Turbowned
January 11th, 2018, 00:27
Hey all,
Haven't been on the forum in a while, mostly because Google Chrome freaks out and thinks I'm being hacked every time I try to login here (maybe I am?). Also, I sold my RS6 in November. Mostly sold it because I was due for front brakes and timing belt, and had some other irritating things like body damage that I ran out of energy for. So what did I do? I sold the car and downsized to a 95.5 UrS6 to try to save some money. Well I'm starting to think I'm not "saving" as much as I think...
At first, it seemed like a great idea: sell the RS6 for $12k, pick up S6 for $3,500. So far, so good. Well, the state values the car at $5,500, so add about $350 in sales tax plus $75 title fee. Oh well, at least excise tax will be cheaper, and so will insurance. Plus, 19mpg is much better than 15mpg!
Now, the paint is haggard and the interior needs some sprucing. Now, didn't I sell the RS6 to avoid costly bodywork/paint? Shhhh, I'm saving money! I pick up a set of B6 S4 Recaros for $700 and find a guy to help me fit them and wire them into the car for ~$350. The headliner will need repair and the door cards will need the fabric re-adhered also. Projects for later. I steam clean the hell out of the interior and make it very presentable.
Mechanically, the car is quite solid. New/newer brakes all around, two sets of wheels with newer summer and winter tires, t-belt/wp done recently, new p/s pump, brake "bomb" (accumulator), etc. replaced. Car has a pulsing pedal due to a problem with the hydroboost setup. Previous owner tells me it's the brake servo because the bomb and pump are new, and includes a new servo. So, I replace servo, issue persists. $225 later for a new brake bomb and some labor, and that's fixed. Then, a coolant leak springs up under the intake manifold, which I'm told can be fixed without manifold removal, but doesn't sound any easier than just doing the job the right way. $150 for a head gasket kit to get the misc. o-rings and gaskets that are NLA from Audi, and some misc. silicone tubing to replace the aging rubber underneath will be a project for the next month or so.
The seller also included new parking brake cables which we installed and in the process, I thought I'd be clever and order a new driveshaft center bearing and CV joints since the driveshaft was coming down; another nominal $250, but realized that I'd likely have to give it to a machine shop to change the parts. Whoops!
Since I noted some stuff was broken or missing, I found a guy to sell me an engine undertray and some misc. bits for about $275. That makes the car pretty much complete, and really just needs cosmetic touch-up at this point.
Where am I going with this, you say? Well, I'm now about six grand into this little project after less than three months, a proper paint job costs at least five grand and I want to put Cayenne brakes and some suspension upgrades into it, and of course more power, and a sixth cog in the transmission would be nice. So I think the lesson is, I should've kept the RS6, I'm a little sad about it all, and realize the grass isn't always greener! The only positives thus far are that I'm back to three pedals, and an 01E 6MT is direct bolt-in to an S6 whereas we all know about how much the conversion is on an RS6. We'll see if I learn to love this car more as time goes on, or if I come running back, or go to a newer S4/S6/S8?
So, I hope to be back again someday, and I hope everyone in the community is doing well!
https://scontent.fbed1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/24177216_10101696394324316_7376308150788726706_n.j pg?oh=2672d314fbf8c1b9196a87f0b680cdf3&oe=5AE6DC15
https://scontent.fbed1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/24177218_10101696394329306_1843955219364518880_n.j pg?oh=edeab88765c870313514bb5d3417c12f&oe=5AFD4352
Haven't been on the forum in a while, mostly because Google Chrome freaks out and thinks I'm being hacked every time I try to login here (maybe I am?). Also, I sold my RS6 in November. Mostly sold it because I was due for front brakes and timing belt, and had some other irritating things like body damage that I ran out of energy for. So what did I do? I sold the car and downsized to a 95.5 UrS6 to try to save some money. Well I'm starting to think I'm not "saving" as much as I think...
At first, it seemed like a great idea: sell the RS6 for $12k, pick up S6 for $3,500. So far, so good. Well, the state values the car at $5,500, so add about $350 in sales tax plus $75 title fee. Oh well, at least excise tax will be cheaper, and so will insurance. Plus, 19mpg is much better than 15mpg!
Now, the paint is haggard and the interior needs some sprucing. Now, didn't I sell the RS6 to avoid costly bodywork/paint? Shhhh, I'm saving money! I pick up a set of B6 S4 Recaros for $700 and find a guy to help me fit them and wire them into the car for ~$350. The headliner will need repair and the door cards will need the fabric re-adhered also. Projects for later. I steam clean the hell out of the interior and make it very presentable.
Mechanically, the car is quite solid. New/newer brakes all around, two sets of wheels with newer summer and winter tires, t-belt/wp done recently, new p/s pump, brake "bomb" (accumulator), etc. replaced. Car has a pulsing pedal due to a problem with the hydroboost setup. Previous owner tells me it's the brake servo because the bomb and pump are new, and includes a new servo. So, I replace servo, issue persists. $225 later for a new brake bomb and some labor, and that's fixed. Then, a coolant leak springs up under the intake manifold, which I'm told can be fixed without manifold removal, but doesn't sound any easier than just doing the job the right way. $150 for a head gasket kit to get the misc. o-rings and gaskets that are NLA from Audi, and some misc. silicone tubing to replace the aging rubber underneath will be a project for the next month or so.
The seller also included new parking brake cables which we installed and in the process, I thought I'd be clever and order a new driveshaft center bearing and CV joints since the driveshaft was coming down; another nominal $250, but realized that I'd likely have to give it to a machine shop to change the parts. Whoops!
Since I noted some stuff was broken or missing, I found a guy to sell me an engine undertray and some misc. bits for about $275. That makes the car pretty much complete, and really just needs cosmetic touch-up at this point.
Where am I going with this, you say? Well, I'm now about six grand into this little project after less than three months, a proper paint job costs at least five grand and I want to put Cayenne brakes and some suspension upgrades into it, and of course more power, and a sixth cog in the transmission would be nice. So I think the lesson is, I should've kept the RS6, I'm a little sad about it all, and realize the grass isn't always greener! The only positives thus far are that I'm back to three pedals, and an 01E 6MT is direct bolt-in to an S6 whereas we all know about how much the conversion is on an RS6. We'll see if I learn to love this car more as time goes on, or if I come running back, or go to a newer S4/S6/S8?
So, I hope to be back again someday, and I hope everyone in the community is doing well!
https://scontent.fbed1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/24177216_10101696394324316_7376308150788726706_n.j pg?oh=2672d314fbf8c1b9196a87f0b680cdf3&oe=5AE6DC15
https://scontent.fbed1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/24177218_10101696394329306_1843955219364518880_n.j pg?oh=edeab88765c870313514bb5d3417c12f&oe=5AFD4352