...and thus commences my first post.

[Nate Stuart]

On Saturday 28 July 2001 21:54, Shan T King wrote:
> OK, I need some help. I'm looking at buying an '86 5000 CS Turbo (sadly,
> it's not Quattro) for $2600. The car is in beautiful shape inside and

Sounds steep for a 5kt. I just bought a fairly clean 5kt for ~500 with less 
than 80k on the clock, www.cs.usm.maine.edu/~stuart/new5kt . Now I know that 
I may have gotten a rare deal, and the example you are looking at may be 
nicer, but I wouldn't pay more than 2 for a 5kt(with a fresh tranny). A 
decent tq is another story, and IMO a much more fun/reliable car.

> out. My dilemma is that I can't find any consistent opinions on this car.
> I've spent many hours researching it online without bugging anyone with
> 1. This car is a piece of junk. It is nothing more than a moneypit.

Good point...

> 2. This car is the most awesome machine I have ever bought. It's very
> reliable, requires little of me. Just thinking of it makes me randy.

Another valid point... ;)

> So, I need to know if this car would be a good buy. The particular one
> i'm looking at has 174,000 miles and has been religiously maintained by
> its current owner for the last six years or so. The current owner loves
> it. He was inspired to buy another Audi, which seems to be really high
> praise to me. He claims to have had very few problems with it, minor ones
> at that (stuff like the doorhandles, etc.). No problems with the engine,
> drivetrain, turbo, etc.
> So, with that many miles, (and a turbo) how much longer can i expect the
> engine to last with good maintainance? Will i get another five years out
> of this car?

Hmm, at that mileage and the fact that the car has an automatic tranny (well, 
I assume it does being a non-quattro, not all do though) I would be worried 
about the remaining life in the transmission. The motor will outrun the 
tranny 3x over as long as it has been fed well.

> And the bottom line:
> Will this car be reliable? As a not-quite-poor-but-by-no-means-rich
> college student, would this car be a good choice for me? Being that the
> turbo hasn't been rebuilt in the last six years (but is still putting out
> the bar it should) will it last much longer? What do I need to beware of?
> Is there anything that will need to be replaced soon?

Again, look out for the tranny. The 5k is a big car, and the turbo motor puts 
that much more stress on an already weak point on the car.

> My continued residence on this list relies on whether or not i buy this
> car.

Hmm, keep looking around. Even if this car is a gem keep your options open. 
Another car may not look as cosmetically clean as this example, but may be a 
much better deal. But then again I look more at function over form, which is 
why my 90 is still the ugly duckling of the flock.

> ps - how does the turbo affect engine life? wear and tear?

It doesn't. Check the oil lines to from and around the turbo/oil cooler. 
Check the coolant line coming off the front coolant fitting on the engine and 
wrapping around the front of the head to the turbo. The rubber bit in the 
middle is know to be the weak spot and burst after time. Also try to check 
out the after-run system. Use SJM's page for testing references for this and 
many other aspects of the engine at: http://www.sjmautotechnik.com

Best of luck!
-Nate
'89 90q (compeating with the Harley's for the fuzz's attention)
'86 5kt (doner)
'87 5ktq (donor)