Unfortunately Audi, as all European manufacturers, have had many recent reliability problems stemming mostly from electrical matters.
No doubt about it- the A8 is a beautiful car and drives very nice. It offers much room and a high class, high quality interior. It performs excellent in winter driving and is sporty in the summer. In theory a great car. However, it has many downsides. The first being resale value which is well below average- 43% loss in the first year. It is horrible on gas mileage as well- 14city/19highway. It is very expensive to own and maintain. Insurance is also very high as parts cost above average. And reliability-who wants to see their new car in the repair shop more than in their driveway? Read the consumer reviews, especially long term reviews. The logs are filled with horror stories just in time for Halloween.
I would test drive it just so that later when you buy something else you will not wonder what it was like to drive that model.
No European car is made to “last a long time”
As the previous poster mentioned, they suffer from electrical issues and other quality issues. Enough to drive you insane. I’ve had 1 BMW with was repaired 8 times in 2.5 yrs (mostly electrical problems) and 1 Audi which I had to a couple of electrical problems and 1 engine problem in 4 yrs of ownership. Lucky for me, all under warranty and I leased them so they are no longer my problem. That said, I now have an Acura.
Now, I don’t mean to diss the Euro cars. I love BMWs regardless because nothing on the road these days drives like one. But be aware that once the warranty goes, every time the car “sneezes”, it’ll cost you $700 bucks or more.
Go with the Lexus if you want reliability.
yes they will last a long time but they will require maintenance and some repairs. the only car in this class that has a very good reliability rating is the lexus LS460 but it is not as nice of a driver as the A8 or &series are. on thing Audi has going is their CPO warrenty if you get a low mileage used you avoid the large initial depreciation hit and gain an additional 2 years and 50K miles. the Audi A8 is rated the most wanted sedan over 60K by Edmunds.com editors. they are all aluminum and have very good rust protection they do have electrical gremlins like most European cars but they are not usually problems that cause breakdowns or leave you stranded they are things like glitches in nav systems dash lights that go out prematurely etc.
If you are looking for the most reliable sedan in the class than it is the Lexus LS460 but you give up AWD and the driving dynamics and more luxurious fell of a European sedan that you get with the Audi and the LS460 is lacking. in my opinion the A8l is the nicest car in the class and in order to get a nicer car of this size you are looking at cars significantly over $100K and you still don’t get any more reliability in that price range.
i would test drive both the Audi and the lexus and if you are vary happy with the feel of the Lexus it will be cheaper to own but i have found that it does not suit me and i have to go with either the 7 series or the A8 and with the award wining warrenty and awd the A8 would probably come out on top. definitely the Lexus 460 over the Cadillac. The Cadillac is lacking in the refinement and build quality departments before you spend allot of money on an Escalade you should just get a Chevy Tahoe or GMC Yukon with leather and navigation there really the same trucks Pay attention to the build quality in the caddy, it may seem nice now when its new but i have driven many that are a few years old and they don’t seem to hold up well on the inside. to me it would be between the Audi and the lexus or the older model BMW 745 (2004 or so) they were more reliable in than the new 750.
I would go with the Lexus LS460. Most Europeon upscale sedans tend to be “over engineered” and have electrical problems. In addition, the Lexus gets better fuel economy and costs less.
Sure! Audi makes only quality cars that will last long if well cared for.A8 drives so well, road holding ability of this car at all speeds is just excellent.Go for it.
Sure is. Audi makes very nice cars. Just keep the maintenace up to date and any car will last a very long time