Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous (Archived)

stickguy

that seems like a bargain, since it is about the same as the 2014 I posted. Just won't be CPO.

I am starting to be more intrigued by the 7,500 mile lease. Wish my car was on one. less likely to pay for miles you don't use.

stickguy

if this price isn't a typo, this one seems to be a bargain. barely a year old CPO, so 5 years warranty left? Like the colors too.

http://www.auditurnersville.com/certified/Audi/2015-Audi-55ce40100a0e0ae74e1acf5cffa79336.htm

breld

stickguy said:

same basic car, but in 2.0T trim, a year newer and a few $k cheaper. 3.5 years on the CPO warranty too.

http://www.cherryhillaudi.com/certified/Audi/2014-Audi-Q5-774502f30a0e0a1766f935c0072332bc.htm

I like that one @stickguy. My brother's Allroad was that blue and it was sharp. I particularly like it with that chestnut interior.

breld

As far as the 2.0t goes, I think it's a great engine and works well with the Audis. I thought it was pretty lively in my A5 - the 8-speed auto definitely makes the most of it. It's been a couple years, but I tested a 2.0t Q5 and liked it - I'm sure you would too @stickguy.

breld

Michaell said:

breld said:

So, after a few days of getting to drive the SQ5 around, I am very happy with the decision. As I expected, it is a great mix of most of the attributes from the S4 and X5, but combined into one car. About as close to an S4 wagon as we'll get in the U.S. I suppose.

Overall, it handles and performs as well as the S4, at least to the extent that I push the car. The only thing I miss at times is the manual trannie, which I knew would be the case. But most of the time (i.e., in traffic), I appreciate the automatic.

Speaking of, the 8-speed unit is very nice. If I didn't know differently, I may have guessed it was a DSG based on the quickness of the shifts. It does have that "blurp" when shifting at hard acceleration - very much like the DSG S4 I tested last year. The engine sound from the 3.0T is very pleasing, which is something I appreciated in the S4 and am glad to have retained it.

With its 21" wheels, I thought it was a bit rough over bumps during the test drive, but there's nothing that has bothered me over the past few days. If I were building one from scratch, I would likely opt for the 20" wheels. My S4, which I thought was an excellent balance between handling and comfort, had 19" wheels, with 255/35/19 tires. The SQ5 has 255/40/21 tires. So the SQ5 does have slightly more profile than what I was used to, which explains why I've had no complaints I suppose.

And remember, the car came with a set of almost new winter tires - unfortunately, they're the same size tires to mount on the existing wheels (I would have downsized to 19" for the winter). But man, those tires are expensive, running $336/tire! So, I'll happily use them for a winter or two.

So, very much enjoying the new vehicle, and ecstatic to have consolidated the fleet a bit. Now, like @qbrozen said, bring on the VW buyback and we'll be down to (shock) 4 cars for 3 drivers!

Would love to see a pic of the fleet in the driveway of your new home.

Don't poke fun. With the rear entry garage, not only am I down a garage spot, I basically have no driveway.

Though it will be a snazzy garage. We had someone paint the walls while we were out of town. And this evening, we painted the floor with one of those heavy duty rustoleum products - it has a metallic tint and is called "silver bullet!"

I'll take some pics tomorrow.

breld

stickguy said:

" So, I'll happily use them for a winter or two."

assuming, of course, it makes it until the first snowfall this year.

But dang, now I want a Q5!

I knew that was coming.

28firefighter

Funny enough, my plan all along when the Escape lease is up next June was to pick up a Q5 TDI. With all of this mess, values have really tanked and I feel pretty confident they'll fix the V6 diesels. 

breld

I agree that they'll fix those as well. I was considering a Touareg TDI and would have liked a Q5 TDI, but seems to me they are holding their values pretty well. And those Q5s seem pretty scarce.

If you did buy one now, my guess would be there will be some sort of compensation in addition to the fix. No way they offer the generous restitution to 2.0 owners and leave the owners of the higher-end models with nothing.

qbrozen

Hmmm...odd that they don't say what trim level. If I assume it is Premium Plus, $25k would be trade-in value.

stickguy

That one was listed funny (at the end since they left out model of A3). Said to have navi. So at least a premium

kyfdx

Audi: Premium = Base model

nyccarguy

@breld - can't wait to see pics of the new place. My cement garage floor is cracked & not level. I had someone come over last night to quote me on replacing the garage floor as well as ripping up & replacing the driveway. Yikes!

Michaell

Speaking of home improvements, now that I'm earning an income again (got my first paycheck last Friday - yay!), a couple of things are going to get done around the 'ol homestead.

First on the list is to paint the exterior. Here is a pic of the house, now:



The plan is to submit two color choices to the HOA - both have the base color as a taupe-y color, though one is darker than the other.

