Old Audi's worth keeping ? was:Dead Puppy

[Livolsi, Stephane]

Kent, you pose a very good question - being: are these cars worth keeping
when they start costing a bunch of money?  As someone who has recently been
seriously inconvenienced both timewise and financially by my 5KTQ, I am
still solidly sold on this car and definitely plan to keep it until a
catastrophic failure such as breaking in half due to metal fatigue.

1.  I like working on vehicles - especially challenging ones.
2.  While currently inconvenienced as my 5KTQ sits waiting a new fuel pump,
I have had the opportunity to drive newer vehicles generously lent to me by
friends.  Among them is a 2001 Ford Taurus and 99 or 00 Mazda 626 and 88
Audi 90Q.  I can't wait to get back behind the wheel of my Audi.  Yes the
new cars are nice, but they don't have the same comfortable 'feel' as my
older Audi.  I feel that my 86 Audi is much better engineered and built than
all these other cars (except the 88 90Q) and that may be the key.  My 86
Audi was built as a luxury performance sedan by Europeans who have more of a
passion for this- IMHO- YMMV. The newer cars are built strictly as
transportation and the manufacturers are trying to entice buyers with add on
gadgety features.
3.  Cost.  I could buy or lease a new car and have a payment or pay cash and
incur the opportunity cost (I am a financial planner - these things matter
to me).  My opinion is that a new car would cost more than the cost of
maintaining my Audi, because for the most part I budget for it.  The way I
see it, I could have a $300/mo car payment, or I can budget $300/mo to
maintain my Audi.  The latter gives me a car I like to drive.

BTW, I don't look at my recent fuel pump problems in Bella Coola as an Audi
problem.  It was a car problem and a chance that I knowingly took in driving
an older vehicle.  Could have happened even if I was driving a notoriously
reliable Toyota.

.02

Stephane

> ----------
> From: 	Kent McLean[SMTP:kentmclean at mindspring.com]
> Sent: 	February 13, 2002 8:01 AM
> To: 	quattro at audifans.com
> Subject: 	Dead Puppy
>
> I just got a call from the mechanic regarding the fuel
> leak in my 200 TQ. As mentioned by the list, the most
> common problem is rusted out fuel lines. In my case,
> it isn't so simple. The tank is rusted.
>
> To replace it, according to the mechanic, you have to
> drop the rear end (10-12 hours labor), then you have
> to source a tank (~$500 used, ~$750 new), maybe update
> the fuel pump (which was replaced not long ago). His
> estimate is $1500. As much as it pains me, I may have
> to put her to sleep.
>
> Q. Is it worth $1500 to save a car that's worth maybe
>     $3000? Except for this, the car is/was in great shape.
>     I've put about $3000 into it over the last two years.
>
> This also puts a damper on my thought of a V8. Or maybe
> it just forces the issue. I was hoping the sale of this
> one would help toward the purchase of a V8, but it won't
> help much.
>
> Heartbroken,
> Kent
> '89 200 TQ, "Dead Puppy"
>