How is RS5 with respect to long term reliability?

[maqister]

Hi Guys,

I am thinking about pulling a trigger on 2019 RS5..
I am planning to use this car as my daily driver and i'd be doing probably around 10k miles per year.
I had a hard time to find on the web any information at all about reliability of this car..
I guess RS cars sales volume is not big enough to easily get to those numbers..

Can anybody shed some light on that?

Thanks,
Krystian

[pkowalewski]

Hey man! I have the s5 and to be fair. I realistically don't ever see myself selling this car. And with owning the car for 2 years almost and with 23k miles on it and driving it hard. I have had 0 issues. You putting on 10k miles a year is really not bad at all! But if you worry about not being able to repair something(lets be honest, getting a car like that isn't cheap), then maybe look towards something else but great cars!

[mavz]

Hi Guys,

I am thinking about pulling a trigger on 2019 RS5..
I am planning to use this car as my daily driver and i'd be doing probably around 10k miles per year.
I had a hard time to find on the web any information at all about reliability of this car..
I guess RS cars sales volume is not big enough to easily get to those numbers..

Can anybody shed some light on that?

Thanks,
Krystian

The B9 RS5 is pretty new so you probably won't have that much data in addition to your point on volume. I'd just search through enthusiast forums for any car using similar parts that's been around longer like the 971 Panamera which uses the same 2.9TT.

[DCB1951]

Hi Guys,

I am thinking about pulling a trigger on 2019 RS5..
I am planning to use this car as my daily driver and i'd be doing probably around 10k miles per year.
I had a hard time to find on the web any information at all about reliability of this car..
I guess RS cars sales volume is not big enough to easily get to those numbers..

Can anybody shed some light on that?

Thanks,
Krystian

I have a B9 RS5-SB since Feb 2019, manufactured in October 2018. It is my daily driver as well as my fun machine (Straight Pipes aptly named the B9 RS5-SB "the Swiss Army Knife of cars"). I put almost exactly 10k miles on it in the first year, about 11k as of today (CV19 has almost eliminated my driving). So far, the car has been perfect. I attribute that to the following:

1) I religiously followed the break-in routine as described in the owner's manual
2) When I turn on the car, I sit and wait until the cold idle drops down to ~700 rpm before I do anything (30 seconds or so).
3) I drive the car gently (<2,500 rpm) until the coolant and tire pressures warm up. I wait until the oil temp reaches about 150 deg F.
4) At that point, let the fun begin (when appropriate).

I didn't change the oil until the first required oil change @ 10k miles. I put in a half quart of oil @ 8.9k miles to be safe. I'm now going to change the oil and filter every 5k miles to be safe. What's $150 every six months to be sure that my very expensive car runs as safely as possible?

This is an awesome machine, worth every penny. I've driven nothing but Audi S4s and Porsches since 1986, and this Audi is the One Ring To Rule Them All.

Pull the trigger!

[maqister]

I have a B9 RS5-SB since Feb 2019, manufactured in October 2018. It is my daily driver as well as my fun machine (Straight Pipes aptly named the B9 RS5-SB "the Swiss Army Knife of cars"). I put almost exactly 10k miles on it in the first year, about 11k as of today (CV19 has almost eliminated my driving). So far, the car has been perfect. I attribute that to the following:

1) I religiously followed the break-in routine as described in the owner's manual
2) When I turn on the car, I sit and wait until the cold idle drops down to ~700 rpm before I do anything (30 seconds or so).
3) I drive the car gently (<2,500 rpm) until the coolant and tire pressures warm up. I wait until the oil temp reaches about 150 deg F.
4) At that point, let the fun begin (when appropriate).

I didn't change the oil until the first required oil change @ 10k miles. I put in a half quart of oil @ 8.9k miles to be safe. I'm now going to change the oil and filter every 5k miles to be safe. What's $150 every six months to be sure that my very expensive car runs as safely as possible?

This is an awesome machine, worth every penny. I've driven nothing but Audi S4s and Porsches since 1986, and this Audi is the One Ring To Rule Them All.

Pull the trigger!

Thanks guys!

