Is it time to let the Q7 go....? Feedback please....

[flat12]

Hello Audi Gang. I've been an Audi guy for many years, but as of late I'm having second thoughts about keeping my 2007 Q7. As you may know from my other threads, I've had my share of issues and have worked very hard to fix them.

The two biggest issues were:
1) Electrical system gremlin and high pressure fuel pump issue that resulted in many months of downtime. I tried for months to find the issue, but finally took it to our local import specialists...who even with Audi support took 6 weeks to find the problem.

2) Constant oil leak from the right-rear cam chain cover. This cover also has a coolant tube pressed into it, making it incredibly difficult to remove and replace with the engine in the vehicle. The factory uses a bead of sealant on this plate, I purchased genuine Audi sealant and tried to fix the leak - without success. I finally had to make a gasket. However this wasn't the end of the problem, there is an o-ring that seals the coolant tube to the cylinder head, during installation I must have damaged it...because soon after the coolant level kept dropping while the oil level kept going up. So I pulled the cover again and installed a new o-ring and made a new gasket.....so far all is good.

My biggest worry......
While I was re-fixing the cam chain cover oil leak, I happened to look at the timing chain guide that goes in between the camshafts...it looked "odd" so I lifted up the chain to get a better look and it just fell out into my hands! This guide is a piece of plastic about 2 inches long and about 5/8 of an inch wide....it clips into place. But the ends that retain the guide had broken off long ago and it was being held in place by the tension of the chain and a little "nub" on the bottom of the guile that went into a locator hole. I bought a new guide and put everything back together and all is good. In fact we just took the Q7 on a 1,800 mile trip and it performed fine. But I am worried about all of the other chain guides in this engine now. The only way to replace them is to drop the motor out. If the one guide I changed out was bad, I'm sure others are on the brink of failure too.

The Q7 now has 105k miles on it, everything is working fine with no issues. I really love this vehicle, and keep her looking "as new"....but has the time come to let her go while things are good? The book value on her is only around $12k retail, with dealer trade-in at about $10k. Emotionally I would like to keep the Q7 for a long time yet, but my common sense brain says it's time to move on.

I welcome opinions on this....thank you....

[ICU2]

I think it depends largely on why you are considering this move. Is it because of the mechanical issues of the current car? By the way is this a six or an eight cylinder? I'm guessing six but I know nothing about the six-cylinder engine, it's reliability, and/or known problems. W/the V8, it seems to be much more robust and less likely to have long-term issues other than carbon buildup. Regardless of which way you go you will be spending money either through repair and maintenance on your existing vehicle, or cash out of your pocket and/or payments for a new vehicle. If considering new, brand-new, CPO, or gently loved & previously owned? Aesthetically the vehicle has not changed much from your 07 to my 2015, however, the technological advances, safety features and "gadgets" are often times too tempting to pass on. If your current vehicle is "sound" have you thought about a complete engine rebuild and or swap? From what you have written it sounds like you are far more mechanically inclined than most and perhaps could mitigate your expenses by finding a "new/rebuilt" motor, pulling the old one and putting the new one in, there by ensuring tens of thousands of worry free mileage on another wise,very sound vehicle. Just my .02.

[flat12]

Hello ICU2...yes my Q7 has the 4.2 liter V8, with the air suspension, etc.....loaded. I removed all of the carbon build up on the intake valves and cleaned up the intake manifold flaps and separator plates, etc.....all clean and shiny in there now. My biggest worry with the 4.2 engine is that there are 4 chain sets located at the rear of the engine. One chain drives the accessories like the AC Pump, etc. Another chain drives a central sprocket that then powers the timing chain for the left cylinder head, and the timing chain for the right cylinder head. So as you see this is a complicated engine. All of these chains use plastic guides. And I'm worried that the one bad guiide I luckily found and replaced, is indicative of what the other guides may be like. I worry that the engine could suffer a catastrophic failure without warning. Because of all of the recent issues with the Q7 my significant other is pressuring me to get something else. I've been resisting but I have a hard time making a sound argument to keep the Audi - given the potential issues. Am I just being paranoid here?

[acoleman]

Before I bought my '12 Sline, I was looking at an '08 with the 4.2. It had less than 100k and developed a ticking sound from the rear of the engine. I was quoted $10k for the repairs. Not exactly worth it on a $15k vehicle, so I walked away. There are much less of these stories with the Q7 4.2 vs the S4 4.2, but it still happens. If you like the Q7 I would look in to getting a newer 3.0. The prices are decent and they are much more advanced as far as tech and luxury in my opinion. Mine has almost 100K and it's still as new.

