For all you 2.0 TDI lovers that are struggling whether to keep or sell back, ...

Dr Chill

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 19, 2016
Location
South Florida
TDI
2016 A8L TDI
I highly recommend dumping the 2.0 and picking up whatever 3.0 TDI you can find. After driving my 3.0 A8L TDI for 6 months, I can truly attest to this motor being the greatest motor ever offered in a passenger vehicle. It is the holy grail of power, smoothness, quietness, and incredible fuel economy. My huge limo of a vehicle gets 38 mpg at 80 mph and can drive from Miami to NYC on a single fill-up as the range per tank on the highway is almost 800 miles!!! The other 3.0 TDI vehicles are great too. For a short time they come with a nice
"VW rebate" too.
I'm sure others that have upgraded from 2.0 to 3.0 also feel the same way. Act quickly. This is a limited time opportunity!!!
 

saggii

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 24, 2016
Location
Texas
TDI
No longer - Jetta(s), A6
I have been preacher myself. No doubt 3.0 are of best Value currently if they are priced right. Though as I talk to many dealers, there are some inherent issues for someone wanting to own 3.0 -
1. Affordability-twice or more dough upfront
2. Less DIY material online and community unlike 2.0 thus higher maintenance cost bringing to my 3rd point
3. High repair costs. Audi repairs are done by mechanics time per hour and mind you the hours are not actual but estimated time recommended by Audi. The mechanics time is range of $50-100 per hour. And don't forget that the time estimates are always for one item, they don't combine time even if the repair items can be combined.
4. Less return on equity given majority of 3.0 will be recall and not buyback. Dealers and owners who are aware about this fact have jacked up the price by 3-7 grand.

Thus I agree with you ( I have an A6 myself) there are some dithering factors to make a switch to 3.0
 

nayr

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 26, 2013
Location
Colorado
TDI
2014 Audi Q7
I'm dumping my 2.0L CR TDI for a 3.0L CR TDI..

biggest maintenance pains for upgrading are going to be how fast big heavy audi's eat through tires/brakes.. wont be getting >40k miles out of a $500 set of tires thats for sure.. I think I'll be picking up a nice cheap set of 18in wheels off a Tregg and selling off the OEM 20s to some other sucker whos willing to pay $1k for shoes every 20k miles

I once had an Audi RS6, now that beast would eat through very expensive tires and brakes faster than I could feed em to it... even DIY rotors were well over a grand to replace ($3-4k for dealer brake job), the 3.0TDI I'm looking at I can give high performance brakes to for ~$500.. so compared to my last Audi it seems quite reasonable ;)

I ditched the RS6 once the transmission started having issues; it was an impending $10k repair bill.. the 8spd in the newer Q7/Tregg seems to be alot more capable of handling the power output of the 3.0L TDI.. I dont expect much trouble from the engine/transmission/quattro as long as I maintain them well.

The 4 rings always lead to insane shop fees, been that way forever.. a 1.8T VW timing belt is like half as much as a 1.8T Audi Timing belt through a shop even through there is no difference other than the badge on the front.. If your capable of doing regular maintenance your self then its not that different, but if your paying shop fee's then yeah, your gonna pay for that prestige.
 

Dr Chill

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 19, 2016
Location
South Florida
TDI
2016 A8L TDI
A8l tires have 26000 miles on them and should get me to 35000. For other maintenance I plan on buying OEM parts online and having an indy shop do the labor. That's how I did front and rear pads and rotors on our 2014 S6 for under $1000 total.
 

chargum

Active member
Joined
Aug 28, 2014
Location
Orange County, CA
TDI
2012
I highly recommend dumping the 2.0 and picking up whatever 3.0 TDI you can find. After driving my 3.0 A8L TDI for 6 months, I can truly attest to this motor being the greatest motor ever offered in a passenger vehicle. It is the holy grail of power, smoothness, quietness, and incredible fuel economy. My huge limo of a vehicle gets 38 mpg at 80 mph and can drive from Miami to NYC on a single fill-up as the range per tank on the highway is almost 800 miles!!! The other 3.0 TDI vehicles are great too. For a short time they come with a nice
"VW rebate" too.
I'm sure others that have upgraded from 2.0 to 3.0 also feel the same way. Act quickly. This is a limited time opportunity!!!
Miami to NYC is just under 1,300 miles. Good luck making it on one tank. :D
 

