Hi Guys.
Just after some advice really.
In the process of sorting a deal out with Graham from CarSolutions in Newcastle on the RS6 he has for sale in the Classifieds.
Basically, as you'll see the car although it appears has had a very easy life is still on its original box and DRC.
Question is, am I asking for trouble?
Maybe a difficult one to answer but I would appreciate some comments as this is a big step up in car for me so don't want to be making mistakes straight off the bat.
Thanks.
Buying a C5 RS6 still on original gearbox and suspension
Re: Buying a C5 RS6 still on original gearbox and suspension
I saw that one. Manx car. Looks tidy.
There's just no way of predicting what the box will do. Suspension will obviously fail if it already hasn't.
Have you seen the history?
There's just no way of predicting what the box will do. Suspension will obviously fail if it already hasn't.
Have you seen the history?
Daytona RS6 C5 Avant. Viper'd, Billies, Waggers, MTM box brain, C6 stoppers, xcarlink, R8 coolant cap (woohoo)
///M3 E46 | XC90 (V8, natch) | Passat GTE | RR Classic V8 flapper
"The major difference between a thing that might go wrong and a thing that cannot possibly go wrong is that when a thing that cannot possibly go wrong goes wrong it usually turns out to be impossible to get at and repair."
///M3 E46 | XC90 (V8, natch) | Passat GTE | RR Classic V8 flapper
"The major difference between a thing that might go wrong and a thing that cannot possibly go wrong is that when a thing that cannot possibly go wrong goes wrong it usually turns out to be impossible to get at and repair."
Re: Buying a C5 RS6 still on original gearbox and suspension
You're looking to buy a C5, every day is a gamble! Just get it and enjoy it!!
previous- Pug 205 gti, 306 gti, 309 gti Goodwood.
Audi S3, S4 V8 avant.
Porsche Macan Turbo.
Gone but NEVER forgotten - C5 RS6 Misano red avant.
Now - Empty garage
If you don't know where you're going, any road will take you there!
Audi S3, S4 V8 avant.
Porsche Macan Turbo.
Gone but NEVER forgotten - C5 RS6 Misano red avant.
Now - Empty garage
If you don't know where you're going, any road will take you there!
-
atledreier
- 1st Gear
- Posts: 99
- Joined: Sun Oct 18, 2015 7:44 pm
Re: Buying a C5 RS6 still on original gearbox and suspension
A few weeks ago I bought a C5 that had 237.000km on the clock, still on the original box. The suspension has been done several times under warranty, though. Car seems fine so far.
2003 RS6 Avant, Daytona grey
2012 Toyota GT86
2014 Toyota Prius Plus 7
2012 Toyota GT86
2014 Toyota Prius Plus 7
Re: Buying a C5 RS6 still on original gearbox and suspension
The DRC is going to go so prepare your wallet for that and don't mess around just be ready to swap to Bilsteins.
Take the car on a 10 mile test in all traffic and condition and look out for gearbox issues.
If there are none,purchase the car if you like it but take it STRAIGHT to Grizz at Unit 20
for a gearbox service regardess if the dealer has just done a service on the box.
A service done by someone inexperienced in this exact car and without meticulous attention to detail
will result in quicker gearbox failure than if it had been left alone imho.
There are only two garages on the UK I would trust with a C5 RS6 for anything more than an engine oil and filter change
and that is MRC and Unit 20 and I include Audi main dealers in that statement.
I've been lurking here for 4+ years and the amount of new owners who try and avoid the "long" journey to the Wirral or Banbury and then come unstuck is unbelievable.
They are great cars when looked after and it's all about preventative measures done by the right people.
Grizz once told me what these cars do not like and will damage the gear box and it is the huge amount of torque exchanged
on a full power 1st to 2nd gear shift.
I avoid them and frankly 0-60 while being very quick is not what the RS6 is about.The game is to just back off the throttle slightly on the shift if you are having to accelerate hard.
Take the car on a 10 mile test in all traffic and condition and look out for gearbox issues.
