'88 5000S Auto FS; Any Buyer Beware?

[Huw Powell]

> After reading this thread, I've decided to sell my three Audis. I thought 
> they were well designed durable cars.

They are, that's why everything breaks... A lot of what we are looking 
at are the things that go bad well after 100,000 miles and ten years or 
so - other than a few "trouble-prone" systems on some models, the reason 
we have to fix all these things is that the car has outlasted almost 
everything else on the road.  How many other 18 year old cars are you 
looking at - or are even *alive* to look at?

>    If they are such poor cars with nearly every system of the car suffering 
> from chronic failures, why would anyone, including the many subscribing to 
> this list, ever purchase and /or maintain any example of the mark?

The trouble with the 'type 44' especially, is that it *is* an expensive 
car, hence will occasionally require expensive repairs.  This is fine if 
the car is otherwise a great thing to own.  Most people here are more 
into the "added value" perceived in the quattro all wheel drive and 
turbocharged engines, making the car worth fixing.  Take both away and 
throw in the automatic trans. and you still have a really nice, but 
rather old, car.  Cheap to get into but potentially as expensive as any 
(old) luxury car to keep on the road.

> Car is pretty cherry, 140k, ... no apparent rust.  ...  Interior 
> is immaculate.  Is this about par for this model.

Expensive luxury cars usually had their interiors well cared for. 
Combined with galvanization and other rust preventative techniques, this 
leads to old 5000's often looking almost "factory fresh" when being sold 
at 18 years old.  But they're not... typically, the windows and doors 
won't even open.  The climate control will be full of random gremlins. 
The leaks will be cleaned up for sale.  The last mechanic to look at it 
gave the owner a $6,000 repair estimate to keep it on the road another year.

In other words, as a back up car for someone with one already, a car 
like this might be a nice loaner/parts getter, etc.  For someone 
unfamiliar with it, and no real desire to be an amateur mechanic, it 
could be an unreliable money pit.

I'd recommend a nice, simple, 5-8 year old Japanese entry-level compact 
model that has been nicely cared for.

-- 
Huw Powell

http://www.humanspeakers.com/audi

http://www.humanthoughts.org/