Seriously thinking of moving to a B8 from a B7.....thoughts?

[johnnydog]

This may have been asked before, but having owned a 57 plate B7 Avant for nearly 5 years (and loved it!), I am seriously thinking of moving to a B8.
Just wondering if those of you who have owned both been glad they changed or have any thoughts / regrets about changing? Once my B7 is gone, it would difficult to get another low mileage one in the same condition if I didn't like its replacement as much! Any thoughts on ownership of the two cars would be appreciated!

[John Johnson]

Mines just sold and I keep looking for a decent spec b8 then get drawn back to r8s

[Graeme4130]

There's quite a few of us B8 owners that came from b7's (myself included) and the general consensus is that none of us would look back

[toshers]

I'm lucky enough to have a B8 and still have the B7. I contemplated selling the B7 but decided to hang onto it. Like you I don't think I will get another B7 in the condition of mine with the miles (just turned 20k before being laid up for the winter). I know I'd regret selling it.

The B8 is an awesome car and I don't understand, nor agree, with the 'harsh' ride that a lot of reviewers have written about in articles. If you want the ride to be soft then in my opinion go for something else. It's an RS after all. I think the ride is spot on, not crashy, bone shattering or anything like it. Of course it can be changed, to a certain degree, through the MMI. The improvements on the power delivery, sports diff etc. are magic. Driven hard the tail can be pushed out. It's brilliantly weighted, progressive and easily controlled. In the snow it's huge fun! The 7 speed box in the B8 is tremendous, silk smooth and gets the absolute best from the engine. Suits the car perfectly. The interior is lovely, great fit and finish as always. This is a big improvement over the B7. I specified the bucket seats for the B8 and glad I did, they make the RS that wee bit more special and there's nothing quite like their hold. Although expensive, definitely worth it in my opinion. If you're looking for a used B8 you might have quite an exhaustive search due to the scarcity of them.

My only gripe about the B8 is the size of the petrol tank, be prepared to stop frequently for fill ups!

To conclude the B7 still has a special place for me. The ride and handling is brilliant, the B8 has certainly moved things on, but for the vast majority of the time these cars are not driven to fully exploit them. Improvements with the interior can be appreciated every time you sit in the car though. The B7 is getting to the point where it is getting quite rare and will surely gain cult status. This should ensure its values stay strong. Depreciation on the B7 from now on, if you have a good one, will be negligible. Be prepared to take a serious hit on depreciation with a B8, although it shouldn't be as bad as other marques. Having come from a CLS63 AMG to the B8 I should know :0

In short my opinion would be to go for the B8. It is a big improvement in virtually every area. It just didn't move things along like the B7 did from the B5. Get your pennies out and happy hunting

PS...If you haven't already done so, get yourself along to your nearest dealership and test drive a B8.

[Afsimba]

I think toshers has more or less hit the nail on the head though I don't share his love on the auto
Box ! I'm sure it is As good a one as you'll find but I just trust a manual more , u can be out pressing on although
Not on a B road blast an have it in sports auto without full "manual " engaged be set on a sweeping corner an it'll
Shift half way through !! Potentially un balancing the car ! My only real gripe ! And my poor colour choice ! Went from having only nogaro blue to them Bein ten a penny ! Love the car though it's a happy place know its due s chassis change an folk say it's dated tech but it's leaps and bounds ahead of B7 ! Do miss mine sometimes had a saloon which I preferred !
But the avant is a great all round car there's faster things but don't think they're as well rounded.
Hope this helps just buy one

[Graeme4130]

I think toshers has more or less hit the nail on the head though I don't share his love on the auto
Box ! I'm sure it is As good a one as you'll find but I just trust a manual more , u can be out pressing on although
Not on a B road blast an have it in sports auto without full "manual " engaged be set on a sweeping corner an it'll
Shift half way through !! Potentially un balancing the car ! My only real gripe ! And my poor colour choice ! Went from having only nogaro blue to them Bein ten a penny ! Love the car though it's a happy place know its due s chassis change an folk say it's dated tech but it's leaps and bounds ahead of B7 ! Do miss mine sometimes had a saloon which I preferred !
But the avant is a great all round car there's faster things but don't think they're as well rounded.
Hope this helps just buy one

It shouldn't change mid corner if you have the lever pushed left for manual, rather than having over ridden auto by making shifts with the paddles in my experience ?
The only time it'll shift for you in full manual is if you let the revs go below the lower limit (1500rpm iirc)

[Afsimba]

Sorry yeah I said sport auto " not " full manual ! If there was confusion
That's why I said not full B road blast ! U become more lazy with auto and was saying u can be in sport pressing on
Without commited assault down a back road !!

[geordie jay]

thought I would ask.as you all know the B7 came with known faults like DRC and coil pack issues etcetc I think I will be tempted to go same way in the future.love be B7 saloon but will be going for the B8 avant as more practical but is there any known faults on the B8 like the B7.was talking to a chap from my local audi garage and he said that they haven't had anyone in with DRC issues on the B8 yet?

[Graeme4130]

thought I would ask.as you all know the B7 came with known faults like DRC and coil pack issues etcetc I think I will be tempted to go same way in the future.love be B7 saloon but will be going for the B8 avant as more practical but is there any known faults on the B8 like the B7.was talking to a chap from my local audi garage and he said that they haven't had anyone in with DRC issues on the B8 yet?

I've not experienced it myself, but I have heard of a couple of cats that have had drc units or shocks replaced/recharged
Now cars will still be covered by warranty, and is guess we could expect the same 5yr goodwill that was shown by Audi on B7's

[PetrolDave]

Now cars will still be covered by warranty, and is guess we could expect the same 5yr goodwill that was shown by Audi on B7's

We only got that 5 year extension from Audi UK after many of us wrote the the MD of Audi UK complaining of the number of DRC failures, so I don't think you should assume that it will automatically be offered to B8 owners. BTW Audi of America did a full recall to replace the DRC on US B7s...

Having said that the B8 will have Gen 3 DRC which has been an enormous improvement in reliability over the Gen 2 DRC that was originally fitted to the B7.

[PetrolDave]

was talking to a chap from my local audi garage and he said that they haven't had anyone in with DRC issues on the B8 yet?

Evo complained of noisy rattling suspension on their B8 (which is the usual first sign of DRC failure) and were told it was "normal" - which they never really believed. IIRC Autocar made the same comment about their B8...

[RIV]

Evo complained of noisy rattling suspension on their B8 (which is the usual first sign of DRC failure) and were told it was "normal" - which they never really believed. IIRC Autocar made the same comment about their B8...

It's not the first sign on the b8.DRC tends to knock when cold it's normal

[PetrolDave]

DRC tends to knock when cold it's normal

Hmmm......

Knocking implies mechanical contact of some kind, which surely cannot be good - even if Audi do call it "normal" it shouldn't be acceptable IMHO.

[RIV]

Knocking implies mechanical contact of some kind, which surely cannot be good - even if Audi do call it "normal" it shouldn't be acceptable IMHO.

I've had my pressures checked twice, it' all fine, the noise is very subtle, you know when the DRC is down on pressure as the car doesn't handle correctly. I've been down that route with the b7, b8 is different

[johnnydog]

Thanks for the input chaps - I think I have been convinced!
Off to try and find one locally this week for a test drive; only then will I be fully certain on how it drives / performs compared to my B7 (if they let me drive it for long enough - round the block won't do!). Trouble is you can never do a proper test drive with a commission hungry salesman sitting in the passenger seat...