Potential New Owner

[78SanRemo]

Morning all, input required for some seasoned long term owners please!

A little background, I'm coming from 45 years or ownership of cars, I've had one Mini Clubman (awful) and a Renault Clio but everything else has been (and continues to be) Italian. I'm sure all of you will have your opinions on that but my experiences have been fantastic over the years, I can go into specifics if anyone wants me to. at length!

My current fleet consists of a Fiat Panda 100HP (3 years ownership and a hoot!) An Alfa Romeo 159 2.4 Ti Sportwagen Q4 (7 years ownership without issue until now) , a Lancia Beta Coupe (under restoration) and a Hawk HF3000 (since 1988) replica of a Lancia Stratos.

My Alfa 159 is one of 4 of this spec in the UK and has a problem that I've failed to diagnose, it's with a specialist at the moment, but it looks like the time to replace it is coming soon. After 7 years and 70,000 miles of completely trouble free motoring with me (out of 135,000 in total) it may be killed due to lack of spare parts, probably a CV joint in the centre propshaft that is unique to Alfa Romeo and no longer available.

So, I'm researching a replacement which should be practical, reliable and good looking. There's not much out there. I refuse to go electric/hybrid or SUV and need an estate for lugging stuff about. About the only car I've seen that comes close to being as good looking as the Alfa is an A6 Avant. It's a bit bigger and the load area is also longer and flatter which is a bonus.

I'm a complete novice when it comes to these cars but I'm not put off by an automatic gearbox which most appear to have and if I need performance I'll go for a blat in the Strat. Shopping - Panda. Long distance it needs to be comfortable!

So, recommendations/suggestions/explanations on engines and model names would be appreciated, what to look out for when test driving, maintenance costs, fuel economy in the real world, what to budget and anything else you think I ought to know about before I head out to look for my first potential German car?

Cheers

Guy

 

 

 

 

 

 

[78SanRemo]

So, nobody can recommend an A6 Avant of any type. Encouraging....

[Steve Q]

Service history is key. Make sure there's proof of gearbox quattro system and engine services. Check for any smoke out the exhaust. Black could indicate a blocked dpf. 

It's dpf and egr which are the expensive bills. Make sure gearbox changes are smooth regardless of manual or auto as clutches/dmf are expensive bills. 

I believe they like to eat suspension arms so look out for any knocking noises. 

Make sure all electrical items work as head units or AC compressors can be expensive bills. 

[78SanRemo]

Thanks for the reply. 

Luckily we managed to find the fault with the Alfa Romeo 159 Q4 and get it fixed pretty cheaply so I'm out of the market for an A6 now.

I got so many replies on the Alfaowner Forum with suggestions for possible faults but it turns out that the rear ZF Differential on the 2.4 diesel differs from the 3.2 petrol by having a cylindrical rubber bonded damper on it on which the rubber bond has failed (after 16 years and 137,000 miles) and which was an easy fix! Many more happy miles of Alfa motoring to come!!

Guy

 

 

[GranolaTTS]

I'm on the same page as Steve, if you do get an A6 make sure it has solid service history. personally, my pick would be the 3.0 BITDI model, the single turbo 3.0 and 2.0 are just a bit slow for such a big heavy car 2100KG. Depending on how much millage it's done and its history you may need to allocate a reasonable yearly maintenance budget for it. A black edition would be my preference for this model. I'm talking about C7 Generation cars, I don't know much about the C8 except the 3.0 BITDI C7 is faster than the C8 S6.

100-200 2016 3.0 BITDI 14.52

VS

2019 S6 TDI 15.04

The Single Turbo 3.0 will be okay if you are more chilled, again make sure the gearbox and all other serviceable items have been serviced as per schedule. The 3.0 diesel with the ZF-8 Speed gearbox is the one to get. Change the Oil every 5k also, you could get away with 10k but I wouldn't, With the fuel filter get it changed each year if you can. Audi recommends 15-20k.. 

Get the one with a ZF 8HP Gearbox this will only come with the larger engines, it's a tried and tested gearbox used in loads of cars. Aston Martin. The Toyota Supra. The Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio. BMW. Rolls-Royce. They all use ZF 8HP. I had a BMW with the same gearbox couldn't fault it. 

If you're going to cheap out on a  2.0 L A6 you might as well just get a Skoda Superb as it will be essentially the same. Get the grown-up 3.0 one 😂 If for some reason you go for a 2.0 L make sure you get a DSG. Avoid any with the CVT gearboxes, I have spotted a few early C7s with a CVT gearbox so make sure you avoid them.

(*Just my opinion on these cars based on my own cars and things I have read*)