habu

Brought my 2006 A6 Avant in for the 48 month service. The car has 33k miles and warranty expires April 21. After 2 hours the svc. writer tells me a cam chain cover leak has been detected. Gives me an A3 S-line TDI wagon as a loaner and off I go. Get a call today (2 days after dropping it off) that the sealant will takes two weeks to arrive to fix the leak but I can bring the loaner back and my car will be ok until then. Arrive at the dlrship and my wagon is driven around to the svc door. I am given my keys. The car will not start. I go back inside and 3 people all try to start it using the key, the button and any other thing they can think of. Svc writer looks at me says keep the loaner A3 and we'll call you. This was the exact problem I had a month ago they could not duplicate. Since the car won't start it cannot be rolled anywhere. I am very lucky it died where it did and the warranty is still good. I have enjoyed the car for 4 years but this scares me.

DirtyVegasTT

Hopefully now it will be taken care of.

kemer1

Well it kinda sounds like it was a good thing it happened where it did. Good luck and keep us updated.

The G Man

Only a Audi owner would feel lucky that their car would not start at the dealer

I hope they take care of the problem for good.

habu

G-Man that is a good point. Although 24 hours have passed without any communication from the dlr I have started the "fix for good" by looking at other rides that, although not an Audi, will meet out needs. More when I have something to post

mystrodo

Going from a 06 Avant to *anything else would be a step down IMO..your Audi tech will find the problem even if he has to direct link it to Ingolstadt. Or maybe he's trying to get you to like that TDI

andrec

Tell us about the A3 S-line TDI. How do you like it?

habu

I've driven the TDI about 100 miles (hwy and in-town). I've never driven a diesel before. On cold start (45 degrees) in the garage it sounds just like a diesel although you do not have to wait for a glow plug to warm up (remember those?). After 5 mins. of driving or so you cannot hear the diesel inside the car. Unlike everything else I've driven this car seems to just sit when you remove your foot from the brake at a light. Seems like you need to give it gas to hook up the tranny. In S mode it takes off very quickly. Tried an on ramp with my foot down and had to let up cause it felt like it was going to get away from me. Once up to speed in D you can put your foot down and not much happens. I like the paddles on the wheel since you can pull the left paddle when in D and it goes into manual mode. No need to touch the tranny selector. If the selector is in D you must push it to M and back again to get D back, otherwise it stays in manual. The paddles are quite large. All 4 fingers fit just right. First is geared for high RPM's. Shifting down to 1 at 15 mph brings up 4000 rpms. The tranny matches engine to speed so there is no lurching. The car is an S-line so the ride is pretty harsh. Long trips might be tough. Interior is typical Audi, very nice place to be. Seats are firm but comfortable. At 63 I'm a little old for this ride which is why I bought the A6. With a sticker above $35k it might be hard for a young person to afford. The room inside is not enough if you want a wagon-like interior but probably great for a couple that goes skiing, etc. Anyone have any specific questions I'd be happy to try and answer.

PS - Day 2 is half done and no word from the dlr on the Avant. Fairly scary.

andrec

Thanks for the feedback. My daily driver is an '07 VW GTi 4dr with DSG transmission. I like the economy of the diesel, but the price for the A3 TDI is pretty steep. The Golf and Jetta TDIs can be had in the mid $20K range. Granted, the interiors are nothing like the Audis, but the savings would be significant.

BTW, if you don't like the (stiff) ride in the A3, then you probably would not like the S6 either. The S6 rides pretty stiff over railroad tracks and expansion joints. Just like DirtyVegasTT, I've been thinking of changing up the suspension - not for handling - but to make the ride just a little bit more compliant. I think it can be accomplished without losing any of the handling characteristics of the stock suspension. H&R coilover kits are going for around $1,300 (parts only). I'll be doing a bit more research about that.

Regards,

Andre

habu

SA csalled late on Friday and said the starter was dead. Be about a week to install a new one since it is not in stock. Glad it was not to mysterious but concerned that a starter dies after 33k miles. After owning upwards of 30 cars since '65 this is the first time I had a starter fail.

The S-line suspension is very track oriented. A friend leased and '04 A6 S-line sedan and disliked the ride so much he lowered the tire pressures about 4 psi just to compensate. Did not help much and he wore out the tires before 25k miles.