Surprisingly few problems:
Valve stem seals at 110k.
Discovered leaking seal on one of the turbo oil pipes at the same time.
Exhaust corroded and started blowing.
Fabulous car. Searingly quick, sounds amazing and handles superbly.
At 130,000 miles it was happy to be driven around Castle Combe at "9/10ths" most of the day at the Audi International meeting with no ill effects (cooked brakes apart), and it's still capable of providing clockwork reliable (if thirsty) daily transport. The ur originates from the days when German engineering really was superior to the competition, and didn't just get you an expensive looking interior.
There is a feeling of responsibility in owning a ur in that it's like taking custody of a piece of motoring history. They were rare to start with, and they are rapidly getting rarer thanks to accident damage and maintenance costs than can quickly escalate into the thousands. Whilst mine has been reliable so far, all logic suggests that a turbocharged rally replica with six figure mileage on it is going to land me with a major bill sooner or later. I'm happily vacationing in the land of dismissal!
Just hearing that five pot warbling under load, feeling that torque sling the car up the road, and feeling the steering's weight changing constantly and relaying the road surface in minute detail is enough for me to forget the costs, swelled in no small way by the 14 mpg average fuel consumption.
The Quattro is impractical and expensive, but I love it. The thought of selling it brings me out in a cold sweat which is why it will never happen.
Great review, but if you are only getting an average of 14 mpg something is wrong. Mine does 24 to 26 usually.
The most likely culprits:
-Check the Lambda Probe (change it if it has not been
done in the last 60K miles or so).
-Remove the Mass Airflow Meter and clean the internal
wires (carefully!, very delicate) with Isopropyl
alcohol. Also clean the electrical connection to the MAF.
-Check all the engine air and vac. hoses for splits etc.
-Get the ECU codes checked for any component/sensor
errors or failures.
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