[V8] meandering thoughts on a mild Saturday

[Roger M. Woodbury]

I have made the decision to put the V8 back on the road.  It has been in 
its garage on a battery minder since September 2013 because we had no 
need to run two cars. Only one of us drives regularly in this house and 
the 100CS Avant Quattro is the more practical of the two vehicles to 
drive on a daily basis. The V8 simply will NOT carry have a dozen 2X4's 
no matter how hard I try to convince it.

The 100 has just passed 200,000 miles. Although it runs perfectly there 
are the continual nagging issues of an older, high mileage German car.  
I just took it to the wrench because I noted a coolant leak from in 
front of the engine.  Not a heavy leak, but a leak there is a concern 
because of the presence of a whole lot of stuff that should NOT be 
leaking now. The timing belt and water pump are only 20K old, so I was 
quite sure the issue wasn't there. At 200,000 miles it could well be 
time for the radiator to go south. I wanted to be sure.

Yes!  It is the radiator that has a slightly leaking seam.  I'll have 
the radiator replaced when the car goes back for its oil change, 
mandatory inspection and to have winter tires put back on later in the 
fall.  Meanwhile, I'll just watch coolant levels. We'll likely drive 
around 2000 miles between now and November, so I',m not worrying.

But while we were "in there", with the belly pan off, we looked up at 
the underside of the engine.  The big issue really is with the oil leaks 
that are there and actually getting some worse.  I am growing more and 
more concerned about this, as sooner or later there will need to be 
something done about the leaks.  They are not going to go away and are 
numerous enough to that once they get really severe, it will not be 
possible to "chase them down":  at that point the choice will be to 
completely reseal the engine or do something else entirely.

So, I've begun to think about "alternatives" to the station wagon, and 
perhaps when the BIG decision time comes....roughly when the timing belt 
job looms its head once again...the question will be what?  I watched a 
couple of eBay auctions for Audi allroads go by, and the price on the 
'04-'05 all road is certainly coming down.  So I did a bunch more 
reading about that particular car and have learned a LOT.  I also had a 
discussion with my wrench and the other guys in his shop about the 
allroad.  The concensus is that the allroad is a very nice car, but the 
2.7 twin turbo is to be shunned like the plague because of specific 
issues with the turbocharging system in terms of cost and complexity.  
Well and good because the only allroad I was interested in was the 4.2 
cars anyway.

That was until I read a bit further.  The 4.2 litre engine in the 
allroad is a timing chain engine. The engine is largely the same as in 
the S4, with the chain located at the rear of the engine. Audi intended 
for the timing chain system to last a long time, and apparently the 
chain itself is not a wear or failure item, and in point of fact, the 
entire motor is very robust.  All except for the chain guides and 
tensioners.  They can become a wear item at around 100,000 miles and R&R 
requires the pulling of the engine.  Then, too once the engine is out, 
not only do all the plastic guides and tenesioners need to be replaced, 
but  so also the cam adjusters and those suckers are EXPENSIVE, so I gather.

So, on the allroad you have the air suspension AND the potential for a 
big bucks engine servicing although the Audi "timing belt" legacy is 
stopped prior to the 4.2 litre motor.

Well, quite obviously, the only reasonable way to even think about an 
allroad is to find one with a perfectly documented service history 
(figure the odds!), and find one with around 100,000 miles or so on it 
tha thas already had the timing chain guides and assorted stuff replaced 
recently.  Probably one like that will also have had the airbags, 
compressor and other stuff also redone. Perhaps buying one used from a 
dealer and then buying an aftermarket warranty is the best way to 
proceed....assuming there IS such a thing as an after market warranty, 
of course.

I am really beginning to wonder if all auto manufacturers are really 
building cars to last ONLY 100,000 miles and not one step further. In 
looking at relatively new cars running around here in Maine, I see 
almost anything built after 2005 to be on the way out.  While the cars 
themselves may well run on and on, the bodies are already showing signs 
of rusting and I see few exceptions to that in recent cars.  I would be 
crazy wild if the 2010 Ford F150 that I had bought new was sitting in my 
driveway corroding it's $30,000 price away after only five years use!

The cost of resealing the 2.8 V6 in the Audi 100 appears very reasonable 
at less than two grand. The car beneath is not rusty, although  there is 
an ugly place ont he tailgate and the car will need to have paint in 
another year. So the question may well be whether or not to keep the 
100, putting three or four grand into refurbishment....I have available 
to me a '97 A6 Avant that is a parts car with 90,000 miles on that 
engine, so a complete engine swap is a possibility...but probably not 
what I would do.

Meanwhile we have a V8 Quattro that is pretty young in terms of miles at 
around 85K.  That's a known quantity and since we drive only around 
twelve thousand miles per year, right now, we watching the 100 Avant and 
contemplating the V8 to await developments.

Roger

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