If there are none,purchase the car if you like it but take it STRAIGHT to Grizz at Unit 20
for a gearbox service regardess if the dealer has just done a service on the box.
A service done by someone inexperienced in this exact car and without meticulous attention to detail
will result in quicker gearbox failure than if it had been left alone imho.
There are only two garages on the UK I would trust with a C5 RS6 for anything more than an engine oil and filter change
and that is MRC and Unit 20 and I include Audi main dealers in that statement.
I've been lurking here for 4+ years and the amount of new owners who try and avoid the "long" journey to the Wirral or Banbury and then come unstuck is unbelievable.
They are great cars when looked after and it's all about preventative measures done by the right people.
Grizz once told me what these cars do not like and will damage the gear box and it is the huge amount of torque exchanged
on a full power 1st to 2nd gear shift.
I avoid them and frankly 0-60 while being very quick is not what the RS6 is about.The game is to just back off the throttle slightly on the shift if you are having to accelerate hard.
Re: Buying a C5 RS6 still on original gearbox and suspension
Thanks for the replies guys.
I knew what the answers were going to be, just wanted to see them in black and white.
I know it's the luck of the draw. I feel this one is a good start on the RS journey for me; it's just I think I'm possibly being a bit too paranoid.
Maybe I should just throw caution to the wind and go down you only live once route!
I knew what the answers were going to be, just wanted to see them in black and white.
I know it's the luck of the draw. I feel this one is a good start on the RS journey for me; it's just I think I'm possibly being a bit too paranoid.
Maybe I should just throw caution to the wind and go down you only live once route!
Re: Buying a C5 RS6 still on original gearbox and suspension
That seems to be a nice car you are looking at.
Re: Buying a C5 RS6 still on original gearbox and suspension
Had my car 4 years.
At 30,000 miles on purchase, gearbox service & cambelt etc, front DRC replaced at 8 years old 35,000 mile (along with all suspension bushes/ arms)
Now 11 years old 50,000 just had gearbox service again by Unit 20.
Apart from brake booster valve failure (£20 part but 8 hours labour) totally reliable.
Plenty of routine and preventative maintenance will / has helped, but you never know if there is a nasty surprise around the corner.
Be gentle in 1st & 2nd, service the box and you might be lucky.
DRC will probably fail at some point ( as will replacement coilovers no doubt), but I had no objection to getting a couple of new shocks and would stick with DRC so long as I have someone (unit 20) who know how to fix it.
On positive side, depreciation is now fairly low, or nil so more for maintenace budget.
Total cost per mile over 25,000 miles 4/years £1.45 incl depereciation.
At 30,000 miles on purchase, gearbox service & cambelt etc, front DRC replaced at 8 years old 35,000 mile (along with all suspension bushes/ arms)
Now 11 years old 50,000 just had gearbox service again by Unit 20.
Apart from brake booster valve failure (£20 part but 8 hours labour) totally reliable.
Plenty of routine and preventative maintenance will / has helped, but you never know if there is a nasty surprise around the corner.
Be gentle in 1st & 2nd, service the box and you might be lucky.
DRC will probably fail at some point ( as will replacement coilovers no doubt), but I had no objection to getting a couple of new shocks and would stick with DRC so long as I have someone (unit 20) who know how to fix it.
On positive side, depreciation is now fairly low, or nil so more for maintenace budget.
Total cost per mile over 25,000 miles 4/years £1.45 incl depereciation.
Last edited by Capt Ric on Fri Dec 04, 2015 11:04 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Re: Buying a C5 RS6 still on original gearbox and suspension
What he said .Capt Ric wrote: DRC will probably fail at some point ( as will replacement coilovers no doubt), but I had no objection to getting a couple of new shocks and would stick with DRC so long as I have someone (unit 20) who know how to fix it.
1 new shock = £500 fitted , 1 x set of coilovers = considerably more !
Re: Buying a C5 RS6 still on original gearbox and suspension
True re DRC.
