What makes Audi maintenance so expensive?
 

I recently saw an ad selling a 1998 A6 Quattro for $9500 but some members
(and car reviews) suggested that it was very expensive to maintain. Is that
because of the labor, or the parts themselves? Consumerguide.com says that
changing shocks/struts costs $1600 (and brakes for $745). Is that due to the
shocks (and brakes) being expensive, or because it's more work? If I find a
cheap (but good) mechanic, can that lower the price? I found a set of 4
shocks on the Net for $200 (although they weren't for Quattro), and that's
more or less what I pay for shocks for a '90 Volvo 240DL (about $50/shock).
In terms of awards, Consumerguide.com gave it a Best Buy. On the other hand,
JD Power says that reliability of 1-3 years and 4-5 years was only 2/5. The
funny thing is that the 1997 model received better reliability numbers in JD
Power (most were 4/5). How come?
Needless to say, I just love how the car looks.

Thanks.

Re: What makes Audi maintenance so expensive?
 

Joe wrote:
>
> I recently saw an ad selling a 1998 A6 Quattro for $9500 but some members
> (and car reviews) suggested that it was very expensive to maintain. Is that
> because of the labor, or the parts themselves? Consumerguide.com says that
> changing shocks/struts costs $1600 (and brakes for $745). Is that due to the
> shocks (and brakes) being expensive, or because it's more work? If I find a
> cheap (but good) mechanic, can that lower the price? I found a set of 4
> shocks on the Net for $200 (although they weren't for Quattro), and that's
> more or less what I pay for shocks for a '90 Volvo 240DL (about $50/shock).
> In terms of awards, Consumerguide.com gave it a Best Buy. On the other hand,
> JD Power says that reliability of 1-3 years and 4-5 years was only 2/5. The
> funny thing is that the 1997 model received better reliability numbers in JD
> Power (most were 4/5). How come?
> Needless to say, I just love how the car looks.
>
> Thanks.

A friend was quoted $1400 for brake service (new pads and rotors on all
4 wheels, nothing fancy) on a A4Q. This was at the dealer. OEM parts
were about $340 (for all 4 wheels), so I would say labor was overly
expensive. He did the work himself and saved about $1k.

Re: What makes Audi maintenance so expensive?
 

Joe wrote:
>
> I recently saw an ad selling a 1998 A6 Quattro for $9500 but some members
> (and car reviews) suggested that it was very expensive to maintain. Is that
> because of the labor, or the parts themselves? Consumerguide.com says that
> changing shocks/struts costs $1600 (and brakes for $745). Is that due to the
> shocks (and brakes) being expensive, or because it's more work? If I find a
> cheap (but good) mechanic, can that lower the price? I found a set of 4
> shocks on the Net for $200 (although they weren't for Quattro), and that's
> more or less what I pay for shocks for a '90 Volvo 240DL (about $50/shock).
> In terms of awards, Consumerguide.com gave it a Best Buy. On the other hand,
> JD Power says that reliability of 1-3 years and 4-5 years was only 2/5. The
> funny thing is that the 1997 model received better reliability numbers in JD
> Power (most were 4/5). How come?
> Needless to say, I just love how the car looks.
>
> Thanks.

A friend was quoted $1400 for brake service (new pads and rotors on all
4 wheels, nothing fancy) on a A4Q. This was at the dealer. OEM parts
were about $340 (for all 4 wheels), so I would say labor was overly
expensive. He did the work himself and saved about $1k.

Re: What makes Audi maintenance so expensive?
 

Joe wrote:
>
> I recently saw an ad selling a 1998 A6 Quattro for $9500 but some members
> (and car reviews) suggested that it was very expensive to maintain. Is that
> because of the labor, or the parts themselves? Consumerguide.com says that
> changing shocks/struts costs $1600 (and brakes for $745). Is that due to the
> shocks (and brakes) being expensive, or because it's more work? If I find a
> cheap (but good) mechanic, can that lower the price? I found a set of 4
> shocks on the Net for $200 (although they weren't for Quattro), and that's
> more or less what I pay for shocks for a '90 Volvo 240DL (about $50/shock).
> In terms of awards, Consumerguide.com gave it a Best Buy. On the other hand,
> JD Power says that reliability of 1-3 years and 4-5 years was only 2/5. The
> funny thing is that the 1997 model received better reliability numbers in JD
> Power (most were 4/5). How come?
> Needless to say, I just love how the car looks.
>
> Thanks.

A friend was quoted $1400 for brake service (new pads and rotors on all
4 wheels, nothing fancy) on a A4Q. This was at the dealer. OEM parts
were about $340 (for all 4 wheels), so I would say labor was overly
expensive. He did the work himself and saved about $1k.

Re: What makes Audi maintenance so expensive?
 

