Hello folks,

I am a current owner of a 1987 Suzuki Sidekick with 590,000 miles on it. Repairs on it have totaled almost $60,000 so I think it is time I upgrade to an Audi A8 now that they have the unintended acceleration problem solved. The local audi dealer offered me a Melange A8 with a sticker of $66,000 for $65,000 and a trade in value of $12. Out the door $64, 988. I shopped around and I generally got offers in the $9-$15 range. Mercedes offered me a cup of Columbian coffee and a donut and while I was tempted, I decided to save tax on my new car by using the trade in as a down payment.

While I think that the Audi is a great technological innovation, I am a bit concerned that aluminum Audi uses is not quite as good as the high quality steel and vinyl used in my Sidekick. I am also cross shopping the Audi A8 with the Mercedes S500 and Ford Focus. Any thoughts would be helpful in my decision.

Russ

Um, have too much time on your hands Russ?

Everyone knows aluminum (AL) is lighter than steel (ST). 30%, 40%, whatever the magazines or Audi's website tells you. And it's makes for a more rigid frame.

so we've got that out of the way

The advantage of AL is that since it is lighter, you can have the same dimentions of a car, but with a lighter load. or if you wnat to think a different way, you can have a larger car that has lesser weight.

The latter is applied in the A8.

This means that with the same weight, you can have a larger crumple zone and a more rigid frame. Now I'm sure some people will jump all over me, telling me I've missed out some very important points, but AL is definatley the way to go.

ie: GM is investing millions if not billions for R&D in ASF (CAR, October '99) - i f a product as domestic as GM is getting into ASF, should'n't everyone?

And Ferrari has done it too. just a matter of time before the good ol' BMW boys do some reverse engineering of their own.