Advice on Used 2014 RS7

[Glacier6]

So, I’m seriously considering a used RS7 that popped on the market at a local Audi dealer. It’s a 2014 with ~50k miles, no CPO, listed at $55k. Almost all options I’m looking for except B&O.

Being a 2014, that seems to be fairly low mileage per year. The Carfax shows 4 owners, but no accidents. I assume the brakes have been replaced once, and may be need to be replaced again soon. I would entertain an aftermarket warranty as well, as I have no plans to tune.

Any current owners have feedback at that mileage/car life stage or beyond and related issues/concerns that I should look out for?

[ItsLarryG]

Based on a recent post, brakes are pretty costly, so double check that. I have an S and there was an issue with the oil screen on the turbo line which led to turbo failures. Not sure if it’s the same screen on the RS, but double check that. If the turbos were replaced December ‘17 or later the general consensus was the screen was also replaced. TSB for the oil screen was released Nov ‘17.

[GasMan]

Definitely check on the turbo oil screens. If they haven't been replaced, that's a potential problem in the near future. Some people believe 5K mile oil changes help decrease the risk of turbo failure, so prior maintenance records would help in your decision.

At that mileage, you're looking at brakes for sure. On the lower end of parts alone, you're looking at $2200. At the dealer, $4000+. So clarify that as well.

Tires aren't cheap either. Check tread depth. If they're worn down you'd have some room to haggle on price.

[Wilbur_RS7]

I'd make sure the car you're looking at hasn't been tuned before. Definitely buy a warranty for peace of mind. As mentioned, check the condition of the brakes. I had to replace mine at 45k. Of course check the car over for any damage, make sure its been serviced regularly.

I'm about to hit 52k in my RS7, I've had it over a year and I don't plan on selling it anytime soon. I say that only because I have an extended warranty - even though mine has been pretty solid, when something breaks on this car it is expensive. The turbos are inevitably gonna go at some point, unless you replace the oil screen, but since I have a full warranty and I'm not tuned, I'm not too worried. When it happens, it happens. If you don't buy a warranty then replacing the screen is very important and money well spent. My Rear Diff went out at 48k randomly, and I was told that would've been an $8k repair if I didn't have the warranty.

Enjoy the car!

[GasMan]

Does TD1 really matter if you're looking at an aftermarket warranty? I'm not sure.

[ItsLarryG]

OP said no plans to tune...give it time...you’ll tune, haha

[Glacier6]

Awesome thanks all! Will certainly check on the oil screen. It seems like an aftermarket warranty will calm most of my concerns and will also have an outside mechanic look over the car first.

I would plan on keeping this quite a while so hopefully these stand up pretty well 100k miles and beyond.

[Vinng86]

Well it's still an RS7, it's still going to pull like a goddamn rocket compared to his current A7, lol

My only concern personally is the 4 owners on the car after about 4-5 years. So each owner only kept it for about a year before getting rid of it. I'd be concerned about how the car was treated by these previous owners.

[Twineffect]

Well it's still an RS7, it's still going to pull like a goddamn rocket compared to his current A7, lol

My only concern personally is the 4 owners on the car after about 4-5 years. So each owner only kept it for about a year before getting rid of it. I'd be concerned about how the car was treated by these previous owners.

Yeah, I'm with you on the owners. One owner a year seems weird to me.

[PynkFloydd]

Not a RS7 owner, but have a 2014 that I bought last year and have done pretty extensive teardowns on with a few retrofits and firmware updates. Most of the chassis parts and TSB issues are shared with the A7, S7 and RS7. Here are a few that I've experienced that would apply to this 2014 RS7:

-Steering Firmware: Try to get them to run the steering SVM update. I'm not sure if the RS7 you're looking at has dynamic steering (which I believe was optional until 2016), but updating the firmware on my steering made a noticeable improvement. (XCHG44A001 is the SVM code for a car without dynamic steering)

-MMI Firmware: Try to get the latest KO0942_3 firmware. Aside from letting you install the latest maps, it also lets you register an AT&T sim for $10/mo through Audi for Connect services. I believe the software 'conversion' only applies to 2014 and 2015 models. If the firmware is really old, it also updates the firmware of the Bose system and will make it sound (slightly) better.

-Bushings: Check the bushings in the front suspension, especially the rear upper control arms (near the firewall) and the middle bushing on the lower control arm. Also check the hydrobearings in the front guide link and rear subframe for leaks.

-Front Bearings: Listen for any grinding noise in the front bearings. There's a TSB that includes 2014s for premature front bearing failures. (Mine were dying by the 75k mile range and I replaced with SKF bearings.)

-Squeaky Steering: There's a TSB for the squeaky steering wheel issue. Usually goes away with some silicon spray, but may require replacement.

-Other TSB issues: 2014s can have GPS freezing issues requiring antenna replacement (or worst case MMI replacement) and Comfort Module sporadic no starts that should be fixed with a SVM update.


I think those are the major ones for 2014 chassis/electronics. I'm sure RS7 owners can give better guidance for engine-related issues.

[ItsLarryG]

Not a RS7 owner, but have a 2014 that I bought last year and have done pretty extensive teardowns on with a few retrofits and firmware updates. Most of the chassis parts and TSB issues are shared with the A7, S7 and RS7. Here are a few that I've experienced that would apply to this 2014 RS7:

-Steering Firmware: Try to get them to run the steering SVM update. I'm not sure if the RS7 you're looking at has dynamic steering (which I believe was optional until 2016), but updating the firmware on my steering made a noticeable improvement. (XCHG44A001 is the SVM code for a car without dynamic steering)

-MMI Firmware: Try to get the latest KO0942_3 firmware. Aside from letting you install the latest maps, it also lets you register an AT&T sim for $10/mo through Audi for Connect services. I believe the software 'conversion' only applies to 2014 and 2015 models. If the firmware is really old, it also updates the firmware of the Bose system and will make it sound (slightly) better.