On Sun, 17 Apr 2005 20:22:04 -0500, "Joe" <none@none.com> wrote:

>I found a set of 4
>shocks on the Net for $200 (although they weren't for Quattro), and that's
>more or less what I pay for shocks for a '90 Volvo 240DL (about $50/shock).

You get what you pay for. I've been driving Quattros since 1984, and
wouldn't buy anything else. My wife likes Toyota/Lexus SUVs, but she
also loves Audis. If Audi made an SUV, there wouldn't be a Lexus in
my garage. I find Audis reliable and no more expensive to own than
any other car. I remember one 15,000 mile maintenance I did on one of
my Audis and a friend's Honda cost $140 more. Go figure.

I have never replaced shocks on any Audi I've owned, and I've had
brake jobs done at a resonable price. The *worse* maintenance problem
I've had was a leaky seal on a transmission, and *that* was covered
under warranty.

I think you would be happier with that 90 Volvo 240DL even though I
can not imagine driving such a box, new or old.

YMMV, however.

Dave
RS6

Re: What makes Audi maintenance so expensive?
 

On Sun, 17 Apr 2005 20:22:04 -0500, "Joe" <none@none.com> wrote:

>I found a set of 4
>shocks on the Net for $200 (although they weren't for Quattro), and that's
>more or less what I pay for shocks for a '90 Volvo 240DL (about $50/shock).

You get what you pay for. I've been driving Quattros since 1984, and
wouldn't buy anything else. My wife likes Toyota/Lexus SUVs, but she
also loves Audis. If Audi made an SUV, there wouldn't be a Lexus in
my garage. I find Audis reliable and no more expensive to own than
any other car. I remember one 15,000 mile maintenance I did on one of
my Audis and a friend's Honda cost $140 more. Go figure.

I have never replaced shocks on any Audi I've owned, and I've had
brake jobs done at a resonable price. The *worse* maintenance problem
I've had was a leaky seal on a transmission, and *that* was covered
under warranty.

I think you would be happier with that 90 Volvo 240DL even though I
can not imagine driving such a box, new or old.

YMMV, however.

Dave
RS6

Re: What makes Audi maintenance so expensive?
 

On Sun, 17 Apr 2005 20:22:04 -0500, "Joe" <none@none.com> wrote:

>I found a set of 4
>shocks on the Net for $200 (although they weren't for Quattro), and that's
>more or less what I pay for shocks for a '90 Volvo 240DL (about $50/shock).

You get what you pay for. I've been driving Quattros since 1984, and
wouldn't buy anything else. My wife likes Toyota/Lexus SUVs, but she
also loves Audis. If Audi made an SUV, there wouldn't be a Lexus in
my garage. I find Audis reliable and no more expensive to own than
any other car. I remember one 15,000 mile maintenance I did on one of
my Audis and a friend's Honda cost $140 more. Go figure.

I have never replaced shocks on any Audi I've owned, and I've had
brake jobs done at a resonable price. The *worse* maintenance problem
I've had was a leaky seal on a transmission, and *that* was covered
under warranty.

I think you would be happier with that 90 Volvo 240DL even though I
can not imagine driving such a box, new or old.

YMMV, however.

Dave
RS6

Re: What makes Audi maintenance so expensive?
 

The short answer is: Because the market bears it. People who buy $35K
and up cars don't usually balk at $1600 brake jobs. The dealer's can get
it and Audi can get top dollar for parts, so they do. Aftermarket parts
are available for a lot of the common wear items like brakes and struts,
but they are generally of lower quality (but not always). I have a '99
A4 2.8Q and a '95 525i in the driveway, but I do all my own maintenance
and on the rare occasion that I have to buy OEM parts, I just grin and
bear it. For what it's worth, the Audi has been unreliable. Several oil
leaks, bad air bags, faulty connectors, radiator that failed way too
early, poorly designed hose clamps that all started to leak at the same
time, etc. I think they are a bad risk if you don't have a warranty and
can't do the work. The BMW on the other hand seems bullet-proof at 187K
(still on the original clutch).

Randolph wrote:
> Joe wrote:
>
>>I recently saw an ad selling a 1998 A6 Quattro for $9500 but some members
>>(and car reviews) suggested that it was very expensive to maintain. Is that
>>because of the labor, or the parts themselves? Consumerguide.com says that
>>changing shocks/struts costs $1600 (and brakes for $745). Is that due to the
>>shocks (and brakes) being expensive, or because it's more work? If I find a
>>cheap (but good) mechanic, can that lower the price? I found a set of 4
>>shocks on the Net for $200 (although they weren't for Quattro), and that's
>>more or less what I pay for shocks for a '90 Volvo 240DL (about $50/shock).
>>In terms of awards, Consumerguide.com gave it a Best Buy. On the other hand,
>>JD Power says that reliability of 1-3 years and 4-5 years was only 2/5. The
>>funny thing is that the 1997 model received better reliability numbers in JD
>>Power (most were 4/5). How come?
>>Needless to say, I just love how the car looks.
>>
>>Thanks.
>
>
> A friend was quoted $1400 for brake service (new pads and rotors on all
> 4 wheels, nothing fancy) on a A4Q. This was at the dealer. OEM parts
> were about $340 (for all 4 wheels), so I would say labor was overly
> expensive. He did the work himself and saved about $1k.