S2000_guy

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 4, 2013
Location
ohio
TDI
2014 Sportwagen TDI
...
3. High repair costs. Audi repairs are done by mechanics time per hour and mind you the hours are not actual but estimated time recommended by Audi. The mechanics time is range of $50-100 per hour. And don't forget that the time estimates are always for one item, they don't combine time even if the repair items can be combined.
...
Other than the variable rate per hour, how is any of this different from every other dealership of any make in the US?
 

saggii

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 24, 2016
Location
Texas
TDI
No longer - Jetta(s), A6
Other than the variable rate per hour, how is any of this different from every other dealership of any make in the US?
It is not. I was responding on premise set by OP which is to make a switch from 2.0 to 3.0 tdi. It is not for everyone for ex. Some may deem fit to save the equity and spend less on their next ride.
 

amstel78

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 24, 2012
Location
Shohola, PA
TDI
2012 Golf TDI [buyback completed 14/1/2017] 2006 S65 AMG
I'll consider another diesel if Mercedes ever brings back their straight six oil burner. I know they're reintroducing the straight six gasoline engine sometime next year... not sure about diesel.

I've had my share of BMWs, and I don't think I'll go back.
 

DanB36

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 13, 2003
Location
Savannah, GA
TDI
2014 Q5 Prestige TDI, Monsoon Gray
Audi repairs are done by mechanics time per hour and mind you the hours are not actual but estimated time recommended by Audi. The mechanics time is range of $50-100 per hour.
The flat rate manual is the same for any dealer (the manual itself may not be the same, but the way it's used is), and I think your estimate of the shop rates is low--the last two VW dealers I've been to (neither of which was in a major metropolitan area) had a shop rate north of $100/hr. The one Audi dealer I've been to had a slightly higher rate yet.
 

Rico567

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jun 13, 2003
Location
Central IL
TDI
2013 Passat TDI SEL Premium (Turned in 7/7/18)
I don't see how we could consider an Audi A8 as any sort of reasonable replacement for the NMS Passat we're driving now, just given everything factoring into total cost of ownership that's been detailed in this thread. That is basically taking a big step into the luxury car segment, with financial outlay to match. No, thanks. When buyback time comes for our car, sometime late next year, we may just get the TSI Passat, more likely get an Accord, possibly an Outback. If we did want to try a luxury car, it would probably be a Hyundai Genesis, which at least has a warranty that's going to allow us to keep and drive it for some years to see how we like it, without dealing with a huge outlay of repairs.
 
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DanB36

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 13, 2003
Location
Savannah, GA
TDI
2014 Q5 Prestige TDI, Monsoon Gray
I don't see how we could consider an Audi A8 as any sort of reasonable replacement for the NMS Passat we're driving now,
He didn't say "get an A8L", he said "look at a 3-liter TDI". And having had mine for about six weeks now, I'm inclined to agree that it's a very nice engine, and the Q5 also seems to be very nice. But you're right that even the A6 (the lowest model 3-liter TDI sedan) is a definite step into the luxury line.
 

saggii

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 24, 2016
Location
Texas
TDI
No longer - Jetta(s), A6
The flat rate manual is the same for any dealer (the manual itself may not be the same, but the way it's used is), and I think your estimate of the shop rates is low--the last two VW dealers I've been to (neither of which was in a major metropolitan area) had a shop rate north of $100/hr. The one Audi dealer I've been to had a slightly higher rate yet.
Yes it was my last known info and thanks for sharing.I don't visit repair shops at all. Thank you god for giving me an opportunity to switch vehicle every few months.
 

saggii

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 24, 2016
Location
Texas
TDI
No longer - Jetta(s), A6
But you're right that even the A6 (the lowest model 3-liter TDI sedan) is a definite step into the luxury line.
Actually the cheapest 3.0 tdi is Q5. Pretty positive about that. Though please correct me gentlemen.
 

