Audi A5, unknown year

[electra225]

Long story short, my Mini is in the body shop. Again. It spends more time in the body shop than it does on the road. There has been enough spent on body work to nearly pay for the car. This time, a guy at the detail shop let it get away from him exiting the car wash, so he hit a curb, pretty hard, with the right side of the Mini. It damaged both wheels on the right side, and God only knows what else they will find on hard inspection. Since the wife can't drive, and since Uber is mega-bucks around here, State Farm got me a rental car. The only car Enterprise had on the lot that wasn't a hybrid or electric was this white Audi. I have never found the gas gauge. There is a "distance" display that tells me how many miles to empty, at from 8 to 17mpg on premium fuel. I'm guessing this is no cheap car. I finally figured out the radio, although there is no AM. Just FM and a USB port. If you want "Park" that is a button on the side of the shifter that says "park". You can only access park from neutral. At least it has a shifter instead of a push button for the transmission. It has a digital display that says something stupid and a backup camera, something even stupider. The AC is on full cold, full blast, no idea how to turn it off or down. The car runs and drives like your typical German car. Tight, precise, competent, all engine and brakes. I'm assuming it is a V8 by the amount of fuel it burns. Enterprise wanted to give me an electric Ford of some kind. When I told them I had no facilities for charging an electric vehicle, they looked at me like I was from Mars. They knew for sure when I told them I didn't text. Audi has a horrible reputation for service and is not known for reliability. The most expensive brand to service. This thing is the most expensive car I have ever driven. Probably at least $100,000 when it was new. IT has Nevada tags on it. I like how it drives. I can do without all the tech. Would I buy one if I had the money? Probably not. I would spend that money on a BMW. I think BMW has a better reliability rating. If you are in that class of vehicle, you expect service to be expensive, so you don't worry about that.

[TC Chris]

As a guy at the cheap 'n' cheerful end of the spectrum (Fords, Chevies, a couple Oldsmobiles), I never saw much of interest in German cars. They never seemed like much fun. Much too serious. They never had a Virgil Exner.

Chris Campbell

[electra225]

True enough. But I can say with fair certainty that if you drive a German car for any length of time, you will consider our domestic cars to be wallowing, rattle trap pigs. That little Mini I have does everything so much "better" than even the big Buicks I have owned, there is simply no comparison. A big Buick has its own personality and there was never anything like one. Precision was not one of its attributes. Understeer, wallowy suspension, floppy bodywork, wind noise, creaks and groans. No such nonsense in a German car. Boring? Perhaps, but competent performance is something you grow appreciative of. Would I trade the old Buick for a new BMW? Nope, sure wouldn't. Just like I wouldn't trade Carrie Underwood for Loretta Lynn. In spite of its precision, a BMW would not be an old Buick.

[walyfd]

I'd hold out for a Rolls... 2000 or earlier.

[William]

You can't compare an old Buick to a new anything, apples and oranges kind of a comparison. New American cars drive, ride, power, quiet are more like a German cars or any other manufacture for that matter that produces vehicles in todays world. Would there ever be an Audi, Volkswagen or BMW in my garage. NO!

Bill

[chazglenn3]

I have never been a fan of the German cars. My last eight cars were all Cadillacs. I caved in and bought my first EV (well leased as I wasn't sure) in October 2023. I am now completely ruined and don't think I can buy another internal combustion engine car. I have a 2024 Polestar 2 Performance. This brand spun off of Volvo so the safety features are outstanding and it is engineered very well. It was built in China and they also did a very good job. Of course all of the new tariffs have killed the Polestar 2 in the United States...

[electra225]

I have my car back from the body shop. I figured out most of the tech on the Audi. It was a gas hog in the tradition of the big American V-8's back in the day. 17 mpg was the best I saw on the display. It had a 3 liter, bi-turbo V-6 in it with an 8-speed transmission.

I had a scam call this afternoon. A caller with a local number, claiming he was from State Farm insurance. Said he was calling about the auto accident I was involved in. Then asked how severe my back pain was. That was the second red flag. That is a HEPA question and State Farm would never ask such a question other than in person. He said my car was in the body shop and that it had been turned in to a reporting agency with decreased value due to the collision and subsequent repair. He offered to reimburse me for the difference in value, before and after the collison. All I had to do was to give him my banking information so he could send the money. Yeah, right. I asked the body shop if they were familiar with this scam and they were. State Farm is allegedly aware of it as well. WE have the number they called on. When I told the guy I was not in an auto accident and what was he up to, he hung up. The body shop said one of their lady customers fell for the scam and got her identity stolen and her bank account cleaned out.

[William]

It is really too bad that the people who pull these scams can't be found and brought to justice. It makes me sick knowing how many seniors, or anyone for that matter, that get taken to the cleaners.

Bill

[William]

It is really too bad that the people who pull these scams can't be found and brought to justice. It makes me sick knowing how many seniors, or anyone for that matter, that get taken to the cleaners.

Bill

[TC Chris]

I had a mandatory cyber-scam training online at work Wednesday. It dealt with all the usual scams--URLs that look real but have one character changed, etc. The basic rule is that if you get any sort of call or email that you do not expect, don't click or answer or reply. Look up the phone number or email address or web site and call/contact them back. And never ever give banking info or click on links that are sent to you.

Chris Campbell

[electra225]

There were three immediate red flags in the call I got. First, the heavy middle-Eastern accent. Then the asking me about the automobile accident I was in. Then asking about medical information over the phone, a violation of HEPA laws. Then he got right into the old "lost value after an accident" scam. He was phishing, or fishing, however you want to say that. I don't believe in the "something for nothing" line many people will fall for.

What concerns me is how this guy knew my car was in a body shop, how he knew my name, and how he got my phone number. State Farm doesn't act like this is a big deal. Seems to me that either their database or the body shop's data base is not secure.....

[William]

Nothing is secure any more.

Bill

[electra225]

I must be getting old, but is seems to me like life is too short for such things. What is the endgame of all the spam? How do you sleep at night, knowing you just took someone's life savings? Why can't some people use their energies for something helpful and positive?