Re: What makes Audi maintenance so expensive?
 

The short answer is: Because the market bears it. People who buy $35K
and up cars don't usually balk at $1600 brake jobs. The dealer's can get
it and Audi can get top dollar for parts, so they do. Aftermarket parts
are available for a lot of the common wear items like brakes and struts,
but they are generally of lower quality (but not always). I have a '99
A4 2.8Q and a '95 525i in the driveway, but I do all my own maintenance
and on the rare occasion that I have to buy OEM parts, I just grin and
bear it. For what it's worth, the Audi has been unreliable. Several oil
leaks, bad air bags, faulty connectors, radiator that failed way too
early, poorly designed hose clamps that all started to leak at the same
time, etc. I think they are a bad risk if you don't have a warranty and
can't do the work. The BMW on the other hand seems bullet-proof at 187K
(still on the original clutch).

Randolph wrote:
> Joe wrote:
>
>>I recently saw an ad selling a 1998 A6 Quattro for $9500 but some members
>>(and car reviews) suggested that it was very expensive to maintain. Is that
>>because of the labor, or the parts themselves? Consumerguide.com says that
>>changing shocks/struts costs $1600 (and brakes for $745). Is that due to the
>>shocks (and brakes) being expensive, or because it's more work? If I find a
>>cheap (but good) mechanic, can that lower the price? I found a set of 4
>>shocks on the Net for $200 (although they weren't for Quattro), and that's
>>more or less what I pay for shocks for a '90 Volvo 240DL (about $50/shock).
>>In terms of awards, Consumerguide.com gave it a Best Buy. On the other hand,
>>JD Power says that reliability of 1-3 years and 4-5 years was only 2/5. The
>>funny thing is that the 1997 model received better reliability numbers in JD
>>Power (most were 4/5). How come?
>>Needless to say, I just love how the car looks.
>>
>>Thanks.
>
>
> A friend was quoted $1400 for brake service (new pads and rotors on all
> 4 wheels, nothing fancy) on a A4Q. This was at the dealer. OEM parts
> were about $340 (for all 4 wheels), so I would say labor was overly
> expensive. He did the work himself and saved about $1k.

Re: What makes Audi maintenance so expensive?
 

The short answer is: Because the market bears it. People who buy $35K
and up cars don't usually balk at $1600 brake jobs. The dealer's can get
it and Audi can get top dollar for parts, so they do. Aftermarket parts
are available for a lot of the common wear items like brakes and struts,
but they are generally of lower quality (but not always). I have a '99
A4 2.8Q and a '95 525i in the driveway, but I do all my own maintenance
and on the rare occasion that I have to buy OEM parts, I just grin and
bear it. For what it's worth, the Audi has been unreliable. Several oil
leaks, bad air bags, faulty connectors, radiator that failed way too
early, poorly designed hose clamps that all started to leak at the same
time, etc. I think they are a bad risk if you don't have a warranty and
can't do the work. The BMW on the other hand seems bullet-proof at 187K
(still on the original clutch).

Randolph wrote:
> Joe wrote:
>
>>I recently saw an ad selling a 1998 A6 Quattro for $9500 but some members
>>(and car reviews) suggested that it was very expensive to maintain. Is that
>>because of the labor, or the parts themselves? Consumerguide.com says that
>>changing shocks/struts costs $1600 (and brakes for $745). Is that due to the
>>shocks (and brakes) being expensive, or because it's more work? If I find a
>>cheap (but good) mechanic, can that lower the price? I found a set of 4
>>shocks on the Net for $200 (although they weren't for Quattro), and that's
>>more or less what I pay for shocks for a '90 Volvo 240DL (about $50/shock).
>>In terms of awards, Consumerguide.com gave it a Best Buy. On the other hand,
>>JD Power says that reliability of 1-3 years and 4-5 years was only 2/5. The
>>funny thing is that the 1997 model received better reliability numbers in JD
>>Power (most were 4/5). How come?
>>Needless to say, I just love how the car looks.
>>
>>Thanks.
>
>
> A friend was quoted $1400 for brake service (new pads and rotors on all
> 4 wheels, nothing fancy) on a A4Q. This was at the dealer. OEM parts
> were about $340 (for all 4 wheels), so I would say labor was overly
> expensive. He did the work himself and saved about $1k.