[Biturbos4] Extended Warranty Buy

[Al Adler]

Ok, as someone who has a couple of those problems, what hourly rate do 
you base your labor cost on? Here in N Va the labor costs tend to be 
through the roof  - around a $100/hour. Can you give books times for the 
auto trans,  O2 sensors, and cam chain tensioner?
Thanks
Al

Keman wrote:

>So what is the highest mileage S4 on this list?
>
>I just ticked off 78000 tonight. No warranty unfortunately.
>
>My rear view mirror suffered a very rare failure recently .. some of the
>self dimming area became non-active .. no longer dimming. I replaced it with
>an '03 unit that had a compass. Piece of cake to install, true plug and
>play. Got it off ebay but now wish I'd held out for an '04 unit. The compass
>has a more blended in appearance with the mirror on 04's.
>
>When I first started pricing out replacement mirrors, you can bet I suddenly
>wished I had a warranty left .. they are definitely useful for these cars,
>as a few random things are likely to fail before 100k miles. Nothing
>drastic.
>
>Here's what I project based on historical evidence:
>
>Cam chain tensioners starting to leak oil. Very small leak, back of pass.
>head and in front of drivers side head. 90% probability by 80k miles. Parts
>price: $10. Labor: $600 for both. Can a do-it-yourselfer fix this? Not
>without the help of someone who has done it before. Possibility of damage
>due to mistakes? Severe. Long method involves removing the camshafts. Quick
>method involves risking droping tiny critical pieces of metal into engine.
>Any time I want some easy warranty pay I just look here. These things ALL
>leak. On the 4 cylinder engines, the 2.8's, the 2.7's. But it's a slow leak.
>Starts out -very- minor ... and gradually gets worse with time.
>
>Valve cover gaskets. Slight leak. 75% probability by 70k. Parts price: $40.
>Labor: $180 for both. DIY? Definitely. Easy. Possibility of damage due to
>mistakes? Well. don't drop anything in there. It's a long way down to the
>oilpan through a lot of small holes.
>
>Evap Purge Solenoid Valve. 60% probability of failure by 90k miles. Parts
>price: under $100. DIY? Easy. You can't screw this one up.
>
>Battery. 100% probability of failure within 4 years if it's made by MOLL.
>Some of this is because almost noone checks their electrolyte level and tops
>it off appropriately with distilled water. The rest is because it's a piece
>of junk battery. Mine had shorted cells recently and I kissed it goodbye.
>Luckily our battery tray has provisions for several different sizes of
>batteries via different hold-downs. Ask your dealer about upsizing or
>downsizing your battery. I took a battery that was 10 lbs lighter but had
>the same output capacity. The stock size is very hard to get. Audi does not
>use MOLL any longer.
>
>Primary O2 sensor failure. 50% probability of failure by 100k miles. Parts
>price: $360 or $44, depending on if you use exact or near exact
>replacements. DIY? Moderate. Labor: $350 for both. Possibility of damage due
>to mistakes? Unlikely.
>
>HVAC Blower motor bearing failure. 60% probability before 80k miles. Parts
>price: $80 or free if you just lube the bearing. Labor: $40. DIY?
>Definitely. Possibility of damage? Only if you get the flamethrower out.
>
>Automatic transmission output shaft seal. 80% probability of failure by 90k
>miles. Parts price: $45. Labor: $250. DIY? Easy if you have access to a
>lift. PITA if you gotta do it crawling under the car. Possibility of damage
>due to mistakes? Not much.
>
>Bypass valves. Yes. Use the new ones from VW and they likely will not fail.
>
>That's the bad news. Here's the good news. Things fail on a bell curve when
>they are designed properly but manufactured improperly (ie: with defects).
>That is to say.. if it's defective, it will be prominant quickly, usually
>before your warranty runs out. After that period, you see a very low rate of
>failure until physical wear MTBF end of lifes the part. Then there is a high
>rate of failures.
>
>Oil pan gasket: never seen one leaking on a 2.7.
>Manual transmission output shaft seal: never seen one leaking.
>Manual transmission mechanical failure: after you hit 75k miles
>successfully, they last a LONG long time. 200k - 300k miles.
>Turbocharger mechanical failure: same as above.
>Engine mechanical failure: same as above
>Air Conditioning failure: same as above.
>
>So the REAL expensive things .. stuff that sends our cars to the wrecker
>because it just isn't cost effective to fix.. show a good value of german
>engineering. It's definitely designed well.
>
>Just my .02
>
>- Keman
>
>  
>
>>>Bob Stephenson
>>>2000 S4 (36,000 miles and out of warranty)
>>>      
>>>
>
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