The next step is to ditch the mismatched furniture in my home office and replace it with a custom install. I'll get before and after pictures. If all goes well, there will be enough room in here to add a recliner, so it will also serve as my pseudo man-cave.

stickguy

I can beat that. I have a bed in my office.

stickguy

We are bleeding from home improvements too. Since we lost our dog, the money we are saving, and more, is going into deferred upgrades. Desperately needed carpet replacement, which is snowballing.

Custom closet in MBR so we can replace that carpet. Stairs and upper hall getting done in hardwood. Then rest of bedroom carpets, after I get finished painted. Will look great when done, and nice for resale, but my car budget had been gutted.

corvette

Sorry to hear about your dog passing away, stickguy. 

stickguy

Thanks. It was rough.

roadburner

nyccarguy said:

@breld - can't wait to see pics of the new place. My cement garage floor is cracked & not level. I had someone come over last night to quote me on replacing the garage floor as well as ripping up & replacing the driveway. Yikes!

I'm in the same boat; I don't even want to know what the repair cost would be...

stickguy

Concrete is brutally expensive. Try to DIY some repairs in the garage, and float sme leveler and see what happens.

nyccarguy

I'll post pics later. The garage is BEYOND repair.

$11K for the driveway

$8.5Kfor the garage floor

The guy is charging me cost on material, has his own concrete plant & crushing equipment, & isn't charging me to dispose of anything they rip up.

breld

@stickguy - sorry to hear about your dog. I've only been through that once so far, and it is certainly difficult for the family.

Michaell

corvette said:

Sorry to hear about your dog passing away, stickguy. 

+1 on that. I've got a 13 yo dachshund who is turning grey. Fortunately, her younger siblings keep her pretty active.

ab348

I'm about to go into home improvement mode and writing cheques in a serious way myself. Some work in the basement first, ripping out an old '70s-era rec room and turning part of the space into a proper laundry room and 2nd bathroom for the bedroom down there, along with refurbishing the stairs down to there. Then onto the main bathroom upstairs along with ripping out the '70s carpet in the other main-floor rooms. I definitely want hardwood in the living room but am unsure about whether or not to just replace the carpet in the bedrooms with new carpet or go wood there also. New furniture in the office/spare bedroom would be nice too.

28firefighter

Sorry for your loss, @stickguy. Been through it twice with family dogs and do not look forward to it again with our current pup.

roadburner

breld said:

@stickguy - sorry to hear about your dog. I've only been through that once so far, and it is certainly difficult for the family.

My sympathies; I hate losing a pet.

stickguy

Thanks for the thoughts all. It is surprisingly rough. Still miss him.

kyfdx

Five years later, I still look down at the couch, to make sure I'm not going to sit on the dog...

Michaell

stickguy said:

Thanks for the thoughts all. It is surprisingly rough. Still miss him.

kyfdx said:

Five years later, I still look down at the couch, to make sure I'm not going to sit on the dog...

Any plans to get a new pet?

stever

We lost two cats in the UP and we're kind of surprised that it's almost been two years since we've gotten some more. Usually cats find you but that hasn't happened yet either. I really want to get a pair of sibling kittens and car train them - used to have one that would ride between my neck and the headrest back in the day.

kyfdx

Michaell said:

stickguy said:

Thanks for the thoughts all. It is surprisingly rough. Still miss him.

kyfdx said:

Five years later, I still look down at the couch, to make sure I'm not going to sit on the dog...

Any plans to get a new pet?

Not me.. Inherited the last one, when my mother had to go into assisted living. Had to do the same thing back in 1996, with the dog my wife had, when we got married. I'm done putting down pets. It's too, too hard.

stickguy

Not now for us. It really did tie us down. Plus I hope to move in the next few years (probably after the princess graduates and settles someplace). once we do that, if the logistics make sense, I might get another dog.

also considering doing some formal (for pay) dog sitting, or helping out the rescue doing some fostering.

right now, we are trying to get the house all fixed up nice. and a dog will not help with that!

graphicguy

stickguy...sorry to hear of your loss. They are part of the family. My last dog has been gone about two years. I still wait to hear his bark when a door bell rings on TV.

thebean

kyfdx said:

Any plans to get a new pet?

... I'm done putting down pets. It's too, too hard.

+1 here.  Eleven years since I had to put our last pet down and I still am not over it.  No more pets for us.  

henryn

I've had dogs all of my long life, since the earliest I can remember. Yes, it's hard when you lose one. But I cannot imagine my life without at least one dog (presently have two).

laurasdada

Add my condolences, Stick. A little tear to my eye thinking of my yellow lab...

I, too, have a (day) bed in my office.

stickguy

He was a yellow lab. And will live on forever in my avatar.

Michaell

My office is about 11x9.5. I'm not quite sure that we can get enough storage and desk space, along with a recliner, into the room.