DanB36

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 13, 2003
Location
Savannah, GA
TDI
2014 Q5 Prestige TDI, Monsoon Gray
You can probably find a Q5 for less than an A6 (or could a few months ago), but a Q5 isn't a sedan.
 

miniion26

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 25, 2014
Location
Lake Wallenpaupack, PA
TDI
2005 Mercedes E320 CDI
I'll consider another diesel if Mercedes ever brings back their straight six oil burner. I know they're reintroducing the straight six gasoline engine sometime next year... not sure about diesel.

I've had my share of BMWs, and I don't think I'll go back.
You may see me on Rte 6 sometimes. Inline 6 it's a blast!

 

saggii

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 24, 2016
Location
Texas
TDI
No longer - Jetta(s), A6
You can probably find a Q5 for less than an A6 (or could a few months ago), but a Q5 isn't a sedan.
You are right about the Sedan. I was talking about the MSRP of 3.0 TDi line up.

I really wanted to get hold of the Cayenne for the longer term considering their high build quality and lesser part failure issues. But after evaluating ROI, I figured A6 was the best bet. Besides, I'm not a SUV person any way. I also considered A8 and hard to find A7. Since apart from the looks (the trunk opening) A6 and A7 are pretty much the same, it was hard for me to chase A7 deals since there was so little inventory to work with. So the choice came down to an A8 or an A6. There were quite a few A8s in the market a little more than what I thought would be available. But dropping 45k was a far more riskier affair since there may be an uncertainity about the resale value of this vehicle by end of this year (early next) as I may switch to Model 3 as soon as it is available (I was among the first ones to get the reservation). Thus I settled for an A6, though a used A8 and Cayenne still are the best luxary that one can have in their respective segments and at the same time a great value if priced right.
 

sandmansans

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 3, 2013
Location
NJ/PA
TDI
2014 Jetta
I highly recommend dumping the 2.0 and picking up whatever 3.0 TDI you can find. After driving my 3.0 A8L TDI for 6 months, I can truly attest to this motor being the greatest motor ever offered in a passenger vehicle. It is the holy grail of power, smoothness, quietness, and incredible fuel economy. My huge limo of a vehicle gets 38 mpg at 80 mph and can drive from Miami to NYC on a single fill-up as the range per tank on the highway is almost 800 miles!!! The other 3.0 TDI vehicles are great too. For a short time they come with a nice
"VW rebate" too.
I'm sure others that have upgraded from 2.0 to 3.0 also feel the same way. Act quickly. This is a limited time opportunity!!!
Not to rain on your parade, but you do know
1. Nyc to Miami is more than 800 miles
2. The 2.0 can also see 800 miles to a tank
3. The biggest one. running a comparison against an A8L is like a Pizza to asparagus comparison.

Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk
 

kooyajerms

grocery getter
Joined
May 5, 2004
Location
Pomona, Southern California
TDI
97 B4V (mine), 11 x5 35d (hers) 04 V10 (that one you want), 2014 Q7 (mom's) 74 Shasta 1400
That is basically taking a big step into the luxury car segment, .... If we did want to try a luxury car, it would probably be a Hyundai Genesis.
I don't think the consensus would be that is a step into luxury cars =)

A step back into luxury cars maybe?
 