[ICU2]

Paranoid no, but concerned yes. Almost sounds like the S/O wants the peace of mind that comes via a warranty. Either way U R going to spend $, even a "new" car can have issues. If $ isn't an object, & the S/O is essentially telling U to get something "newer", there R worse problems to have. As I said before, it's a ? Of brand new, CPO, used. 1st world problem. The good news is U R not in a "buy now" position as there is nothing wrong w/your current Q7, so U can afford to be more discerning ~what U decide to purchase. Vehicle shopping via the net is easy, physically inspecting the one(s) U like the most, much more of a challenge. Good luck & keep us posted.

[flat12]

Thank You for the excellent responses - I do appreciate it. ACOLEMAN - I will investigate the possibility of a 3.0 Q7....that is a good suggestion. ICU2 - thank you for your input as well, yes...I can afford to take my time on this...which greatly reduces the stress. My wife has suggested a 2010 Range Rover that is for sale near us. While the RR is very nice and they have improved considerably - still lots of issues, but I can deal with problems as long as the drivetrain is solid. I will keep you posted...thanks again!

[audispeed]

Thank You for the excellent responses - I do appreciate it. ACOLEMAN - I will investigate the possibility of a 3.0 Q7....that is a good suggestion. ICU2 - thank you for your input as well, yes...I can afford to take my time on this...which greatly reduces the stress. My wife has suggested a 2010 Range Rover that is for sale near us. While the RR is very nice and they have improved considerably - still lots of issues, but I can deal with problems as long as the drivetrain is solid. I will keep you posted...thanks again!

Don't know that the RR would be an improvement. My 2011 jag was not the most reliable thing ever. My take is sweat it out until you can afford the new q7 body style. Updates for the 2015 and older are not worth it. That said, your timing guides are probably all bad. If you can't fix it yourself, probably time to get out now.

[flat12]

Yes I've been doing some research on that 2010 Range Rover, and there is a campaign regarding the timing chains & guides. There is an upgrade using steel locator pins and better materials that seems to fix the issue. I think I'm going to call RR and see if the one for sale locally has had that work done.

While I could fix my Q7's chains and guides, I do not have the space, or the time, to drop the drivetrain out and separate the motor and trans to get at everything. Years ago I used to think that timing belts were not as good as chains, but over time experience shows that belts have some advantages over chains...but require more frequent replacement. I did a few timing belt changes on my old D2 and D3 Audi A8L's....and it wasn't too bad of a job, that system is well thought out and proven. I've also looked at newer Q7's with the 3.0T and 3.6 and it appears that push button start and air suspension options are very rare. I did find a real nice TDI with a real leather dash and alcantara head liner, but while I was looking at it on line...it sold...!!!!!

[ICU2]

As far as the 3.0T, I had a 2010 S5 Cab, put ~ 25000 miles & had the water pump & thermostat replaced (under warrenty & after 4/5 separate trips to dealership, all warranty, CPO, but that led me to the RS5 Cab I have now so not complaining). The wife's 2015 S Line Q7 has just over 12000 miles after ~ 18 mo's of ownership. Not a single issue, I just change the oil Q5000 miles on both, & have Audi Care for both. So far excellent. BTW, before the 2010 S5, I had a 2007 S4 Cab, manual w/V8 & put > than 40000 trouble free miles on it. Just routine maintenance, tires etc. None of them were > than 75000 miles so not close to your 105000, so maybe my issues were in my future, just got out of one & in to another CPO for me & new for the wife. I like the idea of warranty, these cars R NOT cheap to repair, so I share your wife's uneasy feeling regarding the reliability issues she's wondering/worrying about. Warranty buys peace of mind, but U pay for it.

[Clues]

I just had a similar situation. My 2007 Q7 3.6 (original owner) had 145k miles and never had a major problem until a few months ago when I had a high fuel pressure error appear. I use a very good indy who worked at an Audi dealership for many years and he could not fix the problem for several weeks. He stepped through all of the likely culprits (sensors, fuel pump, fuel rail, etc) and racked up over $1,800 in "repairs" that did not fix the problem. It turned out that two of the timing chain guides had broken and the play in the timing chain was affecting the camshaft and the ECM was compensating by forcing more fuel into one side of the engine (hence the high fuel pressure). the oil pump gear sprocket was also damaged and needed replacing. The job to replace the timing chain and components was quoted at $4,500, on top of the $1,800 for the previous work. My car was only worth $5-7k, without the engine issue....