I was lucky,had mine fail on 2 sides when the car was still under a warranty direct cover which i got from the dealers when i bought it as part of the price.The dealer negotiated the warranty company to pay for Bilsteins instead of DRC (I think i may have paid the labour or something but it was a good deal because although i can't remember the price i am not still smarting so it can't have been too bad
)
I was lucky,had mine fail on 2 sides when the car was still under a warranty direct cover which i got from the dealers when i bought it as part of the price.The dealer negotiated the warranty company to pay for Bilsteins instead of DRC (I think i may have paid the labour or something but it was a good deal because although i can't remember the price i am not still smarting so it can't have been too bad
)
Last edited by Carlson on Mon Dec 07, 2015 7:50 am, edited 2 times in total.
Re: Buying a C5 RS6 still on original gearbox and suspension
Bought mine in May for £6.5 with mainly Audi dealer history plus some MRC. Came with MRC remap, Bilsteins and new front calipers, discs & pads. Drove well on test so I bought it.
About 3 weeks later the 'box failed.
Full rebuild inc. torque converter at a gearbox specialist plus a replacement (second hand) TCU which cost me £4k although £500 was covered by AA warranty.
Last month it failed the MOT on a leaking rear caliper (both now replaced along with discs & pads), headlight washer jets inoperative (new jet installed, tested & working) plus the headlight aim was too high (levelling motor replaced and recalibrated with Vagcom.)
I have also recently had the cambelt replaced along with the auxiliary drive belt, tensioners, pulleys, water pump etc. (basically the complete Audi service kit), plus I had a faulty parking sensor (new one painted, fitted and now all working), and the Audi Master Tech that carried out all the above (private) work for me noticed one bumper mounting bolt was knackered i.e. it had to be drilled out and re-fabricated, and the other had gone AWOL.
Then the (3-core) radiator decided to leak so that was replaced (£800.)
He also reseated the intercoolers, reattached the fan ecu that was just hanging by its wires, cleaned out the throttle bodies, checked both dump valves were functioning correctly, drilled out a bolt that had snapped in a camshaft (too tight), replaced a n/s headlight mounting as some numpty had fitted an o/s one instead, adjusted the bonnet so it now sits flush with the wings, fixed some minor oil leaks inc. replacing the crankshaft oil seals, degreased much of the lower engine bay to spot any other leaks/issues and refitted the wheel arch liners as one was hanging on - literally.
Then he went through the whole front end replacing any incorrect bolts, grommets and screws with the correct ones - he's a bit of a perfectionist btw.
Finally he stripped the driver's side wing mirror down as once moved from a retracted position it doesn't lock in place and swings right round. It can just be pulled back but it's inconvenient. Anyway, he decided not to try and remove the main spring in case he couldn't get it back on, plus it's almost impossible to clamp it on the C5 even with a valve spring compressor. After the MOT he'll have another go but it'll fail if the mirror is missing or doesn't work and I want it to pass this time!
MOT now rebooked for Monday after which it needs to go back to the gearbox Shop as the tech noticed a leak around the sump o-ring seal. Hopefully this is simply a drain fluid and replace o-ring job as the car has only covered a few hundred miles since the rebuild.
So, to date it's cost me £6.5 for the car, £4k for the 'box/TCU, £2200 for all the other parts (all genuine Audi) plus £1300 labour. I also had 4 new P-Zeros fitted just after I bought it as it had was sitting on budget tyres plus a new windscreen was fitted through my insurance. All in all more than double the original purchase price, although you could argue I paid relatively little for it to start with.
FYI, dealer rates are £140+vat per hour. I don't even want to think what it would have cost me if I'd have entrusted the car to one of them. Even my local garage would have been £££. My chap spent around 40 hours in total @ £30/hour. Saved me £££££££££££.
I still love it though. Just remember stuff will go wrong and it's not cheap to maintain.
HTH
About 3 weeks later the 'box failed.
Full rebuild inc. torque converter at a gearbox specialist plus a replacement (second hand) TCU which cost me £4k although £500 was covered by AA warranty.
