Anyone Cross-shop a...

[Kamauxx]

@Kamauxx I'll be curious to see what gripes about the car are on audi forums....

I've been looking. The biggest takeaway for me is never buy used and don't keep it beyond its warranty period.

One person has 38k miles but is 3.months over his 48 month warranty and his turbos need to be replace. Audi quoted him $9k to repair.

 

[SKStinger]

I'd trade it in. Luckily I owe just about the same as the trade-in value. Plus I have a few things I could sell after demodding it.

I wish the 5s didn't come with 2+2 seating. There's no way my wife would go for that.

The rear legroom is also pretty limited on the sportbacks. When I sold my A5 coupe I was convinced my next car would be an S5 sportback but when I saw it in person I was disappointed in what Audi did to the B9 platforms exterior styling, mainly the front and the limited leg room in the back seats.

 

[MisterMac]

Yes, and IF I could've had the Audi Front seats, dash, technology, with the rest of the Stinger PLUS the Kia warranty - I would have been on cloud nine. The Audi tech is a little better and I LOVE the Audi Interior. Yet, those weren't enough to sway me from the overall Stinger package.

 

[Waynerm002]

That's the thing with the German cars, lovely things but as said out of warranty, they are expensive to fix. I suspect though if you have a shop or access to one, depending on what part it is, you might just be able to get it from a VW store for cheaper. My first issue with my Audi netted a similar bill quote and I just traded it for another car, not another Audi. As much as I love their designs and performance, with KIA producing the Stinger, I will stay this side of crazy prices for repairs.

 

[eflyguy]

Most "owners" are actually leasing, so the manufacturers have downgraded the hardware to meet shorter reliable lifespans. I'm in the same bucket with the Stinger, despite being a very happy and loyal Kia owner. I'll be delighted to be proven wrong, and stay here next time around!

 

[SKStinger]

That's the thing with the German cars, lovely things but as said out of warranty, they are expensive to fix. I suspect though if you have a shop or access to one, depending on what part it is, you might just be able to get it from a VW store for cheaper. My first issue with my Audi netted a similar bill quote and I just traded it for another car, not another Audi. As much as I love their designs and performance, with KIA producing the Stinger, I will stay this side of crazy prices for repairs.

Usually aftermarket parts are the best bet. My local Audi service team is really good. I purchase any parts I need for repairs myself and they install for me if I can’t do it myself. I had two Audi’s out of warranty and only had minor things fail. The new ones are pretty reliable.

 

[TODDK]

I grew up on VW/AUDI, they have lost their appeal to me. Audi if its not an "S" then its a tad boring and VW has not kept up their engines with the market. Wife sold her Audi last year and went Volvo and she loves the Volvo.

Maintenance and repair work through VAG can be handled by a maintenance package but then the sticker price goes up even more. Save $20K+ and have a warranty for 100,000 miles that performs well and a great looking car!

 

[jatleson]

I grew up on VW/AUDI, they have lost their appeal to me. Audi if its not an "S" then its a tad boring and VW has not kept up their engines with the market. Wife sold her Audi last year and went Volvo and she loves the Volvo.

Maintenance and repair work through VAG can be handled by a maintenance package but then the sticker price goes up even more. Save $20K+ and have a warranty for 100,000 miles that performs well and a great looking car!

Similar story - but BMW instead of Audi for me. Had a GTI Vr6 back in the day - when VW had 10 year 120,000 mile powertrain warranties. Currently own a BMW e90 335i AWD manual transmission, love the car, but hate the repair bills. The Stinger brings a relatively affordable price, a build quality that is on par with the Germans (I promise every nit pick noted here for the Stinger is also noted on the Audi/BMW forums), driving dynamics like a BMW (aka - true real wheel drive based cars, personal opinion - BMW's drive better than Audi's) and the big seller for me - the warranty, all included. My car new (if I can even get an AWD manual) would be 65k+. 20k is a big number to swallow.

 

[TODDK]

I had a few VR6's and man what a car back in the day. Good intake and it would sound like it would suck the hood through the intake! Man I miss those days when VW was a leader and not a cookie cutter!

 

[Kamauxx]

Since we got a bit of snow over the last few days I've been driving my wife's car. When I came home yesterday I opened the garage and as the door slowly revealed the Stinger I suddenly had a change of heart. I won't downgrade to an A6.

My next car will probably be an S7 or RS7, though.

 

[JP's_Stinger]

Since we got a bit of snow over the last few days I've been driving my wife's car. When I came home yesterday I opened the garage and as the door slowly revealed the Stinger I suddenly had a change of heart. I won't downgrade to an A6.