-Bushings: Check the bushings in the front suspension, especially the rear upper control arms (near the firewall) and the middle bushing on the lower control arm. Also check the hydrobearings in the front guide link and rear subframe for leaks.

-Front Bearings: Listen for any grinding noise in the front bearings. There's a TSB that includes 2014s for premature front bearing failures. (Mine were dying by the 75k mile range and I replaced with SKF bearings.)

-Squeaky Steering: There's a TSB for the squeaky steering wheel issue. Usually goes away with some silicon spray, but may require replacement.

-Other TSB issues: 2014s can have GPS freezing issues requiring antenna replacement (or worst case MMI replacement) and Comfort Module sporadic no starts that should be fixed with a SVM update.


I think those are the major ones for 2014 chassis/electronics. I'm sure RS7 owners can give better guidance for engine-related issues.

So, bushings. I’m considering this how should I or anyone know when it’s time to replace?

[Wilbur_RS7]

I thought the same thing about the number of owners when I was looking for mine, but look at the Carfax on some exotics, or even a rolls or bentley. They have like 5 owners within 3 years time. An RS7 may not be on the level of one of those, but they are still over $120-140k new and the people who can afford to buy these new typically can afford to switch to something else whenever they want. They probably use it as their daily driver for a year, get tired of it, and move on. My car had 3 previous owners. It may have been beat on, but you can't change the past. I did preventative maintenance and got an extended warranty and so far so good.

[ArmaniDiamonds]

I recently bought a 15 A7. So my information might be inaccurate. But the very first thing I had to fix after buying my car from an insurance lot, is the turbo and the intake vent on the bottom right. I did buy some new breaks recently, and also a K&N air filter as well. Other then the breaks squeeking currently. Im enjoying it. Get your car!

Sent from my SM-T830 using Tapatalk

[Glacier6]

It looks like it is actually 3 owners. There was a transfer from the Audi dealer to a Bentley dealer in between the 1st and 2nd “real” owners, but Carfax is counting that as well.

Here’s the listing: https://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/d...9471/overview/

@Wilbur_RS7 did you go with the extended warranty through the dealer?

[PynkFloydd]

So, bushings. I’m considering this how should I or anyone know when it’s time to replace?

I have more suspension info in my review of Koni's Special Active shocks, but I'd say if you see noticeable cracks or deformation in the rubber then it's time to replace. My worst bushing was the middle one under the shock fork, which was so deformed it was off-center. The next worst was the inner upper control arm, which was just cracked. The hydrobearings are easy to spot since they leak oil. The hardest to spot wear on was the steering, since there aren't any exposed parts.

From personal experience, mechanics don't check this for preventive maintenance, so you'd have to specifically pull in with a complaint. (Mechanics aren't as thorough as most people think they are.) As far as subjective feel before/after replacement... I'd say that the failure mode is more of a sloppy/loose steering and tendency towards understeer. After full suspension replacement, I felt more of a difference between driving modes, understeer went away and steering is generally tighter with a strong return to center.

If you're doing this on your own, it's a fairly sizeable job. ...not hard, but time consuming. I'd recommend getting the latest part revisions and getting Lemforder parts (most in stock at FCP Euro with some from AutohausAZ) instead of genuine Audi. You'll spend about a third to half going with Lemforder and they're the ones that make the actual Audi part with the only difference being they grind off the Audi rings so you can't do a warranty claim through a dealership.

[ItsLarryG]

I have more suspension info in my review of Koni's Special Active shocks, but I'd say if you see noticeable cracks or deformation in the rubber then it's time to replace. My worst bushing was the middle one under the shock fork, which was so deformed it was off-center. The next worst was the inner upper control arm, which was just cracked. The hydrobearings are easy to spot since they leak oil. The hardest to spot wear on was the steering, since there aren't any exposed parts.

From personal experience, mechanics don't check this for preventive maintenance, so you'd have to specifically pull in with a complaint. (Mechanics aren't as thorough as most people think they are.) As far as subjective feel before/after replacement... I'd say that the failure mode is more of a sloppy/loose steering and tendency towards understeer. After full suspension replacement, I felt more of a difference between driving modes, understeer went away and steering is generally tighter with a strong return to center.

If you're doing this on your own, it's a fairly sizeable job. ...not hard, but time consuming. I'd recommend getting the latest part revisions and getting Lemforder parts (most in stock at FCP Euro with some from AutohausAZ) instead of genuine Audi. You'll spend about a third to half going with Lemforder and they're the ones that make the actual Audi part with the only difference being they grind off the Audi rings so you can't do a warranty claim through a dealership.

Anyone press their own bushings as opposed to all new control arms?

[Wilbur_RS7]

Here’s the listing: https://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/d...9471/overview/

@Wilbur_RS7 did you go with the extended warranty through the dealer?

No, I wasn't sure which one was the best so I shopped around and ended up buying the Audi Pure Protection right from my local Audi dealer. In the 5 months that the extended warranty has been active, I've only used it once for an O2 sensor.

Btw, gotta laugh that the dealer got some of the details wrong. It has an 8-speed Auto, not a 7 speed. It's the same color as mine though, and almost the exact mileage!