@PMDCB1951 I see in your footnote that you have Driver Assistance package.
I am deciding between awesome color (Nardo Grey) without Driver Asistance Package vs not a great color (Silver) with Driver Assistance Package.
Any input on how important\essential 'Driver Asistance Package' is?

[wwhan]

Thanks guys!

@PMDCB1951 I see in your footnote that you have Driver Assistance package.
I am deciding between awesome color (Nardo Grey) without Driver Asistance Package vs not a great color (Silver) with Driver Assistance Package.
Any input on how important\essential 'Driver Asistance Package' is?

Silver with black optic looks nice.

The Driver Assistance Package is my favorite option: top down camera & assisted cruise for traffic jams on the freeway. I use it all the time (had it on my S6).

RS Driver assistance package: option = $3,700
Adaptive cruise control with Traffic Jam assist
Park steering assist
Audi active lane assist
Top view camera system
Head-up display
Traffic sign recognition
High beam assistant

[DCB1951]

Thanks guys!

@PMDCB1951 I see in your footnote that you have Driver Assistance package.
I am deciding between awesome color (Nardo Grey) without Driver Asistance Package vs not a great color (Silver) with Driver Assistance Package.
Any input on how important\essential 'Driver Asistance Package' is?

I approached acquiring such a car with the idea that desirable features trumped color. Like wwhan, I really like DAP; I've found that all of the features he listed are desirable. Don't forget that we all experience our cars 99.44% of the time from the interior, not the exterior (duh).

So, if it was my decision, especially since Nardo Gray and Silver aren't far apart, I'd get the Silver RS5 with DAP. Just my 2¢.

[Dais0948]

I have a B9 RS5-SB since Feb 2019, manufactured in October 2018. It is my daily driver as well as my fun machine (Straight Pipes aptly named the B9 RS5-SB "the Swiss Army Knife of cars"). I put almost exactly 10k miles on it in the first year, about 11k as of today (CV19 has almost eliminated my driving). So far, the car has been perfect. I attribute that to the following:

1) I religiously followed the break-in routine as described in the owner's manual
2) When I turn on the car, I sit and wait until the cold idle drops down to ~700 rpm before I do anything (30 seconds or so).
3) I drive the car gently (<2,500 rpm) until the coolant and tire pressures warm up. I wait until the oil temp reaches about 150 deg F.
4) At that point, let the fun begin (when appropriate).

I didn't change the oil until the first required oil change @ 10k miles. I put in a half quart of oil @ 8.9k miles to be safe. I'm now going to change the oil and filter every 5k miles to be safe. What's $150 every six months to be sure that my very expensive car runs as safely as possible?

This is an awesome machine, worth every penny. I've driven nothing but Audi S4s and Porsches since 1986, and this Audi is the One Ring To Rule Them All.

Pull the trigger!

Same here! With the S4 I could of sworn oil temp has to be above 175, is that not the case with the RS5 or is 175 just exaggerated ?

[wwhan]

I was originally looking at a Nardo Gray RS5 SB black optic, but with most RS5 SB having black interior and red stitching, I preferred the Silver black optic with the red stitching.

[DCB1951]

Same here! With the S4 I could of sworn oil temp has to be above 175, is that not the case with the RS5 or is 175 just exaggerated ?

From page 83 of my owners manual:

Sporty driving
Applies to: RS models

Beforehand, warm up the engine by driving no
higher than two-thirds of the maximum permitted
engine RPM. The engine oil temperature
must be brought to a minimum of 140 °F
(60 °C).

[Dais0948]

[QUOTE=DCB1951;14069790]From page 83 of my owners manual:

Sporty driving
Applies to: RS models

Interesting, owners manual page 20 for the B9 S4:

"The engine oil temperature has reached it's operating temperature when the temp is between 176 degrees Fahrenheit and 248 degreed Fahrenheit."

looks like temps widely vary depending on the model.

[wwhan]

From page 83 of my owners manual:

Sporty driving
Applies to: RS models

Beforehand, warm up the engine by driving no
higher than two-thirds of the maximum permitted
engine RPM. The engine oil temperature
must be brought to a minimum of 140 °F
(60 °C).