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tdiot

Veteran Member
Joined
May 21, 2002
Location
dallas/fortworth
TDI
2000 Jetta TDI 350000mi, Mercedes E320 CDI, 96 Dodge 2500 Cummins, 96 Serro Scotty Cummins RV, 93 Toyota Hilux 4x4 3.0 TD.
Just reluctantly turned in my 2012 Passat with 116,000 and a failed turbo. If the turbo had not let lose it would have been a much tougher decision. Replaced it with a low mileage E320 CDI. No DPF or DEF but not without its potential issues. Getting very hard to find a good low mileage one, been after a few nationwide but good ones sell instantly. So far it's a great car to drive......still have my 2000 Jetta tdi. 350,000 and going strong.
 

nayr

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 26, 2013
Location
Colorado
TDI
2014 Audi Q7
Most people on these forums arent ready for Luxury price tags/taxes/maintenance.. You have to consider how frugal the majority of TDI owners are ;)

Here in Colorado your paying taxes based off MSRP for like first 8 years, so if you buy a $100k car at half price, yer gonna **** when you see how much it costs to tag it.

I'm stepping up because of a very specific series of events:
* My big dog is having medical issues and its easier on everyone to bring him with us
* Ive got a 2nd kid on the way, and first is in School now and were needing a people hauler more and more for day trips.
* I got my self in tight situation towing with my Golf a few times deep in mountains in both good and bad weather.. The best camp sites are not in a park.
* Chain laws now apply to passenger 2WD vehicles and installing em sucks.
* I thought I'd never give up my 6MT but I'm getting too f'n old to get stuck in mountain traffic with a trailer; really ****ing my back up after a long driving stint, and my wife is struggling to drive her 6MT CC pregnant.. After a long day of sledding/hiking/skiing/etc that 6MT starts to really f'n suck when your in a parking lot of traffic.
* I have experience buying, owning and working on big Audi's, I know what I'm getting my self into and already have a strategy at mitigating the biggest maintenance costs so i can keep ontop of everything.
* With 2 Boys I'mna need a good toy hauler, Camper, AutoCross, Dirt Bikes, Snow Machines, Boats, whatever life throws at us.

Otherwise I'd just keep the Golf TDI because its such a great cross country millage machine and I love the hell out of it, I wanted my golf for nearly a decade before I went all in on my first new car and had absolutely no intentions of getting rid of it before 300k miles.

Ive got every intention on getting my Q7 out past a quarter million miles now, damned the cost.. Yeh only live once and I love both German cars and Diesel Power, lets drive until the roads end.
 

friedduck

Member
Joined
Jun 7, 2015
Location
Atlanta, GA
TDI
'15 GSW
Stupid question: if you buy a 3.0l now do you get the payout for the settlement or split it with the current owner or what? There aren't but a couple of them around here. Still trying to find something by next week when I do my buyback.

Thanks, jeff.


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nayr

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 26, 2013
Location
Colorado
TDI
2014 Audi Q7
you'll split it if they register before May 1st, if they dont.. then you'll get it all.. If you buy from a non-audi dealer the lot you bought it from is likely trying to claim.

might only get your half after accepting the fix, which will probably just be software to increase consumption of AdBlue if its a 'Clean Diesel' 3.0 (Gen2)

Good luck finding one, I been watching em for months and I jumped when I found the one I wanted.. have some money ready to keep anyone from snatching it out from under yeh.

availability is really low and prices are all over the board.. some insanely high, basically adding the settlement price into the purchase.. if you get within fair/good pricing and it has what your after then dont hesitate.. You want a single owner, 2nd owners of low mile audi's will just abuse em and replace em if they cycle through it that fast.. Most original Audi owners take very good care of them and just get a new one when warranty expires or golf buddy gets something better.

I started trying to get a Touareg Executive w/Air Suspension but those pretty much vanished from market months ago, so I decided to go back to an Audi.. extra row of seats likely to be needed more than a locking rear diff and extra ton of towing capability.. When I took wife to local dealer to test drive Q7 TDI the sales man basically had the same story, he wanted a TRegg Executive and hadent seen any good candidates since early December.. The Premium Plus we drove locally was priced similarly to the Prestige I have on reserve, so it at least feels like a good deal.

Q5 looks great as far as MPG, if you are not needing to size up dramatically.. havent been watching them but they are likely in a similar situation.

YMMV, and IANAL..

