RE: SOTW: Audi V8

[ITech]

johnpeat said:

Let's be honest here - a new lightbulb for this will probably cost more than your next shed

Bulbs can be got from Halfords for a few pounds, there's nothing unusual about regular service items like that. I am pretty sure I got the OEM water pump for mine from GSF or ECP and it wasn't much. What worried me was if the autobox went, because I had heard tales of them breaking in Germany, where the car is/was much more common, also in the later S8 models, due to the power. Suspension parts, Cambelt kit, all that stuff was the same cost as for a Merc or BM from that time, it was not an expensive car to run at all.

[Goodfella 555]

Ozone said:

Very much like that.
Does anybody know how big the fuel tank is on one of those?

I wonder how much it would cost to do a 50 mile a day commute - and whether it would be reliable...

I think its 80 litres (17.6 gallons) so at 136.9 per litre (i'm presuming these take normal unleaded) its going to cost £109.52 and if you average 20 mpg lets be honest thats a fair estimate your £109 will carry you 350 miles (your commute btw will cost you £15.57).

If it does run on jungle juice this costs circa 141.9 so a tank = £113.52 and your commute will cost circa £16.22.

I expect you guessed this anyway! You'll have to offset the cost against the depreciation you would have suffered if you bought a newer car (thats the only way i could mentally cope with the expense!)

[ITech]

They are unleaded and 21mpg was about the minimum I got, even spanking it regularly

[Ozone]

Goodfella 555 said:

Ozone said:

Very much like that.
Does anybody know how big the fuel tank is on one of those?

I wonder how much it would cost to do a 50 mile a day commute - and whether it would be reliable...

I think its 80 litres (17.6 gallons) so at 136.9 per litre (i'm presuming these take normal unleaded) its going to cost £109.52 and if you average 20 mpg lets be honest thats a fair estimate your £109 will carry you 350 miles (your commute btw will cost you £15.57).

If it does run on jungle juice this costs circa 141.9 so a tank = £113.52 and your commute will cost circa £16.22.

I expect you guessed this anyway! You'll have to offset the cost against the depreciation you would have suffered if you bought a newer car (thats the only way i could mentally cope with the expense!)

Yeah that's what i thought, i was getting those sorts of MPG with my RX8 and Scooby but the petrol was cheaper then... Perhaps i could persuade the OH to cancel the holiday this year

[Riggers]

Chaps and chapesses, a confession - I completely forgot to mention that the link for this SOTW came to us courtesy of PHer Andy Lees (bigcahoona).

Andy, we salute your Shed-spotting skills, and we apologise for not giving credit where due... we are truly ...

[bigcahoona]

Riggers said:

Chaps and chapesses, a confession - I completely forgot to mention that the link for this SOTW came to us courtesy of PHer Andy Lees (bigcahoona).

Andy, we salute your Shed-spotting skills, and we apologise for not giving credit where due... we are truly ...

Thanks for the shout happy to spot love the look of it!

[Ozone]

Riggers said:

Chaps and chapesses, a confession - I completely forgot to mention that the link for this SOTW came to us courtesy of PHer Andy Lees (bigcahoona).

Andy, we salute your Shed-spotting skills, and we apologise for not giving credit where due... we are truly ...

The PM's have been flying have they?

[bigcahoona]

Ozone said:

The PM's have been flying have they?

Might have yes!

[Tomoose85]

johnpeat said:

That, that and thrice that...

There are 2 types of people in the world.

The first sees a car and makes a list of the work needed to make it 'right' - this will include some oily bits, some derusting/paintwork fixes, some interior tidying etc. - they'll factor it in and buy the car and do the work.

The second are the smart ones - they buy cars from the first

Let's be honest here - a new lightbulb for this will probably cost more than your next shed

You are absolutely right. I unfortunately fall under type 1, however, I do see myself as providing extremely good quality second hand cars to the masses (even if it has nearly bankrupt me on occasions...)

[J4CKO]

Perfect 10/10 SOTW, has everything, a big V8, cheapness, obscure version of a now rare car, wafty and not bad looking.

I had a 1990 100 2.0 in about 95 and loved it to bits, really aspired to this and the 200 as my next car but it never happened, did go to see a 200 but it had a real whiff of burnt oil about it, next opportunity was my uncles mate who had one stored and had just got shut when I was looking !