My next car will probably be an S7 or RS7, though.

Psssstt!...You can get 3 Stingers for 1 RS7

 

[SKStinger]

I grew up on VW/AUDI, they have lost their appeal to me. Audi if its not an "S" then its a tad boring and VW has not kept up their engines with the market.

Agreed. I considered the new VW Arteon briefly as I like the styling but the engine is way underpowered for the size of the car. A 2.0t with 268 hp in a full size car like that is just silly.

 

[Kamauxx]

Psssstt!...You can get 3 Stingers for 1 RS7
View attachment 16397

Lol. I can only drive one though. And the RS7 has always been my post-lottery win daily driver.

 

[JP's_Stinger]

Agreed. I considered the new VW Arteon briefly as I like the styling but the engine is way underpowered for the size of the car. A 2.0t with 268 hp in a full size car like that is just silly.

It would have been so easy for VW to simply put the Golf R/Audi S3 2.0T engine in the new Artheon and be done with it, but then, the car would have been to close (performance wise) to the Audi A6 base V6 3.0T. They did the same thing with the Golf Alltrack (1.8T instead of the 2.0T so no comparison, performance wise, with the Audi A4 Allroad). It sucks, but it's understandable. They need to have some kind of justification for people to spend an extra 10 to 15K on those "higher/premium" models.

 

[JP's_Stinger]

Lol. I can only drive one though. And the RS7 has always been my post-lottery win daily driver.

I'm right there with you, man. The RS7 is, for me, one of the sexiest car available on the market right now! I know it doesn't drive nor perform nearly as well as a Panamera Turbo Sport Turismo, is very much prone to understeer and isn't reliable for a second, but MAN does this car looks SEXY AF!!! Plus, Audi has the best interior in the market (at least, for my taste).

 

[SKStinger]

It would have been so easy for VW to simply put the Golf R/Audi S3 2.0T engine in the new Artheon and be done with it, but then, the car would have been to close (performance wise) to the Audi A6 base V6 3.0T. They did the same thing with the Golf Alltrack (1.8T instead of the 2.0T so no comparison, performance wise, with the Audi A4 Allroad). It sucks, but it's understandable. They need to have some kind of justification for people to spend an extra 10 to 15K on those "higher/premium" models.

I dunno. If they want to sell Arteons, having the S3 engine in it would help. It still wouldn’t be as quick as a 3.0t A6 as it’s a large heavy car. You can also buy an A6 with the 2.0t so either way the two will cannibalizes each other’s sales to some degree.

 

[TODDK]

Audi S or RS has some great interiors! I agree for sure. My old S4 with the suede Reccaro's was great

 

[Socalstinga]

Was being goaded on the fwy by an A7 3.0, trying to get my attention. I was already in S mode, dropped the manual mode down 2 gears and pulled to 95. The Stinger held it's own and some, flashed the hazards slowed down, and he did the same. Probably thought "wtf is that"....

For me, it's S7-RS7 or nothing.

 

[zoop]

I know this is probably an unpopular opinion but I dont really like the Audi interiors. The wood trim and overall look to me (minus the digital dash) feels so old school. Looks like something my dad would like. I like the more modern clean lines simplistic appearance that you see in the Stinger even though the fit and finish and overall quality may not be at the same level. Mercedes to me is knocking it out of the park with interiors though, the interior on the GT 4 door is probably the nicest interior I have ever seen in a car.

FWIW I drove the Audi A6 and S7. The A6 is fine if you want a lexus LS type drive, soft and floaty. The S7 was better but still felt like the priority was quiet luxury not sport and excitement. Apples and oranges between those cars and the Stinger, they are very good for someone looking for that but in terms of driving enjoyment for someone that wants something sporty the Stinger beat them hands down. I didnt drive the Panamera but I imagine it would have been a step up from the Stinger on both quality and sporty enjoyment but I wasnt about to pay 2x-3x the price for it.

 

[Waynerm002]

Personally, I feel the Stinger drives more like BMW than Audi. I'm biased as I had 2 BMW with Sport Packages and only an A4 with it and the A4 while being a pretty good package wasn't like the BMWs. Audi typically have a nose heavy feel and Biermann engineered the Stinger to be much like BMW in it's layout but he also designed it to be a Grand Tourer with a playful rear end as opposed to a true Sports car, that was left to the G70. While I wanted a RWD Stinger, I went with AWD and it is still tail happy depending on the situation but not to the point of causing me to get in trouble and spin the car. It's been fun the last couple of weeks when I get on it.