Dead Puppy

[Fred Munro]

Well, let's see...
I bought my '91 200q in '94 with 140k on the clock for US$8000 - (I'll
convert everything to US$ for our southern brethren) .
I sold it in '99 at 280k for $2000 when I bought the S4.
During that time I replaced the front brake rotors ($125), one wheel bearing
($180), one upper rear link ($100), a voltage regulator ($10), a tie rod end
($100), rear rotors and pads ($200), fuel pump ($150), timing belt & water
pump etc. ($300), heater core & blower motor ($200), distributor cap & rotor
($40), a bomb ($125), diff seals ($20), A/C compressor & condenser ($950).

So, for 5 years and 140k, the car cost me (ignoring inflation, etc.) $6000
in capital outlay and $2500 in maintenance - around $140/month.

A heck of a lot better than buying new and trading at 100k IMHO - plus I had
a great looking, great driving, reliable car! The car still looks brand new
when I see it around town - the new owner keeps it spotless :o)

Fred Munro
'94 S4
----- Original Message -----
From: "Brady Moffatt" <bradym at sympatico.ca>
To: "josh Wyte" <josh_wyte at yahoo.com>; "Brendan" <coolian at attbi.com>
Cc: <quattro at audifans.com>
Sent: Tuesday, February 19, 2002 10:06 AM
Subject: Re: Dead Puppy


> First off, I'm on the old car/high mileage side of the fence.
>
> A couple of points:
> Old cars (let's assume Audis here) with high mileage don't depreciate.
They
> _already_have_ depreciated! Maybe percentage-wise, depreciation still
> exists, but in dollar terms, it's pretty much done. I fully expect to get
> the amount I paid for my 1986 4kq when (and I hope that's never) I sell
it.
> BTW, I bought it in Oct 2001 with 273000km (170000miles) on it.
>
> Which leaves only the maintenance cost. The cost of maintenance is pretty
> much the entire cost of ownership. And if you upgrade when doing
> maintenance, you may actually recoup some of your maintenance costs by
> adding a bit of value to the car.
>
> Not to mention the huge savings on insurance.
>
> Selling the car: I think that there are many people on this list who
bought
> or sold high mileage (over 150k miles)older Audis with no problems. Try
that
> with a Dorf Taurus and I agree, you might have a problem, but we're
talking
> Audis here.
>
> There needs to be two sides to this argument though. Otherwise, one side
> would have nobody to sell to, and the other would have nobody to buy from!
>
> Cheers,
> Brady Moffatt
> Montreal, Quebec, Canada
> 86 4ksq, 280,000km
> 72 Datsun 240Z, 180,000 miles
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "josh Wyte" <josh_wyte at yahoo.com>
>
>
> > I fail to see the holes in my financial argument.
> > Whenever I've had car payments, they've always been
> > under $250 a month.  For a car that's under factory
> > warranty and is on the upside of the depreciation
> > equation.
> >
> > A car over 100k miles, while over the hump
> > depreciation wise, still really isn't worth beans.
> > Ever try selling a car with 150k+ miles on it?  It's
> > very difficult to realize any amount for it, which
> > means that your purchase cost and any (costly) repairs
> > you've done to it are simply gone.  Most cars with
> > 100k miles plus on them have several key components
> > that wear out and cost a rather large amount of money
> > to replace.  For example, the clutch on my A4 is a 10
> > hour job labor wise to replace.  That's a job I'd not
> > want to undertake in my gravel driveway and would cost
> > $1000.
> >
> > I fail to see why it would be financially advantageous
> > to own a car that's rapidly depreciating and will need
> > expensive repairs, even if it means no car payment.
> > Obviously if a car payment is $500+ a month, then I
> > see your point, but not at $250 or less...
> >
> > -josh
> >
> >
> > --- Brendan <coolian at attbi.com> wrote:
> > >
> > > >It seems that I've struck a chord here with list
> > > >members, many of whom drive cars that are 15+ years
> > > >old and have well over 200k miles.
> > >
> > > I think you are mixing two different ideas in one
> > > statement in your email.
> > >
> > > Your financial argument doesn't seem terribly well
> > > thought-out, with holes
> > > in the numbers, but your "I need a car that has high
> > > uptime" is completely
> > > subjective and understandable. If you don't enjoy
> > > wrenching on your own car
> > > with the possibility of it being down more than a
> > > new one, that's cool. A
> > > new car will probably serve you well in this
> > > respect, but you should
> > > realize that if a person is willing to take their
> > > chances, the used car
> > > "100k+" route is much cheaper financially, but much
> > > more expensive if
> > > saving your time is more important than saving your
> > > money.
> > >
> > > Just realize there are two different lines of
> > > thought in your "100k"
> > > assessment.
> > >
> > > Brendan
> > >
> >
> >
> > =====
> > Josh Wyte
> > Momentum Motorsports
> > 508-833-3024 After 5 pm EST
>
>