Akeaka

Hey all,

I'm looking to buy my first car and was wondering what the average cost of ownership is for a well maintained 02-05' Audi A4 (likely a 3.0 v6). I'll only buy a vehicle with loads of service records, and few if any mods.
I will most likely be getting a vehicle with around 100k miles, so pumps, alternators and the like are an obvious cost. How does that compare to say Toyota or Nissan parts/replacements? What about other problems?

Do Audis have the same electrical problems that plague VWs and some BMW/Mercedes?

Thanks.

lyleswk

I will give you the average for 5 of my cars, one of which is no longer with me. I give a range to give an idea of various cars with various mileage. I do most of the maintenance and about half the repairs on my cars. The key here is what shape is the car in.

1) 1965 Ford Galaxie 500 XL Convertible; been in family since 1972: Dropped about $1000 in repairs on it last year, but $0 all other years since 2005 when I inherited the car from my parents; it was my high school ride. Average reapair / year: $125 / year. Maintenance costs are negligible. Fuel costs, well a 390 V8 of that era only gets about 6 mpg, but I only drive it about 500 miles a year
2) 1984 Nissan / Datsun 300ZX Turbo Anniversary Edition, owned since new and carefully maintained its entire life: Dropped about $3000 into it last year, about $500 in 2011, about $1500 in 2008, about $500 in 2006. So, the average is somewhere between $500 and $1000 a year since 2003. Incidently, have about 162K on her.
3) 1999 Mercedes ML 320, 230K miles; owned since 2000 (one owner Starmark vehicle). This car takes regular repairs due to mileage from door lock actuators, to radiator, to coil packs, to pcv cleanout, to etc, etc. I average somewhere in the $750 to $1000 per year.
4) 2002 A4 1.8t Sport with Manual, 208K miles. I purchased this cheap with numerous issues that I beforehand knew needed attention. These included timing belt, leaky PS rack, window regulator, wheel bearing. These and then some of the normal A4 things like 2 coolant flanges, leaky heater hose, cam seals, etc, I ended up dropping about what expected, but more than I consider normal which is $1000 to $1500 a year for 2.5 years. But, considering the shape of the car when i bought it, it was expected.
5) 2003 A4 1.8t Sport with Manual, 105K. It has been in the shop once to replaced the cam adjustor which was an issue when i bought the car and a 3 month purchase warranty paid for all but $300. So, average cost to date is about $500 per year since I have only owned for 9 months. I expect this to continue since the car has a very clean history (one owner, maintained by Nebraska dealer its entire life).

Bottom line, it you find a clean car in the 100K range, you should be spending about $500 to $750 a month. It you get a "dirty" one or one with lots of miles, you can expect to spend $1000 plus. Buyer beware and be patient in your search.

P.S. I have had no more electrical issues with my Audis than my Mercedes...or the Nissan...

pelletman

I think you mean a YEAR!