I found a decently priced Audi 2.7t with 65,000 on it and it's really sharp. I am going to work full time until next fall, at which point i'm off to college. I should have most of it paid off by then.

I am going to test drive the car today and I am wondering what problems I should look for on the car? I see that it's pretty common that the CV's go on all a6's and some other things. I can't have a lemon while i'm off at school. Do you guys have alot of problems with your 2.7s? I hear some horror stories and then I read some forums and alot of people say 135k and still going strong! and things like that.

What have your guys experiences been and would you say it's a good buy or not? I mean, this car is SHARP, its the nicest looking car i've seen in a while. I would love to have it but if it's unreliable i'm going to have to pass it up.

 

The biggest problem with the 2.7T is that its a humongous PITA to work on. Audis in general are just about as reliable as any other vehicle. Replacement parts costs can be on the pricey side but once you learn where to shop you can keep those costs to a minimum. You will need to find a good indy shop that specializes in Audi to work on it for you because you can go broke paying dealership service labor charges. Better yet, DIY. Lots of knowlegeable people around that are VERY generous with their advice and opinions.

As long as the car is/has been well maintained it shouldn't be a problem. If it does not have reliable service records and you don't have a few THOUSAND extra dollars for repairs you should probably walk. At 65K the timing belt is due, if it has not been done already, which I would always doubt. Figure an average cost of approximately $1000 to have that done at a shop.

Take it to an independent shop before you commit to buy and have a mechanic give it a good once over. Even if it costs you $100, its worth it.

 

Wonder what's wrong with the sticky at the top of the thread? Has it gone bad along with the sort?

 

Sticky doesn't tell me what kind of mileage people have gotten before blowing it up, when the turbos went, how often they take it to the shop, how much repairs are, if the car is worth its yearly upkeep price, or anything of that matter it tells you how to maintain it.

 

The car is expensive to maintain. If you "can't have a lemon while off at school", this car is not for you.

 

Seriously, if you are off to a college next year, I don't recommend that you buy that Audi. Any kind of luxury import for that matter...

 

Answering your question directly, you will need timing belt and water pump in about 15K miles. It will cost you around $1500. Oil change will run you minimum $100, unless you do it yourself. Even at that it will cost you $60. You want to change oil every 5K miles with synthetic unless you want your turbos blowing with sludge. Expect to pay a few thousand on turbo replacement. A visit to a dealer the stealer is $150 minimum, for diagnostics only. Actually I thank god, if I come back from a dealer or a mechanic's visit with less than $500 bill. You will probably need spark plugs soon, which are approximately $10 a pop.

If you are planning to work on it yourself, then you will need vagcom, Bently Manual and weird sets of tools that your local parts guy never even heard of.

I am not saying that Audis are not good cars. All I am saying is that these are not cheap cars to maintain.

 

I don't recommend you buy an audi either, at least not the 2.7t. Get something naturally aspirated, they are much more bulletproof. Audi is a fantastic piece of machinery but believe me, I don't even drive mine every day. I keep the costs low with my honda as a DD.

 

Yeah, I agree. The car sold 1/2 hour before I went to test drive it. I am thinking that it was a sign that it was not a good car to buy. I'm looking at the a4 1.8t's and 3.0's. They seem to be a bit more reliable. I just hate that I won't be able to built a 3.0 but for now that's probably the best way to go. Perhaps with a chip, exhaust, and intake it will run decent. If it can come close to hanging with a WRX i'll be happy.

Oil changes are a sinch, I know how to run a car, what's bad for it and what's good for it. I could put my own intake and exhaust on, as for doing the timing belt and things like that I couldn't do all that. Spark plugs and bolt on type things I can handle.

 

3.0 will never keep up with a WRX. Even with a 2.7T, heavily modified, it will be hard. Why don't you just get a WRX?