PS: the one I'm getting does have adaptive cruise, but does not have a front plate holder.. guess how much an OEM one is? $350 minimum plus my labor, damn radar sensor is built into the piece.. welcome back to Audi ownership.
 
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dmarsingill

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 26, 2011
Location
Dacula, GA
TDI
2011 Sportwagen Turned in , 2000 Z3 Coupe, 2003 Ford Expedition
Not to rain on your parade, but you do know
1. Nyc to Miami is more than 800 miles
2. The 2.0 can also see 800 miles to a tank
3. The biggest one. running a comparison against an A8L is like a Pizza to asparagus comparison.

Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk
He didn't say on a single tank.....he said on a single fill up. (drive 1/2, fill up, drive the other 1/2)

Donald
 

razorrod

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 12, 2015
Location
US
TDI
Passat SEL
Audi has never sold A8 L with diesel engine in USA.
Where did u get one?

I highly recommend dumping the 2.0 and picking up whatever 3.0 TDI you can find. After driving my 3.0 A8L TDI for 6 months, I can truly attest to this motor being the greatest motor ever offered in a passenger vehicle. It is the holy grail of power, smoothness, quietness, and incredible fuel economy. My huge limo of a vehicle gets 38 mpg at 80 mph and can drive from Miami to NYC on a single fill-up as the range per tank on the highway is almost 800 miles!!! The other 3.0 TDI vehicles are great too. For a short time they come with a nice
"VW rebate" too.
I'm sure others that have upgraded from 2.0 to 3.0 also feel the same way. Act quickly. This is a limited time opportunity!!!
 

sandmansans

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 3, 2013
Location
NJ/PA
TDI
2014 Jetta
He didn't say on a single tank.....he said on a single fill up. (drive 1/2, fill up, drive the other 1/2)

Donald
.

My huge limo of a vehicle gets 38 mpg at 80 mph and can drive from Miami to NYC on a single fill-up as the range per tank on the highway is almost 800 miles!!!
Yea, he said that after the fact about using 2 tanks. That's his original post. Regardless, it's no different than the 2.0 and as I mentioned it's not a comparison worth making. An 80k car vs a 30k car

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Dr Chill

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 19, 2016
Location
South Florida
TDI
2016 A8L TDI
.



Yea, he said that after the fact about using 2 tanks. That's his original post. Regardless, it's no different than the 2.0 and as I mentioned it's not a comparison worth making. An 80k car vs a 30k car

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These cars now cost $30-60k before the VW payout. They are bargains at the present time. I bought my A8L (<2 years old with 20,000 miles) for $57,000 (MSRP $95,000). I am expecting either $6500 or $13,000 when the fix is approved.

I'm not comparing the 2.0 to 3.0. All I am saying that after owning and driving both, the 3.0 TDI motor is far superior, and if you like the 2.0, you'd love the 3.0.

Driving between 2 points with a single fill-up is not the same as driving there on a single tank.

Bottom line is, if you can afford one, consider it. If you can't, then don't.
 
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OmniGLH

Active member
Joined
Feb 15, 2017
Location
Chicago
TDI
Porsche Cayenne Diesel
The 3.0TDI is definitely a very impressive motor.

My Cayenne runs awesome with it, so I can only imagine how much better it feels in a lighter sedan like an A6, or lighter SUV like a Q5.

Nice opportunity to take another dip in the "VW free money" pool while you're at it ;)

What others have mentioned about maintenance costs is true tho - definitely an order of magnitude higher over a VW.

I'm handy and capable in the garage, but with my Cayenne being under warranty (and having been hosed in the past with warranty problems on other brands) I'm paranoid and generally have all regular "scheduled maintenance" done at the dealer so long as my warranty is active.

40k service was almost $2k. :eek: I have the book stamped now saying it was done... but DAMN.

It's going to need brakes soon. Parts cost from the dealer is outrageous - pads and wear sensors (no rotors) was $1,080 + tax. I will do brakes myself (and save huge... no concerns about warranty being voided later because I did my own pads)... but it's something to keep in mind.
 
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