keep on top of it or things go south and get expensive quickly...). If you're going to go used Audi, I recommend finding a non-turbo motor.

A well-vetted Subaru would be a better choice for longevity/lack of trouble.

Might as well buy her a land rover or a old jaguar if you are considering a car like that. The two posts above me summarize everything perfectly.

Have fun finding one without transmission issues.

Don't come here for advice on an Audi. Most of it will be negative and most of it will be from people that have little, or no, actual ownership experience.

There are no absolutes, look at each car individually. A Subaru isn't automatically better/more reliable than an Audi. My kid recently went from a fairly nice Audi S8 to a rolling turd of a Subaru (WRX Sti) and the difference in build quality and reliability/longevity is astonishing. The Subie was more money, too, as every dumbass that owns one thinks it's made of solid gold. In my experience, there are few people more clueless about their cars than Subaru owners and that is reflected in the (lack of) care they give the cars. The dealers suck pretty bad, too.

Good luck,
JR

Ha...Beep luckily is the real deal.

Agree on Subies, particularly the WRX's. My son has one, nice enough car but yeah, if stepping out of an S8 you'd be majorly disappointed. His at least wasn't Cobb'd to death.

I'm ok with Audi, our A8 has been a normally reliable car and is a very nice combo of lux and sport. I just don't have any 2.7t knowledge at all. Will likely stay away from this one, it was just very intriguing at the price.

I'm going to inflict enough pain on myself, buying a sl600 with a pano roof if it passes the ppi that's ongoing as we speak.

I've had 4 Audi's with turbos, including the 2.7. Zero issues.

I haven't had an All-Road, but my brother in-law had one. Also zero issues.

My kid's worthless Subie wasn't modified to the hilt. It was largely stock when he got it. The lack of quality comes from the cheap, tin-can construction. It has a lot of faults, that Subaru seems to duck successfully. The worst one is the fuel leak in cold weather, under the intake manifold. I'm talking a puddle of raw gas. A bit of a pain in the ass to fix. You'd think there'd be a recall, but no...

It's also on it's second engine. And, this is the nicest one we could find after a multi-month search.

JR

For college... Subaru

my wrx has 116k on it and has never been to a mechanic. Same with the Sti I put 70k miles on. None of these or your anecdotes prove much.


The 2.7tt all road is not a low maintance car, or particularly reliable there is almost universal consensus. Used Subaru's arnt particularly compelling mostly because their high resale. The 2.7tt audi resale is terrible. The market has spoken about the desirability of these as used cars


intended as humor of course:
Everything You Want To Know About The Audi Allroad 2.7T In About 60 Seconds

wait did I miss this car is salvage titled too, as in maybe hit hard or flooded? Yikes.


Maybe she would be interested in an rx8 as well :)

Yes, but A8/S8 have alu body with N/A engine and 5HP24 tranny . 2.7T is a A6 steel body with V6 and two tiny turbos buried underneath and 5HP19 tranny. A8/S8 is a flagship. 2.7t is a grocery getter pimped to hilt with tech stuff that quits working when warranty is gone.

2.7 turbochargers are known weak spot, so are 5HP19 torque converter oil seals. I do not know much about air suspension, but those cars are maintenance hogs even when not submerged under water.

We had a 2.7 twin Allroad from like 2003 to 2006. It was mostly issue free, but a word of warning, you need an Audi familiar shop to work on them. Most repairs start with "remove the lock carrier" or in simpler terms "remove the front of the car."

If you look up some of Jeff Higgins posts he shows in great detailed pictures on how to do this. It's not something most repair shops would be interested in doing.

I have one, a six speed.

It hasn't been unreliable per se, but when it does need maintenance it is insanely time consuming and complex.

Multiple different types of fasteners, difficult to reach or even see what should be simple maintenance items like the clutch slave cylinder. Oil changes are bizarrely time intensive because of the skid plate. The serpentine belt requires bumper and rad removal.

I've replaced both front air bags without *too* much effort. Used aftermarket parts. Turbos have been good but I've developed a wicked oil leak which I am not looking forward to figuring out.

No transmission issues because of the six speed, but the throw it bearing did fail prematurely.

I ***** about maintenance all of the time, but it's a nice car to drive.

You misunderstood my posts. Don't consider the S8 in that one post the reference point for my suggestions. I've owned more than a dozen Audis, including lowly grocery getter Audis. I've owned an Audi with the dreaded 2.7 V6 twin turbo motor. It had exactly zero issues, before and after the warranty expired.

These threads are pointless. I think I should quit reading them, or responding.

JR

get the subie, much better choice, way less headaches and cost.

Myself and my wife have owned 5 Audi's, I currently drive a 2013 A4 2.0L turbo sport Quattro, love it but only 36K miles. My wife now drives a 2015 Subaru Impreza.

I love Audi's But on this one: RUN!!!!

If you get a Subaru, make sure it's not a candidate for leaking head gaskets or oil consumption. Some trouble spots for Subaru as well.

I had an allroad from 55000-75000 miles that accrued $18K in receipts from various shops in 1.5 years. Soon as the warrant was up I ditched it next day!
My issues were:
Torque converter
airbags
electrical
airbags again!
What I was nervous about was the trans still had not broke and the turbos were original.
I loved that piece of crap! couldn't afford it, Who can?
I'l love to fine one with 6 speed and coil overs. I feel I could afford to drive it now.

Lol the Internet rarely reaches such a consensus