But, the wife and daughter seem to think that it can happen.

stickguy

well, I have an Ikea table style desk on one wall in the guest room, along with a small bookcase. The twin bed is the guest room part of the shared set-up.

ab348

I had to put 2 of my 4 cats down over the last few months, one in November and one in June. No fun, especially the first one who had been with me 17 years. Life is a lot simpler with just two of them now though.

corvette

Sorry for your losses, ab348.

stickguy

was out at lunch running some errands, and was by the local auto lenders (big off lease used dealer, like a regional carmax). almost all 3 years old or less, and 1 price (overpriced IMO). tons of inventory. but they have a large showroom (15-20 cars inside). And will give you the keys to anything to take out by yourself for as long as you like. Great place to test and research (and buy elsewhere!).

anyway, nothing too exciting. Sat in my first new style Maxima. Odd beast. terrible rear visibility. A nice V60 though. and a Z4, that confirmed I do not fit well, and should stay away from something that low.

they did have a nice looking Q5 (a 2013) 2.0t. Of course, the local Audi dealer has a CPO 2014 with fewer miles, for slightly less asking! But, they must sell a lot of cars (the super friendly, no pressure, cars detailed to the max approach does have it's fans).

even a few oddball (must be lease specials) German cars. a newer 328i and a C300, both without moonroofs.

suydam

So sorry for your loss. I'm still grieving my Brittany I lost several months ago. I just can't imagine not having a dog in my life.

stickguy

One for farmers kid. Looks nice. Unless too pricey or Miley.

http://www.royaleasing.com/detail-2008-chevrolet-impala-4dr_sedan_3_5l_lt_50th_anniversary-used-15211868.html

Cheap and low miles.

http://www.royaleasing.com/detail-1994-ford-taurus-gl-used-15302262.html

And even cheaper but newer. Looks like a solid buy for basic transport.

http://www.royaleasing.com/detail-2002-chevrolet-cavalier-4dr_sedan-used-15293683.html

nyccarguy

I had to change my profile picture. The 2017 Corvette Grand Sport is just WOW!

thebean

corvette said:

Sorry for your losses, ab348.

Same here.  That's tough to lose two buddies.

au1994

"Once you have had a wonderful dog, a life without one is a life diminshed". Not sure who said it but it's very true.

My sympathy to all for your loss. I've known it all too well, twice.

To keep it car related my dachshund loves riding with the top down and his ears in the breeze.

Michaell

au1994 said:

"Once you have had a wonderful dog, a life without one is a life diminshed". Not sure who said it but it's very true.

My sympathy to all for your loss. I've known it all too well, twice.

To keep it car related my dachshund loves riding with the top down and his ears in the breeze.

You are a doxie owner?

I've got three ... none of them are great passengers. They all want to be on my lap.

andres3

28firefighter said:

Funny enough, my plan all along when the Escape lease is up next June was to pick up a Q5 TDI. With all of this mess, values have really tanked and I feel pretty confident they'll fix the V6 diesels. 

I don't think I've ever seen a Q5 TDI; a rare bird indeed. I have seen the Q7 TDI

I wouldn't mind one at Toureg price levels.

andres3

stickguy said:

was out at lunch running some errands, and was by the local auto lenders (big off lease used dealer, like a regional carmax). almost all 3 years old or less, and 1 price (overpriced IMO). tons of inventory. but they have a large showroom (15-20 cars inside). And will give you the keys to anything to take out by yourself for as long as you like. Great place to test and research (and buy elsewhere!).

anyway, nothing too exciting. Sat in my first new style Maxima. Odd beast. terrible rear visibility. A nice V60 though. and a Z4, that confirmed I do not fit well, and should stay away from something that low.

they did have a nice looking Q5 (a 2013) 2.0t. Of course, the local Audi dealer has a CPO 2014 with fewer miles, for slightly less asking! But, they must sell a lot of cars (the super friendly, no pressure, cars detailed to the max approach does have it's fans).

even a few oddball (must be lease specials) German cars. a newer 328i and a C300, both without moonroofs.

What would be really oddball is if those moonroof-less German cars were Wagons! Then I'd be interested.

However, I do prefer the 3-Series Wagon looks wise. If only they made it with the right drive train = 335i.

andres3

breld said:

As far as the 2.0t goes, I think it's a great engine and works well with the Audis. I thought it was pretty lively in my A5 - the 8-speed auto definitely makes the most of it. It's been a couple years, but I tested a 2.0t Q5 and liked it - I'm sure you would too @stickguy.

I really liked the '16 Q3 I had as a loaner the other week with the 2.0T. The new 2.0T is strong and quick in lighter cars, including the '17 A4 loaner I had.

With the 2.0T being so quick and fast, I'm wondering if I got my monies worth on the upgraded version! In time it will prove itself though; being safely tunable to 350 HP whereas the regular 2.0T is only safely tunable for longevity to around 300 HP.