used non-suv's

[lee at wheelman.com]

"Chris Dyer" <chrisdyer at hotmail.com> writes:


> I'll be changing careers soon (or so I think!) to an outside 
> sales rep position. This means my car must be very reliable, take 
> clients around in cleanliness and comfort, and haul schtuff. The 
> ol' type44, though I love it dearly, ain't gonna cut it. Great, 
> and I just bought euros for it after 6 years of ownership...
> 
> For my own critieria, I refuse to buy new and/or boring. I also 
> want awd and decent (fun) performance.
> 
> I'm not checking out A4 avants cuz I think they're too small. I'm 
> looking at allroads and the v70 t5 awd. Any volvo-knowledgeable 
> folks out there wanna give me opinions? (off-list to save BW) 
> Also looking for opinions of Passat 4motion owners.


Chris,

I went through a similar evaluation process, but was moving up 
from an S6 avant. I looked at allroads, drove a few, and decided 
that while I loved the motor, I really didn't like the suspension 
and was afraid of the maintenance bills for both the air 
suspension and the twin turbos.

I also drove a couple of A6 avants (I'm a wagon guy) and decided 
that the basic platform is really good, particularly 2002 and 
later. Audi made some substantial changes 2001-2002, most of which 
are invisible to the average viewer. (3.0 versus 2.8l motor, 
different front bumper, different rear bumper, thicker door seals, 
stiffer chassis, interior changes, etc)

I've done some mods to my wagon - sport sway bars, bilstein 
shocks, 17" wheels, etc, and while it doesn't handle like my old 
s6 avant with its bilstein/eibach setup, it's a darn good car at 
50 or 100 mph.

I've got some knowledge of the late model Volvos and overall (I 
was a Volvo fan for a long time and still run a mailing list for 
Volvo owners - www.swedishbricks.net), I'd suggest that you stay 
in the Audi family :)

The recent Volvos are pretty boring, IMO, and the awd setups are a 
bit sketchy. The cars are not nearly as reliable as the older 
Volvos were. If you drove equivalent Volvos and Audis back to 
back, you'd probably see a pretty substantial difference in 
overall road feel and performance.

Then of course there's the Touareg. :)

Oh, and btw, give some thought to your budget before you jump into 
a new car. Sales is a tough business - you won't make a lot of 
money in some months, and your job is *always* at risk. Don't make 
your numbers and you're gone.

Also, customers generally appreciate the fact that you drive an 
inexpensive car versus being wowed by a flashy new car. They see 
that as coming out of their pockets...

Maybe a '95 S6 avant would be a good compromise - looks like every 
other soccer mom's Audi on the road, and only you know its 
capabilities...

Just my .02

Lee