Hi,

I am in a unique position to recommend a vehicle for my father who is retiring soon and is going to replace his agining 1999 MB C280. He was relatively happy with the MB, despite the rust problems the car accumulated under 90K. I first looked at the W220 S-class MB line, however given the number of problems those cars have now a days (forums, Internet), he has no problems switching to the Audi line.

The car we are looking at is eigther 04 or 05 D3 Audi A8 with less than 50K. We would probably get a certified pre-owned, as we buy all our cars "a little used." Out of the flagship Audi, MB, and BMW, the A8 has probably the least information regarding reliability.

Thus, I would like to gauge from the owners if they would recommend a D3 A8 a little used, if the car is reliable (very important), or if we are to anticipate problems like with the MB line.

Any recommendations are appreciated.

Thanks!

 

The 04 has a lot more problems than the 05 due to the fact it was the first year it was out.
For instance there is a coolant line that goes over the oil filter housing that makes it almost impossible to remove the filter, the fix is to replace the pipe but that never happens and people end up bending it. That can sometimes cause a costly repair if it starts to leak.
The 04 also has problems with the trunk motor and trunk hinges, along with other small electrical problems but nothing major.
As for the A8 its very relaible in general, common items that need to be replaced are the front brake rotors with pad replacement, upper control arms at every 50k or so, and the little electrical motor that moves the MMI screen in the dash sticks and needs to be replaced every now and then.
Other than that the engine is solid on the 05 which has a chain drive 4.2L VS. the 04 which has timing belt that needs to be changed.
Mileage is moderate, tires wear quite quickly 20k-30k max, but if you can't afford replacing the tires you have no buisness driving a D3 A8 to begin with.
Try driving itto get used to it, it drves much differently than a BMW and with the windows rolled up is the quietest ride you will ever experience.

 

I have really enjoyed my 05 A8L. I purchased a used A8 with 13k mile for $46k. I had done some homework on them for a while and noticed the same trends mentioned above. The 04 seems to have significantly more problems than the 05 models. Although they look the same on the outside. What's on the inside (the stuff that costs alot to fix) is very different. It only has 20K miles on it now since I purchased it last december 06. I have had 2 problems with it so far: 1.one of the catalytic converters was not operating efficiently according to the onboard diaganostics. I took it in and the dealer replaced it - free of charge since it was still under warranty; 2. The automatic trunk motor wasn't working properly. Once again fixed under warranty. I think I probably broke it, since I was initially impatient with it and would help it go faster - both up and down. Now I just trust that it will open and close on it's own and haven't hd any problems since then. Other than 2 those issues it's been a dream to drive. Very Very quiet. I have bluetooth for the phone, and the wood sterring wheel paddle shifters which work well. For such a large car it's still very fast. In my opinion the faster you go the quieter it gets and the smotther it drives. I can only speak of speeds up to about 125MPH though. The mood lighting at night is actually kinda cool too. I didn't know about that feature until after I bought it. I have taken it to the mountains for skiing and driven through a blizzard with out any problems. The quattro system works exceptionally well. I still have enough warranty to last another few years so I would definitely recommend it. The best feature is that the L version is long enough so my 6 and 7 year old kids can't kick the back of my seat anymore like they could in my old passat. Good luck with your decision.