Driving Older Audis-long but a goldmine

[jzwahlen at cerrejon.com]

I was forced to sell, because I moved to South America in
1999.  I'm storing my '94 Porsche 968 in St. Louis, but
decided to sell the '87 5K CS TQ and '93 100CS.  A friend of
mine at work who is an acknowledged car nut, knew how I
maintained my cars a bought BOTH of our Audis.  He also
drives an 1969 MB two seat convertible.  I thinks its a 2xx
SL ?

Any besides, when I come back to the US in a year or two I
can buy a new AUDI!!!!  : )

Buy the way, I sold the '87 for $5,000, so, I should have
backed this out of the $36.5k of the total cost of
ownership, meaning cost of ownership was actually $31.5k or 
only $218/month!



On Fri, 16 Feb 2001 19:31:58 -0500
 Tom Donohue <donohue at netconnx.net> wrote:
> *This message was transferred with a trial version of
> CommuniGate(tm) Pro*
> Questions:  why were you "forced" to sell?" and
>                   who owns it now?  (P.S.  I had the same
> car from '87
> to '90 and had similar expense experience, but didn't get
> the rebates.
> Guess I should have asked!)
> 
> My '89 200q avant had 350,000 miles on it when I sold it
> to a non-lister
> last August, who flew in from Cleveland and drove it back
> for some
> mods.  He is still driving it and planning some major
> improvement which
> will be posted to the list when done.  The major selling
> point for this
> wagon (aside from its excellent body and driving
> condition, considering
> mileage) was the detailed log maintained by the PO and me
> of all repairs
> and maintenance done to the vehicle from 61,000 miles,
> when the PO
> acquired it.  When you can see the maintenance record
> from spread sheets
> and repair orders, it certainly raises the comfort level
> of the
> prospective buyer.  I am doing the same for my '91
> 200q20v avant and, if
> and when I ever decide to pass it on, the buyer will know
> as much
> information of the history as I can provide.  Regards,
> Tom
> 
> jzwahlen at cerrejon.com wrote:
> 
> > I would like to share my 12 year, 120,000 mile
> experience
> > with my 1987 5000CS TQ.  I bought the car new in May,
> 1987
> > (Some of you may remember I threw a 10 year birthday
> party
> > for the car in 1997, and some of you were in
> attendance).
> > The list price on the car was about $32,500.  This was
> the
> > Audi flagship of the time and the materials, the
> carpet,
> > everything was first class.  I received a factory
> rebate
> > coupon for $5,000 because of the fallout from the UI
> fiasco
> > on 60 minutes, plus I got another $2,500 dealer
> discount.
> > So I ended up paying about $25,000 in capital costs.
> >
> > Over the first 100,000 miles the car had $14,400 in
> > maintenance.  All maintenance including tires,
> batteries,
> > oil, alignments, etc.  I calculate that $6,100 was
> spent in
> > routine maintenance.  This amounts to $500 per year
> > ($0.061mile) in the minimum upkeep.  I changed oil
> every
> > 2500 miles.
> >
> > This leaves $8,300 in unusual repairs such as component
> > failure, normal wear and tear, damage, etc.  (Of this
> amount
> > $1,050 was most unusual-a fuel contamination problem,
> for
> > which the oil company paid half of a $2100 repair
> bill).  Of
> > the $8,300, $2,900 was covered either under the
> original
> > factory warranty or a so-so extended warranty which I
> > purchased.  So that leaves $5,400 of unusual repairs
> which I
> > paid for out of my own pocket.  This is another $450
> per
> > year or $0.054/mile.
> >
> > So of the $14k,  $11,500 was out of pocket routine and
> > unusual maintenance.  This added to the capital cost of
> the
> > car is $36.5k to drive my beloved '87 5000CS TQ 12
> years and
> > 120,000 miles.  This amounts to $253/month.  What kind
> of
> > vehicle can you get for a lease of $250 per month?
> >
> > When I was forced to sell it in 1999, it was like new.
> The
> > interior and exterior were clean and shiny and
> mechanically
> > the car was in completely operational condition.  Most
> > always the car was maintained at an Audi dealership,
> always
> > with Audi original parts.
> >
> > I replaced the radiator at 80,000 miles because I knew
> of
> > the problem with the plastic neck failing and I didn't
> want
> > to blow a head gasket like I did on my wife's '85
> 5000S.
> > Another unusual repair was the RR differential seal
> which
> > was leaking.  I had this job done 3 times in St Louis
> at the
> > Audi dealer between March of 1990 and May of 1991.  It
> > leaked again after I moved to Houston TX and I got it
> fixed
> > for the fourth and last time in March 1994.
> >
> > So was the Audi expensive to maintain?  When you look
> at
> > $11,500 in repairs it seems so, but we are talking
> about
> > $0.115 per mile.  Do you think this is reasonable?
> >
> > If you buy into a car which has not been properly
> > maintained, then you are in for one big repair bill to
> bring
> > the car up to a reliable condition.  I must say, except
> for
> > the fuel contamination problem, the car never stranded
> me.
> > It was always there for my work and my pleasure.  Seems
> like
> > many people are of the opinion that cars should be
> driven
> > and not cared for.  I'm of the other school, if I think
> > something is close to failing, I fix it before it can
> bite
> > me.
> >
> > If anyone wants a copy of my detailed spreadsheet with
> all
> > the repairs, email me directly and I will share it with
> you.
> > Password, which must be contained in the body of the
> > request, is "I want a new Audi twin turbo!"   The list
> only
> > covers thru 1997, and the first 100,000 miles, I did
> not
> > maintain the spreadsheet for the remaining two years I
> had
> > the car, but I don't remember any unusual repairs in
> those
> > two years.  The cost per mile calculation was based on
> > 100,000 miles and is a little on the high side because
> I got
> > 120,000 miles out of the car before I was forced to
> sell.
> >
> > Hope this helps someone make a decision.
>