Loss of 300e - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

kautz500sel85 · #1 06-17-2002, 08:16 PM

My daughter destroyed her great little 87 300e(135k) and as punishment w replaced it with a 1988 Audi 5000s. Its quite a different car(fwd,non turbo). Does anyone know if one of these hard stearing beast will run 200k and if there is any online tech help to be tapped. Current mile=90,000 + 4 years
Thanks

jsmith · #2 06-17-2002, 09:15 PM

there are a few audi forums, www.audiworld.com comes to mind. it was originally the a4.org site and has since grown into what it is now...

Mike Murrell · #3 06-17-2002, 10:02 PM

Don't recall the model, but around the mid to late 80's, Audi had a car that was all over TV shows like 60 Minutes, etc. Bad chip?...not sure. The car would inexplicably go from little or no speed to many, many rpms. One poor soul started his car and ended up going thru the garage wall and into the swimming pool on the other side. There were other stories and some were fatal.

Hope this '88 isn't one of them.

Give her a hug; buy her another 300E. Better car. She'll be safer in the long run.

csnow · #4 06-18-2002, 04:47 PM

My sympathies, twice...
I had a 1984 5000S, and it was a reliability nightmare. Most expensive car I have ever operated.
It seemed to get 'old before its time' with many major components failing that simply should last far longer. In the end, it wore ME out, and I donated it to charity at just 95K miles. It had little residual value due to severe depreciation. That whole "unintended acceleration" thing was quietly disclosed to be a complete farce years later, but it almost put Audi out of the US marketplace.

Problem areas:
-Steering racks every 30K ($$$)
-Steering hoses burst ($100 hose-twice in 90k)
-Exhaust manifolds warp and break studs (major effort to fix)
-Severe oil leaks around valve cover twice(really messy, but easy permanent fix with improved aftermarket gasket)
-Door handles (you can buy them in six-packs! What does that say?)
-AC nightmares $$$, just forget it...but of course you can't just get fresh outside air!
-Every front suspension components that moves (toast at just 70K $$$)
-Sunroof leaked from day 1 (not enough drainage capacity and easily clogs- never resolved- parking with nose downhill helps).
-Clutch master & slave @ 70K (5-speed)
-Brake master @ 75k
-Front bearings/CV joints @70k ($$$-big job)
-Rear bearings @80k (easy job)
-Parts even more expensive than MB (if you can imagine that!)

Design Problems:
- Footwells get brutally hot (see broken AC)
- Really heavy clutch, even for Germans
- Heavy flywheel=slow-revving
- Lacked low-end power (ok at speed)

Pluses:
Most comfortable seats ever!
Wide and spacious cabin with really nice storage shelves in footwells
Comfortable and spacious rear seating too with serious legroom
Great handling (with upgrade to bigger tires and stiffer shocks)
Quiet and solid at speed
Really great traction in snow even with 2wd (engine is FORWARD of front axle)
Solid body integrity, tough paint, and impervious to rust
Big trunk with 'ski passthrough'
Not one problem with motor operation, drivetrain, or electricals
Fantastic Shop manuals from Bentley!

Too bad about the reliability. Could've been a contender...
You will want to get to know Blaufergnügen.
http://www.audiquattroparts.com/toc.htm

Good luck.

Ron Johnstone · #5 06-18-2002, 05:50 PM

Audi is a fantastic, fun car to buy new, but sell it as soon as the warranty expires! My daughter has had an 85 and now owns a '93. I truly hate to work on the damn things as they are or seem to be made of plastic - which breaks easily. They are getting better, but it is a very expensive Volkswagen, with very expensive parts. Buy the repair manuals as you will need them.
She will next buy a Mercedes!