It was a tough decision because I babied the car for 10 years and felt that it still had many years left if I repaired the timing chain issue.

In the end, I ended up selling the Q7 to my mechanic, who plans to repair the engine on his own time and then keep it as his family car. It actually turned into a barter deal where he negated the $1,800 and did a bunch of work on my other two cars, including a timing belt job on one of my other cars. So all in all, i was sorry to let the Q7 go, but could not justify pumping that amount of money into a 10 year old car with 150k miles...

My only recommendation to you is to consider the transmission and drivetrain. I changed the fluids in my transmission, transfer case, and front/rear differentials at 60k and 120k. If you are still running the original fluids, you will have a higher probability of failure in the future, which would be very costly. I hate that Audi does not include these fluids anywhere in there maintenance schedule.

[flat12]

Hello CLUE....your experiences so sound familiar. I baby my Q7 too, in fact people think it's new are nearly new. I love the looks and style, I love all of the great options that come with the 4.2 premium. And its running better than ever lately too! I've been doing on-line searching and research, and I found a couple of possibilities, a couple of 2010 Q7's...one a TDI and one a 3.0T. I believe these engines do not have nearly as many issues as the earlier 3.6 and 4.2 engines. I know I should be chastised for admitting this, but I am also considering 2009 Range Rovers too - which my wife loves. the 2010 - 2012 year Rovers have timing chain & guide issues too. From what I understand the 2008-2009 model years are quite reliable except for minor nuisance items....which I can live with. So my next vehicle is either going to be a Q7 or an RR.....as soon as I'm comfortable. I tend to beat things to death before I buy, but things usually turn out pretty good.

[Clues]

I know I should be chastised for admitting this, but I am also considering 2009 Range Rovers too - which my wife loves.

Ha! I was in the same boat! I just got a new BMW X1 for my wife... My kids are now older and I no longer need the space of the Q7. It's as spacious as the Q5, drives better and was about $13k less than the Q5. I still love Audi but had make a decision with my head, not heart.

[flat12]

It is a wise man that can follow his brain - and not his heart - regarding practical matters. I'm a die hard Audi guy too, and it will be very painful to let the Q7 go....I'm still not quite ready....but I know the time is coming....

[ICU2]

It is a wise man that can follow his brain - and not his heart - regarding practical matters. I'm a die hard Audi guy too, and it will be very painful to let the Q7 go....I'm still not quite ready....but I know the time is coming....

Sooooo, did Santa bring you a "new" Audi or did you go "Rouge One" & followed the dark side like @Clues from Norwalk, CT did? Just wondering.

[flat12]

I'm still on the fence....waiting on the right deal. My significant other is pushing for me to get something that has a warranty. But my budget will not accommodate much in this regard. There was a good buy on a 2008 RR Supercharged that I missed by a few hours - but no warranty with that. My wife had a VW GTI a few years ago and it was a very fun car with the DSG transmission, she is trying to push me to get another one of these hot hatches. It sure is a departure from a luxury SUV, and I must admit....if the right GTI came along (with fender, nav, leather, adaptive cruise, DSG) I would probably go for it. My Q7 is still running great, although I am getting about a split second of chain noise at cold start up....don't like that!

[SQive]

I'm still on the fence....waiting on the right deal. My significant other is pushing for me to get something that has a warranty. But my budget will not accommodate much in this regard. There was a good buy on a 2008 RR Supercharged that I missed by a few hours - but no warranty with that. My wife had a VW GTI a few years ago and it was a very fun car with the DSG transmission, she is trying to push me to get another one of these hot hatches. It sure is a departure from a luxury SUV, and I must admit....if the right GTI came along (with fender, nav, leather, adaptive cruise, DSG) I would probably go for it. My Q7 is still running great, although I am getting about a split second of chain noise at cold start up....don't like that!

Dude. . .totally sounds like you need to check out the SQ5.
It's smaller than a Q7, bigger than a Golf, and fun as hell to drive!
I liked my first one so much, I bought another one when it was totaled.
They began in 2014, so I know there are some good CPO deals out there.
NOTE: The saying goes, "Do not test drive the SQ5 unless you can buy it, because you will.
Check out the S/Q5 forum and see what people have done to some of them. Just sayin'. . .worth a looksee.