Audi Q5 S Line Plus. 3yrs with 80k. Should I buy?

[TheNSA]

Hi everyone. Need some advice. I’ve always bought new or nearly new and it’s that time again to change car.

My previous two cars were a Hyundai IX35 and then a Renault Kadjar. I’m a large guy and like a big car.

This time round I was all set on a nearly new Hyundai Tucson or Santa Fe, however I’ve stumbled across a 3yr old top of the range, top spec Audi Q5 S Line Plus that’s in my price range. However it has 82k miles on the clock.

My mate who is a car salesman (boo hiss) says that is nothing for this car.

What do you think? I really need impartial advice.

The car has full Audi service history.

[Deerfoot]

TheNSA said:

What do you think? I really need impartial advice.

How long do you intend to keep it? What's your annual mileage?

[TheNSA]

I intend to keep it 2 to 3 years. Annually mileage maybe 15k or so.

Thanks.

[Wooda80]

Pros: Better quality ( in terms of feel ), better driving, more stylish, more prestigious car. All subjective and debateable of course.

Cons: It WILL cost you more in maintenance over the next few years than a nearly new car. How much more - impossible to say but £0-2000 more would be a reasonable range.

If you really fancy the Audi and you are prepared to stand the risk of additional maintenance costs then go for it. If you look at the Audi and your personal opinion is that you can't tell Stork from butter, or if you don't think it's worth the risk of additional running costs then stick with a nearly-new.

[Deerfoot]

OK, in that case you need to work out if selling a 5/6 year old Q5 with 110/130,000 miles will be easier than shifting a Tucson etc...

Personally I'd go with the nearly new (in warranty) option.

[TheNSA]

This thread is pretty much validating my own thoughts.

It comes with a 3 year dealer warranty as well btw.

I’m going out tomorrow to test drive it alongside new / nearly new Kia’s and Hyundai’s. We shall see.

[Deerfoot]

TheNSA said:

It comes with a 3 year dealer warranty as well btw.

The 82,000 mile Q5?

[Wooda80]

The warranty will cover parts which fail but not parts that wear out.

Parts that wear out will include brake discs and pads, clutch plate, suspension bushes, steering components etc. The Q5 will surely do another 82000 again, but will need repair and and maintenance to get there.

[TheNSA]

Ok that kind of advice has sold me against the Q5. This is the st they don’t tell you about dealer warranties.

The branch has a nice, black, mid-upper range 17 plate Tucson that will cost me less than I’m paying just now.

Think i’ll put my sensible pants on and take that option.

[Sir Bagalot]

Wooda80 said:

The warranty will cover parts which fail but not parts that wear out.

Parts that wear out will include brake discs and pads, clutch plate, suspension bushes, steering components etc. The Q5 will surely do another 82000 again, but will need repair and and maintenance to get there.

And a new car warranty pretty much covers the same.

OP, go test drive them and then come back and tell us what you think

[Trevor555]

Sir Bagalot said:

Wooda80 said:

The warranty will cover parts which fail but not parts that wear out.

Parts that wear out will include brake discs and pads, clutch plate, suspension bushes, steering components etc. The Q5 will surely do another 82000 again, but will need repair and and maintenance to get there.

And a new car warranty pretty much covers the same.

A new car warranty will cover oil leaks/unusual noises, a used car warranty wont, there are quite a few differences.

[Wooda80]

Trevor555 said:

Sir Bagalot said:

Wooda80 said:

The warranty will cover parts which fail but not parts that wear out.

Parts that wear out will include brake discs and pads, clutch plate, suspension bushes, steering components etc. The Q5 will surely do another 82000 again, but will need repair and and maintenance to get there.

And a new car warranty pretty much covers the same.

A new car warranty will cover oil leaks/unusual noises, a used car warranty wont, there are quite a few differences.

Agree with all of the above. But an 82k car will likely have more parts wear out over the next 3 years that a nearly new one.

I'm not against the Audi, for some people it will be the right choice, but it depends what is right for the OP. He needs to buy the car that he wants, not the one that someone else wants him to buy.

[steve-5snwi]

Go for the newer car, i wouldn't put any money on the Q5 being reliable

[Yipper]

Audi Q5 has terrible reliability and is expensive to repair. You'd have to be a masochist to buy an 82k-miler.

http://www.reliabilityindex.com/reliability/search...

[Wooda80]

Yipper said:

Audi Q5 has terrible reliability and is expensive to repair. You'd have to be a masochist to buy an 82k-miler.

http://www.reliabilityindex.com/reliability/search...

Interesting that. At the top there's a slider that shows "Warranty Direct Rating = Poor" and a bit further down another slider showing "User Reliability Rating = Good" So which is it?

[colinrob]

Personally I would go for the Q5, I borrowed a Hyundai SUV to drive to Austria as wife was concerned the 540 wouldn’t get there and back, it made me realise that I could live with an SUV, I bought one second hand, with only 22,000 miles on it SQ5 driven it 13,000 miles had one service £240 an MOT and one new tyre as it had a nail in it and couldn’t be repaired.
The Audi is definitely a nicer place to be than the Hyundai.
As far as warranty’s go new car warranties don’t cover discs and pads and doing 45,000 miles you will probably need to replace in most new cars, as for clutch aren’t all the 3.0 Q5’s auto
Obviously it is worth factoring fuel the SQ5 will do 40 mpg on a run, but the average for the 35,000 miles it has done is 32.4 perhaps the Q5 will be better it all depends how you drive

[fourstardan]

Is it manual or stronic box?

That is high mileage for a three year old car, servicing will cost you a lot.

[Big GT]

The car buying public in general have an unhealthy fixation with Mileage.

82K is not high mileage!! Its higher than average.
You need to consider resale, it will be harder to shift the Q5 in the future due to the above.
As others have said maintenance most likely will be higher as major service (belts, etc ) will need replacing soon.

But if it well maintained then the Q5 will go on 2/3 times that.

However you have to weight up the costs.

Drive the cars, budget in the repayments / potential service costs then see what you believe is the best value for money.

Personally I would a Skoda Kodiaq as the lease / Finance deals on these are very good ATM

[RammyMP]

colinrob said:

Personally I would go for the Q5, I borrowed a Hyundai SUV to drive to Austria as wife was concerned the 540 wouldn’t get there and back, it made me realise that I could live with an SUV, I bought one second hand, with only 22,000 miles on it SQ5 driven it 13,000 miles had one service £240 an MOT and one new tyre as it had a nail in it and couldn’t be repaired.
The Audi is definitely a nicer place to be than the Hyundai.
As far as warranty’s go new car warranties don’t cover discs and pads and doing 45,000 miles you will probably need to replace in most new cars, as for clutch aren’t all the 3.0 Q5’s auto
Obviously it is worth factoring fuel the SQ5 will do 40 mpg on a run, but the average for the 35,000 miles it has done is 32.4 perhaps the Q5 will be better it all depends how you drive

I’d agree, I also drove to Austria in a mate’s wife’s Santa Fe, I didn’t enjoy the experience! It was a newish car and didn’t have DAB radio which surprised me.

Edited by RammyMP on Sunday 4th February 16:21

[steve-5snwi]

Given its not the SQ5 but the Sline and more than likely the 2.0 TDi ..... the engine is underpowered for the weight of the car the clutches are not the strongest, they get abused by people who use them as school run cars, it will be due a cambelt soon.... the V6 Q5 is much nicer although its the same cabin which doesn't wear well.