This car I think marked the end of Audi's tenure as the quietly cool German Volvo, not long after there was that advert of the cock looking at an Audi and saying it wasn't for him and then hailing a taxi, probably to take him back to the BMW showroom, I suspect that BMW could do that ad now....

[Goodfella 555]

Ozone said:

Yeah that's what i thought, i was getting those sorts of MPG with my RX8 and Scooby but the petrol was cheaper then... Perhaps i could persuade the OH to cancel the holiday this year

i am an analyst so apologies more shedanomics: (based on 1 year)

Scenario 1 Buy a new Peugeot for £10k
Depreciation £3k, petrol (based on approx 350 miles per week @ 40mpg) £2500; £150 interest cost on finance; £500 insurance; total cost £6,150 (based on them chucking in a free service)

Scenario 2
Audi 200 V8
Depreciation £395 (you'll at least still get £500 for parts alone); petrol £5,000; £1,000 insurance (approx); total cost £6,395

So your running costs over 1 year would vary by £250 (plus admittedly some reactive costs parts etc but to be fair whilst old these things are very well built)

But based on this logic a) buy it, quick before i do and b) why do people buy new cr4ppy cars?


Edited - poor maths due to hangover

Edited by Goodfella 555 on Friday 17th June 13:03

[ITech]

Goodfella 555 said:

i am an analyst so apologies more shedanomics: (based on 1 year)

Scenario 1 Buy a new Peugeot for £10k
Depreciation £3k, petrol (based on approx 350 miles per week @ 40mpg) £2500; £150 interest cost on finance; £500 insurance; total cost £6,150 (based on them chucking in a free service)

Scenario 2
Audi 200 V8
Depreciation £395 (you'll at least still get £500 for parts alone); petrol £5,000; £1,000 insurance (approx); total cost £6,395

So your running costs over 1 year would vary by £250 (plus admittedly some reactive costs parts etc but to be fair whilst old these things are very well built)

But based on this logic a) buy it, quick before i do and b) why do people buy new cr4ppy cars?


Edited - poor maths due to hangover

Edited by Goodfella 555 on Friday 17th June 13:03

There would be no depreciation on the v8 (it's not a 200), you would easily sell the parts for the asking price if you were not in a hurry. Also, the insurance should be no where near £1000, where did that figure come from? I was in my early 30's when I had one and on a classic policy as a 2nd car it was only £240 fully comp. Even as an only car you could get it insured in most areas for under £500 per annum, unless you are some king of major risk. This is a cheap car to run, if done correctly.

[urquattro]

ITech said:

Bulbs can be got from Halfords for a few pounds, there's nothing unusual about regular service items like that. I am pretty sure I got the OEM water pump for mine from GSF or ECP and it wasn't much. What worried me was if the autobox went, because I had heard tales of them breaking in Germany, where the car is/was much more common, also in the later S8 models, due to the power. Suspension parts, Cambelt kit, all that stuff was the same cost as for a Merc or BM from that time, it was not an expensive car to run at all.

Understand the issues re autobox going pop, however I always have all autoboxes drained, flushed and refilled with correct t/m fluid plus new filters, this is the best money that can be spent - I have used this on jap cars, my MB, Audi and the BMW, it is a huge money saver let alone the agro of a failed box.
German autobahn use demands autobox will work far harder/hotter than most (not all) UK use.

[Goodfella 555]

ITech said:

There would be no depreciation on the v8 (it's not a 200), you would easily sell the parts for the asking price if you were not in a hurry. Also, the insurance should be no where near £1000, where did that figure come from? I was in my early 30's when I had one and on a classic policy as a 2nd car it was only £240 fully comp. Even as an only car you could get it insured in most areas for under £500 per annum, unless you are some king of major risk. This is a cheap car to run, if done correctly.

Apologies for the 200 error (in my defence i was drinking late last night) all figures are approx so obviously the insurance, reliability and even petrol are variable i was trying to be as impartial as possible to prove it is cheaper to run such a car that you may think; i agree with you.