And be careful when cold about using Sport mode, it wants to rev to Redline (shift late), so it may be better to wait till one hits the temperature, before pulling down into sport mode, unless, one is careful with the throttle.

[Dan99]

I have a 2019 RS5 Sportback with about 21,000 miles on it. I'm not sure how well this speaks to long-term reliability but I'll pass on my experience so far.

The car is used in a mix of city and expressway driving. I went on a 7,000 mile road trip last summer that included high and low elevations (> 10,000 feet and 10 feet below sea level), aggressive passing, mountain roads and high speed driving when possible. I have had it on the track 5 times - once at Road America multiple days with speeds around 140 mph. I have had a couple issues, but they have more to do with manufacturing than reliability: 1) The gas tank/fuel pump gasket was folded at the factory and leaked, but it was fixed under warranty. 2) The alignment from the factory was out of spec. I had to pay for that fix that myself, but it drastically improved the handling. I drive it hard and fast at times, but it is also a daily driver in stop and go traffic. All is well at this point.

From my point of view, I had two S4's prior to this car, a B8 and B8.5. The B8.5 was tuned (APR Stage 2, ECU and TCU) and fast, but I worried that I was operating at the fringe of reliability. The RS5 is somewhat faster than the tuned B8.5, but I worry less because the components seem more appropriate for the power level - brakes, suspension, cooling, etc. For example, the DSG in the S4 was rated at 400 ft lbs of torque and my tune generated about that same amount. The transmission in the RS5 has a much higher torque rating and there is plenty of room for tuning in the future.

[underboss24]

I had my B9 for a couple of years and pretty much no issues that weren't a fault of my own. The thing I hate about it is a design issue where the window rollers basically leave a scratch on your glass and through any tint.

[MR_RS5_SB]

Thanks guys!

@PMDCB1951 I see in your footnote that you have Driver Assistance package.
I am deciding between awesome color (Nardo Grey) without Driver Asistance Package vs not a great color (Silver) with Driver Assistance Package.
Any input on how important\essential 'Driver Asistance Package' is?

You can always wrap your car in Nardo or any other color but its gonna be super expensive, if not impossible, to retro fit the DAP. I would definitely get the DAP.

[IamRacer X]

Just remember, if you get the Drivers Assist package.... the cameras need recalibration after any alignment as per Audi. Not cheap! Look it up. Imo it’s bs, but be aware.

[Mortys66]

I bought a new 2019 Audi RS5 Sportback in June of 2019. I have just turned over 21,000 miles on the odometer, in 9 months, with no problems at all. I have had it at the dealership twice, once for the 10k oil change (and I also had them install my set of winter tires installed [in place of the summer only tires] on my stock rims at the same time) and once for the 20k oil change. The car is a 'Beauty' or a 'Beast' depending on what you want it or need it to do for you. This car can and does handle anything you can throw at it, with little effort, and the car handles like a dream. This car makes you feel like a better driver and gives you the confidence to handle the roads with ease. I find the car comfortable for long hauls, the B&O 3D sound system is adequate for most people and the car is great on gas for, what I consider, a performance car. My only regret with this Audi RS5 Sportback is that I wasn't able to buy this exact car 10 years earlier just to enjoy the ride and the technological advances longer (i.e. Drivers Assistance pkg, Dynamic pkg). I bought the car fully loaded with every available option and I'm glad that I did, as I feel the extra options are what sets this car apart from the others (for me). Some will disagree with much or all of my experience in this car, but after 21k I can say this car still fits my needs and I can count on one hand the number of vehicles that have outperformed this Beast if and when I am able to play around and drive it 'Sporty'.... As always, YMMV

[Dan99]

Just remember, if you get the Drivers Assist package.... the cameras need recalibration after any alignment as per Audi. Not cheap! Look it up. Imo it’s bs, but be aware.

I needed an alignment and asked my dealer about this. He said it was not true. He said recalibration only needs to be done if some other part of the car is removed (sorry, but I don't remember what that part was). My car was aligned, nothing recalibrated, and all of the Drivers Assist features work just fine.