2013 Q5 3.0T … to be or not to be

[Bmazanec]

Thinking about pulling the trigger on this guy. Always been a Honda Acura fanboy, but loved my 09 GLI… so Germans have a spot in my heart too! Anyway, I am pretty mechanically inclined and can do most work… and looks like this engine/trans combo is pretty stout, so most of the common problems I see I can do myself.

It has a pretty good service history, just needs new mmi controls because the menu button doesn’t work, and there is a scratch on the drivers door. Other than that looks pretty clean

What are your thoughts? Anything I should really be looking and listening for? Already drove once briefly and it seemed pretty solid no noises that I noticed.

https://www.qandamotors.com/details/used-2013-audi-q5/91293955

[elRayRay]

Budget for a good extended warranty, if you can, in my opinion. It is generally thought of to be one of the best Audi powertrains, but over 100k miles and I would start getting concerned about larger problems developing sooner than later.
For whatever it's worth, I bought mine (same year and equipment packages, only brown on brown) almost 2 years ago (i.e. About 6 weeks before the used car market went crazy) with 68k for ~$18k. Add to that ~$3k for the warranty that has very comprehensive coverage. I have 88k miles on it now and plan to keep it indefinitely with a pretty crazy swap project in my starry-eyed plan. A few months ago, I jumped on Carvana and went to get an offer from them and it came back with <$13k.

I really do love it though.

[Norskie]

This is might be the only Audi that it makes sense to own outside of a warranty, if you can do most of the work yourself. Likely your main issues will be with the electrics - the $3k+ for a warranty would go a long ways to tools and parts.

What I like about the Q5 3.0T is that you're ~$1k from getting SQ5+ ending performance at half the price and without the brutal suspension.

There are some things to be concerned about - and a PPI is never a bad idea.

- Sunroof squeaks and noises. Could be a $2500 repair for a frame but oddly we're not hearing much about this recently.
- Transmission maintenance. Has it been serviced? Audi says "Never!" and the manufacturer says ~65k miles. Figure $300 in fluids/filter and the ability to get the wheels off the ground.
- Water pumps leak. $300 in parts, it'll take a few days to DIY it.
- PCV valve. $400 in parts, it's under the supercharger. Takes a day or two to DIY.
- Steering rack issues. Specific to pre-'15 vehicles, I believe.
- Control arm bushings may be cracked, figure ~$600 for a set, depending on quality.

Of course there are other things like cats and wheel bearings etc but I wouldn't call them 'common' issues.

I'm really enjoying my SQ5 at 93k and don't plan to get rid of it. It is now my winter beater and dirtbike hauler so hopefully the mileage accumulation will slow down.

If you end up getting it, you'll need a VCDS and check out FCP Euro's 'lifetime replacement guarantee' to reduce the cost of consumables if you plan to keep it a while.

[elRayRay]

This is might be the only Audi that it makes sense to own outside of a warranty, if you can do most of the work yourself. Likely your main issues will be with the electrics - the $3k+ for a warranty would go a long ways to tools and parts.

What I like about the Q5 3.0T is that you're ~$1k from getting SQ5+ ending performance at half the price and without the brutal suspension.

There are some things to be concerned about - and a PPI is never a bad idea.

- Sunroof squeaks and noises. Could be a $2500 repair for a frame but oddly we're not hearing much about this recently.
- Transmission maintenance. Has it been serviced? Audi says "Never!" and the manufacturer says ~65k miles. Figure $300 in fluids/filter and the ability to get the wheels off the ground.
- Water pumps leak. $300 in parts, it'll take a few days to DIY it.
- PCV valve. $400 in parts, it's under the supercharger. Takes a day or two to DIY.
- Steering rack issues. Specific to pre-'15 vehicles, I believe.
- Control arm bushings may be cracked, figure ~$600 for a set, depending on quality.

Of course there are other things like cats and wheel bearings etc but I wouldn't call them 'common' issues.

I'm really enjoying my SQ5 at 93k and don't plan to get rid of it. It is now my winter beater and dirtbike hauler so hopefully the mileage accumulation will slow down.

If you end up getting it, you'll need a VCDS and check out FCP Euro's 'lifetime replacement guarantee' to reduce the cost of consumables if you plan to keep it a while.

While I agree with everything you say, I'd like to add that everything you listed as wear items and failures would be paid for with a grand total of $600 with the warranty I have. And that is on the assumption that the water pump and PCV don't get replaced at the same time. Almost the entire vehicle is covered; electrical, mechanical, suspension, powertrain, etc. for $100 per instance. It's also covered until the car is paid off.
Also, I should add that I don't have a garage, nor even a driveway to speak of. I fortunately have the option to take it to work and pull it inside to do brakes, oil, and other simple DIY's but anything more involved and I'll likely have to take it in.

[Norskie]

While I agree with everything you say, I'd like to add that everything you listed as wear items and failures would be paid for with a grand total of $600 with the warranty I have. And that is on the assumption that the water pump and PCV don't get replaced at the same time. Almost the entire vehicle is covered; electrical, mechanical, suspension, powertrain, etc. for $100 per instance. It's also covered until the car is paid off.
Also, I should add that I don't have a garage, nor even a driveway to speak of. I fortunately have the option to take it to work and pull it inside to do brakes, oil, and other simple DIY's but anything more involved and I'll likely have to take it in.

And that's the caveat: the ability to do most of the work yourself. If you can't (garage, skills, time, lack of interest, etc) then a warranty [usually] makes sense. Then the warranty offsets shop labor and the higher parts cost, not just cheap parts.

If you need to pay a shop to do the PCV and water pump those are going to cost closer to $2k than $600 (and don't forget the sunroof frame ... if that can be covered under warranty, it's not a maintenance item).

I'm also of the unpopular opinion that if you have a high-mileage German car, you probably should have backup transportation available. When I had my (low-mileage!) BMW E60 that was a lesson I learned quickly.

The other thing to consider re: the extended warranty is what they'll up to, i.e. the 'cap'. Some cap it at $5k, other's the value of the vehicle. I was looking at a Porsche Cayenne turbo s, and the $3k powertrain-only warranty (24k miles, 24 months) was capped at $5k. You can't do anything on a Cayenne for $5k. That's a worthless warranty (and indication of how troublesome those vehicles are).

[elRayRay]

If you need to pay a shop to do the PCV and water pump those are going to cost closer to $2k than $600 (and don't forget the sunroof frame ... if that can be covered under warranty, it's not a maintenance item).

I think you may have misunderstood me. When I said "everything listed...for a grand total of $600..." I meant just that.

PCV valve goes out - $100
Water pump goes out - $100
Sunroof frame needs replaced - $100

Maybe it's a particularly good warranty, but all of that is covereed.

[Bmazanec]

Well this is some good info and aligns with my understanding from research.

The good is that I can do pretty much all the work mentioned.. plus I have a 06 Grand Prix that I am babying till 300k. That’s what made me start looking…11.k5 more to go.

The car does have a very good maintenance history from the local Audi dealer, so that’s a bonus too.

[sQ5inSD]

Are you planning to tune the Q or leave it stock?