[ITech]

urquattro said:

Understand the issues re autobox going pop, however I always have all autoboxes drained, flushed and refilled with correct t/m fluid plus new filters, this is the best money that can be spent

I agree, I did a full ATF flush+ new filter as soon as I got the car and always do. But I always thought if something ever went wrong, it would be the autobox. It didn't in the 2 years I had the car, but I had heard stories from Germany that the autobox was the achillies heal of these cars, especially if you exploited the performance..

[MrMoonyMan]

Oh hell yeah!

SOTW is back, good work chaps.

[ITech]

Goodfella 555 said:

Apologies for the 200 error (in my defence i was drinking late last night) all figures are approx so obviously the insurance, reliability and even petrol are variable i was trying to be as impartial as possible to prove it is cheaper to run such a car that you may think; i agree with you.

Cool, your right the figures have to be approximate and I guess there could always be some un-expected bills, that should really be factored in.
Perhaps I was quite lucky with mine, although I do believe that preventative maintenance will usually ensure good luck with old cars. I agree it could be cheaper to run an Audi v8 than a new euro-mini-hatch, even if your are doing that mileage. It is usually the depreciation that costs in car ownership, not the petrol, but i guess I am largely preaching to the converted on Pistonheads. I am glad folk keep buying those new cars, it's why these monsters are now so amazing value! :-)

[Ozone]

Goodfella 555 said:

Ozone said:

Yeah that's what i thought, i was getting those sorts of MPG with my RX8 and Scooby but the petrol was cheaper then... Perhaps i could persuade the OH to cancel the holiday this year

i am an analyst so apologies more shedanomics: (based on 1 year)

Scenario 1 Buy a new Peugeot for £10k
Depreciation £3k, petrol (based on approx 350 miles per week @ 40mpg) £2500; £150 interest cost on finance; £500 insurance; total cost £6,150 (based on them chucking in a free service)

Scenario 2
Audi 200 V8
Depreciation £395 (you'll at least still get £500 for parts alone); petrol £5,000; £1,000 insurance (approx); total cost £6,395

So your running costs over 1 year would vary by £250 (plus admittedly some reactive costs parts etc but to be fair whilst old these things are very well built)

But based on this logic a) buy it, quick before i do and b) why do people buy new cr4ppy cars?


Edited - poor maths due to hangover

Edited by Goodfella 555 on Friday 17th June 13:03

Thanks for that Goodfella, i might have left out the small matter of a company petrol card for your calculations

I have been told that v8's are off the menu from a company running cost point of view, but if it doesn't say on the outside......

It is a heart over head/job issue. The problem is if i went to look at it and it sounded good i'd take it regardless and repent at my leisure

[GEP]

Goodfella 555 said:

Ozone said:

Yeah that's what i thought, i was getting those sorts of MPG with my RX8 and Scooby but the petrol was cheaper then... Perhaps i could persuade the OH to cancel the holiday this year

i am an analyst so apologies more shedanomics: (based on 1 year)

Scenario 1 Buy a new Peugeot for £10k
Depreciation £3k, petrol (based on approx 350 miles per week @ 40mpg) £2500; £150 interest cost on finance; £500 insurance; total cost £6,150 (based on them chucking in a free service)

Scenario 2
Audi 200 V8
Depreciation £395 (you'll at least still get £500 for parts alone); petrol £5,000; £1,000 insurance (approx); total cost £6,395

So your running costs over 1 year would vary by £250 (plus admittedly some reactive costs parts etc but to be fair whilst old these things are very well built)

But based on this logic a) buy it, quick before i do and b) why do people buy new cr4ppy cars?

Edited by Goodfella 555 on Friday 17th June 13:03

Scenario 3
Buy a decent used blandmobil. Cheap, decent MPG, probably no huge repair bills.

A gas guzzling old V8 makes zero sense.

Edited by GEP on Friday 17th June 14:06

Edited by GEP on Friday 17th June 14:06

[Idlehands]

I'm rather proud to say I owned an Audi V8 back in C.2004.

It was a development model and the precursor to the A8. It had a full aluminium chassis and oozed quality in many strange ways. My engineer remarked about the door locks being chromed (the bit inside not the bit on display) and the rear window heater element was formed into the Quattro logo.

I absolutely loved it and would often get people querying what it was.

However the dashboard on the one advertised sounds like a common problem as my speedo gave up working unless it was a hot summer day and couldn't be replaced without a completely new dashboard.