Last month it failed the MOT on a leaking rear caliper (both now replaced along with discs & pads), headlight washer jets inoperative (new jet installed, tested & working) plus the headlight aim was too high (levelling motor replaced and recalibrated with Vagcom.)
I have also recently had the cambelt replaced along with the auxiliary drive belt, tensioners, pulleys, water pump etc. (basically the complete Audi service kit), plus I had a faulty parking sensor (new one painted, fitted and now all working), and the Audi Master Tech that carried out all the above (private) work for me noticed one bumper mounting bolt was knackered i.e. it had to be drilled out and re-fabricated, and the other had gone AWOL.
Then the (3-core) radiator decided to leak so that was replaced (£800.)
He also reseated the intercoolers, reattached the fan ecu that was just hanging by its wires, cleaned out the throttle bodies, checked both dump valves were functioning correctly, drilled out a bolt that had snapped in a camshaft (too tight), replaced a n/s headlight mounting as some numpty had fitted an o/s one instead, adjusted the bonnet so it now sits flush with the wings, fixed some minor oil leaks inc. replacing the crankshaft oil seals, degreased much of the lower engine bay to spot any other leaks/issues and refitted the wheel arch liners as one was hanging on - literally.
Then he went through the whole front end replacing any incorrect bolts, grommets and screws with the correct ones - he's a bit of a perfectionist btw.
Finally he stripped the driver's side wing mirror down as once moved from a retracted position it doesn't lock in place and swings right round. It can just be pulled back but it's inconvenient. Anyway, he decided not to try and remove the main spring in case he couldn't get it back on, plus it's almost impossible to clamp it on the C5 even with a valve spring compressor. After the MOT he'll have another go but it'll fail if the mirror is missing or doesn't work and I want it to pass this time!
MOT now rebooked for Monday after which it needs to go back to the gearbox Shop as the tech noticed a leak around the sump o-ring seal. Hopefully this is simply a drain fluid and replace o-ring job as the car has only covered a few hundred miles since the rebuild.
So, to date it's cost me £6.5 for the car, £4k for the 'box/TCU, £2200 for all the other parts (all genuine Audi) plus £1300 labour. I also had 4 new P-Zeros fitted just after I bought it as it had was sitting on budget tyres plus a new windscreen was fitted through my insurance. All in all more than double the original purchase price, although you could argue I paid relatively little for it to start with.
FYI, dealer rates are £140+vat per hour. I don't even want to think what it would have cost me if I'd have entrusted the car to one of them. Even my local garage would have been £££. My chap spent around 40 hours in total @ £30/hour. Saved me £££££££££££.
I still love it though. Just remember stuff will go wrong and it's not cheap to maintain.
HTH
Current:
TT Mk1, 225 Quattro Misano Red, AmD map
Former:
RS6 Avant 2004, MRC Stage 1+, Bilstein Coilovers, Milltek & s/s downpipes
Saab 9000 Aero 1997, GT3071, Siemens Dekka 630s, Forge 50mm i/c, 3" downpipe, Maptun stainless header, Konis, Quaife lsd, a/c deleted, 4.05 ratio 'box, custom map, 470hp & 440lb/ft.
Saab 9-3 Aero Estate 2.8 v6 2006, 3" stainless downpipe & remap, 302hp & 380lb/ft.
Rouse Sport 304R Sapphire Cosworth 1990 (stock), 260hp & 300lb/ft.
TT Mk1, 225 Quattro Misano Red, AmD map
Former:
RS6 Avant 2004, MRC Stage 1+, Bilstein Coilovers, Milltek & s/s downpipes
Saab 9000 Aero 1997, GT3071, Siemens Dekka 630s, Forge 50mm i/c, 3" downpipe, Maptun stainless header, Konis, Quaife lsd, a/c deleted, 4.05 ratio 'box, custom map, 470hp & 440lb/ft.
Saab 9-3 Aero Estate 2.8 v6 2006, 3" stainless downpipe & remap, 302hp & 380lb/ft.
