Researching common issues helps me to anticipate potential costs. lots of timing belt replacement = more cost of ownership. I just add it to the cost of the car whereas you try to avoid it. If I don't have to pay it, it's a bonus. If you have to pay, you're stuck.

Further, I don't think there's anyway to anticipate what will or will not go wrong. sure, you can hedge your bets. but that only goes so far. i don't know about you, but if my airbag light comes because it's failed, I don't want to be saddled with the cost of that part.

Things like brakes and tires, yeah I'm gonna pay for those. but so do you. it's all the things i won't, potentially, have to pay for that really add up. even if you get lucky and never pay them, i'd rather pay a little more now to assure i don't pay a lot later. just like insurance. i pay 300 a month, and i've never been to teh doc.

of course i agree 6-8 k is too much for cpo, even on an a8. we see they're buying them for under 20. No way they're putting 6k into the cars for shop costs. If so, the cars are all **** (which they aren't).

i also agree that the cpo should cover radio, nav, and other electronics components.

 

Researching common issues helps me to anticipate potential costs. lots of timing belt replacement = more cost of ownership. I just add it to the cost of the car whereas you try to avoid it. If I don't have to pay it, it's a bonus. If you have to pay, you're stuck.

Further, I don't think there's anyway to anticipate what will or will not go wrong. sure, you can hedge your bets. but that only goes so far. i don't know about you, but if my airbag light comes because it's failed, I don't want to be saddled with the cost of that part.

Things like brakes and tires, yeah I'm gonna pay for those. but so do you. it's all the things i won't, potentially, have to pay for that really add up. even if you get lucky and never pay them, i'd rather pay a little more now to assure i don't pay a lot later. just like insurance. i pay 300 a month, and i've never been to teh doc.

of course i agree 6-8 k is too much for cpo, even on an a8. we see they're buying them for under 20. No way they're putting 6k into the cars for shop costs. If so, the cars are all **** (which they aren't).

i also agree that the cpo should cover radio, nav, and other electronics components.

 

It's been a while and CPO prices may be even higher now, but I took my time and did a slow nationwide search till I came across exactly the car/mileage I was lookin for. As a CPO, I had no reservations about buying the car sight unseen (photos and carfax only)...and have never regretted it.

The car was already a reasonable price for a CPO. With a couple of phone conversations and the willingness to have a certified check fed-exed to em the next day, the price quickly dropped to a very happy level...including shipping to my front door.
I ended up paying the same or less than most private owners were getting for 'as is' cars at the same mileage....win/win.

I beat that warranty to death for the next 2.5 years for every little and big thing:

--"ticking" exhaust leak at the manifold-to-downpipe...factory defect in the connection
--Thermostat replacement
--Drive shaft output flange seal
--MAF sensor
--Coolant temp sensor
--Various other little things