My new whip.....

[Kace]

Well all - it has been a long long time having the FTO as my daily driver, but I took the plunge this week after a 6 month daily autotrader pistonheads search and have imported the new whip - the Audi A5 Quattro S-Line Special Edition 2l TDI.

Spec is massive and includes 19" Y-spoke alloys, S-Line suspension, LED rear lights and front DRLs, full S-Line interior, Bang & Olufsen sound system, 3D Sat Nav and full Audi Music Interface with DVD and SD slots. Best of all it had one careful lady owner and has the same amount of miles as the FTO when I bought it - a mere 12k. The car is absolutely immaculate inside and out and doesn't have a mark on it anywhere.

I would of course have preferred a more powerful 3l version but I couldn't really justify the extra 2-3k and increased tax and running costs, but I think the toys and overall comfort make up for it.


A5 Quattro S-Line Special Edition 2.0 TDI by Kaceman, on Flickr

The future for my FTO is unclear at present and I would early love to keep it as it has served me famously for nearly 14 years - it is a member of my family, however leaving it sitting in the rain or even my parents garage isn't good for the car. As a result I may have to try and sell

[goz_83]

2 words. Classic Insurance

[Kace]

Correct - I can't even drive the FTO right now as I had to switch the insurance to the Audi.

[colm_mcm]

Cool whip.

[StewyD32]

Car looks tight. Nice buy.

[Chris_Heilong]

I am not a hugh fan of Audi's but I do respect the Quattro, Its the only one I would buy. She looks a real beauty. You will have loads of fun with all the new toys I am sure.

[TopCat]

Very nice, and definitely something I would consider down the line!

Looking forward to hearing a bit more about how you find it after a couple of weeks if you get a chance.

Well wear!

[Myfeckin FTO]

Nice bus Kace - that'll be a big leap comfortwise from an FTO.

Out of interest - whats the road tax on that model?

[Kace]

Nice bus Kace - that'll be a big leap comfortwise from an FTO.

Out of interest - whats the road tax on that model?

That's for sure !! I don't know myself with DVD Players, Phone Integration, 10GB Jukeboxes and back-thumping bass - loving it though

Believe it or not I have no idea what the tax is - I haven't gone that far yet, but would expect it to be between 200-300. The Quattro has higher emissions than the regular FWD though.

Fully Comp insurance seems to be about 70-80 more expensive than my current TPFT on the FTO - madness given their respective values.

[CJ]

Nice buy Kace, I kinda like the A5, good move on the Quattro - no messin' come January.

Was it much cheaper to import and pay the VRT vs a local purchase? I looked at Audis when I imported the Octavia last year, VRT was a good bit more IIRC...

[goz_83]

what did she set you back?

[Kace]

It probably would have worked out a little cheaper to import (not a huge amount), but the fact is that I have been seeking this particular model and it's the top of the line specification that you can get. I have been looking for a long time now and have never seen another one like this in Ireland at all.

I did pay an awful lot for it, especially given that it's 2009, but its condition is essentially as new and coupled with the spec and the fact that I convinced myself that I 'deserved' a treat with the Quattro, this is why I went with it.

It set me back €32k. I can hear you guys crying but hey, I keep telling myself that I deserve it - hard work etc. etc.

[goz_83]

It's a stunner though

[Kace]

Came back to Bewley's underground carpark in Leopardstown after work this evening to find that some absolute c&ck had clipped off me and scraped the whole corner of my bumper

Unbelievable - €30k motor without a mark, haven't had it a week and I'm already a victim to a hit and run. No note - nothing. They may have the scum on CCTV so I'll be over there first thing in the morning for the result.

Gutted.....

[Chris_Heilong]

Thats crap news. Double park as far from any other car is the only way to avoid this cack.

[goz_83]

Ignorant, or stupid.....one or the other, i'd hang them all. Sorry to hear that man. Some cnut did the very same to my fto a couple of weeks ago and it's only fresh out of the paint shop as you probably know. It's not worth 30k, but it's still my baby. Gutted for you.

On Wednesday, I was at Donaghmede shopping centre, where I make an extra effort to find a safe place to park my car. Thank God I did, because after returning from the hardware and getting into my car, I witnessed an Asian woman in a 08 primera reversing out of a spot, hitting a sign post. The worst part was she kept reversing and clipped the corner of a wooden fence. I could hear the crunching of what I thought was the fence. When she drove away (without showing any sign of realising what had happened) I could see the bootlid was damaged quite badly. Looked like it got a serious smack of a sledge hammer. What a retard. Glad I was parkd where I was.

[Kace]

....I witnessed an Asian woman in a 08 primera reversing out of a spot, hitting a sign post. The worst part was she kept reversing and clipped the corner of a wooden fence. I could hear the crunching of what I thought was the fence. When she drove away (without showing any sign of realising what had happened) I could see the bootlid was damaged quite badly. Looked like it got a serious smack of a sledge hammer. What a retard. Glad I was parkd where I was.

At least she damaged her own car and not someone elses. I'm sure her hubby would have given her a nice earful when she returned home.

[Kace]

I was reviewing CCTV with the hotel manager today and he was organising to provide me with a DVD of the day's footage. Later on he phones me back and tells me that he has two pieces of good news for me : 1. He has the footage of the collision, 2. He has a phone number for me.

Turns out a woman did actually tell the restaurant manager and provided her number after she did the damage yesterday after all !!!

That's twice this year I have been pranged in Bewley's. Both time ladies, both owned up and both agreed to get it sorted. Last time I let the lady off with €20 for A34 touch up paint. This time it's going to be costly for her.

Big up the ladies though for honesty.

[goz_83]

Great news! Very lucky.

[TopCat]

Just coming back to this now. Gutted for ya, typically just after you get a new car, but at least she was honest about it, and hope you get it sorted quickly and enjoy the car as you should.

How has the first few weeks of ownership been?

[Kace]

Yeah - all should be OK, although the loss assessors have not agreed the final price with the repair garage yet - I was on to them today about it. Quote from http://www.accidentrepaircentre.ie was a massive €650 which is unbelievable, so I'm happy for the assessor to try and beat them down a bit. It's probably a huge price as they know it's through insurance - mad money.

Re ownership - the toys and sound system are amazing so I'm really enjoying that aspect. I have also been enjoying the configurability of the car through VAGCOM, which allows you to tweak aspects of the car through a specialist cable and software. Small things that are available on different specs of cars can be enabled on your own through some careful configuration - for example I have disabled the annoying seatbelt chime and have enabled Video in Motion - allowing DVDs to be watched in the car while it is moving.

Drive-wise, the S-Line suspension is very tight and stiff - not too dissimilar to an FTO. I can see how some people could find this intolerable, however after 13 years of FTO ownership I take this as the norm and prefer the tight ride. Main thing you miss is the high revving Mivec, with gearshifts in the Diesel required at 4k rpm or so.

I surprised the wife earlier this week when I said that I still miss the FTO and can still see myself giving it the odd run, but obviously I would much prefer to be doing this in finer weather !!

I'm thinking of putting it through the NCT next month to see if there's anything wanting at present - front anti-roll bush fail is expected at a minimum.

[goz_83]

There is some strange draw to the fto I think. I couldn't see myself giving her up, especially not for the small money she would fetch. All going well, I will have another daily driver suitable for hauling all the kids around when the OH is at work, or otherwise using the family car herself. There is no rush, as she will be on maternity leave in a week, or so until some time in May next year.