Rouse Sport 304R Sapphire Cosworth 1990 (stock), 260hp & 300lb/ft.
Re: Buying a C5 RS6 still on original gearbox and suspension
I concur with all of this - It's a similar list on all the threads and matches my experience too - but lets not forget they're a 11+ year old car now, as well.
Pretty much every car has some weak spots - my SAAB 9-5 Aero Hot is 1 year older than the rs6 and showing rust spots and needs new subframe bushes. The difference is the saab is worth a few hundred quid, so I just live with it, but RS6 is worth keeping "just right".
Pretty much every car has some weak spots - my SAAB 9-5 Aero Hot is 1 year older than the rs6 and showing rust spots and needs new subframe bushes. The difference is the saab is worth a few hundred quid, so I just live with it, but RS6 is worth keeping "just right".
"not a professional engineer, mechanic and mechanist"
Re: Buying a C5 RS6 still on original gearbox and suspension
Current:
TT Mk1, 225 Quattro Misano Red, AmD map
Former:
RS6 Avant 2004, MRC Stage 1+, Bilstein Coilovers, Milltek & s/s downpipes
Saab 9000 Aero 1997, GT3071, Siemens Dekka 630s, Forge 50mm i/c, 3" downpipe, Maptun stainless header, Konis, Quaife lsd, a/c deleted, 4.05 ratio 'box, custom map, 470hp & 440lb/ft.
Saab 9-3 Aero Estate 2.8 v6 2006, 3" stainless downpipe & remap, 302hp & 380lb/ft.
Rouse Sport 304R Sapphire Cosworth 1990 (stock), 260hp & 300lb/ft.
TT Mk1, 225 Quattro Misano Red, AmD map
Former:
RS6 Avant 2004, MRC Stage 1+, Bilstein Coilovers, Milltek & s/s downpipes
Saab 9000 Aero 1997, GT3071, Siemens Dekka 630s, Forge 50mm i/c, 3" downpipe, Maptun stainless header, Konis, Quaife lsd, a/c deleted, 4.05 ratio 'box, custom map, 470hp & 440lb/ft.
Saab 9-3 Aero Estate 2.8 v6 2006, 3" stainless downpipe & remap, 302hp & 380lb/ft.
Rouse Sport 304R Sapphire Cosworth 1990 (stock), 260hp & 300lb/ft.
Re: Buying a C5 RS6 still on original gearbox and suspension
So did you buy it?ThermalP4 wrote: Maybe I should just throw caution to the wind and go down you only live once route!
If not, who did?
Daytona RS6 C5 Avant. Viper'd, Billies, Waggers, MTM box brain, C6 stoppers, xcarlink, R8 coolant cap (woohoo)
///M3 E46 | XC90 (V8, natch) | Passat GTE | RR Classic V8 flapper
"The major difference between a thing that might go wrong and a thing that cannot possibly go wrong is that when a thing that cannot possibly go wrong goes wrong it usually turns out to be impossible to get at and repair."
///M3 E46 | XC90 (V8, natch) | Passat GTE | RR Classic V8 flapper
"The major difference between a thing that might go wrong and a thing that cannot possibly go wrong is that when a thing that cannot possibly go wrong goes wrong it usually turns out to be impossible to get at and repair."
Re: Buying a C5 RS6 still on original gearbox and suspension
Suspension is easy, Koni Yellow struts, cheap and great ride/height.
As stated, drive it and make sure shifts feel fine, try a WOT in 3rd while in Tip and see if she holds or shakes.
Don't drive the piss out of it and the trans might just hold up. Also helps to not be tuned for power...
As stated, drive it and make sure shifts feel fine, try a WOT in 3rd while in Tip and see if she holds or shakes.
Don't drive the piss out of it and the trans might just hold up. Also helps to not be tuned for power...
Revo Tune + extra ME7 fueling - MTM TCU - Wagners - Koni Struts - DevilSown W/M - Michelin PSS's - Hotchkis Sways - Upgraded TC/Trans - Mugello/Black/Carbon