Buying used V10 - Please just help me out guys!

[R8ie]

Hello There....

This is my first post, but I'm hoping to become a regular, for the right reasons.

I'm looking to buy my first R8, on Thursday. I've arranged to collect the 2009 5.2 V10, Sepang Blue, carbon blades, exclusive cream nappa leather, bucket electric seats, carbon engine bay, piano black trim, bluetooth, alcantara headlining, camera parking, heated seats, tyre pressure mtr.

Car has done under 12000 miles.

I am driving 300 miles to test drive it, check it, and hopefully buy it then. I've had many conversations with private seller,and asked him to be as detailed as possible about condition, and assures me car is perfect condition.

I've contacted Audi to pull full spec, which is all correct, and to ask if any issues reported - which are none.

Serviced correctly.

So, my question guys is (based on the spec too) what should I look out for? Any common things to check?

I couldn't find anything regarding common quirks / known issues etc.

Car has 9 months remaining warranty, so everything is still fully covered, but I'm very nervous as I'm young, first super car, saved up a lot to do this and really want to make sure that I make the right choice.

Much appreciated, in advance.

[R8ie]

Anything? Any advice guys?

[blackspyder]

check the seats for signs of sagging.
then the normal things such as kerbed wheels and all the kit works (and you know how to use it)

[CA_SL65]

Get a Vagcom and check the clutch life and how many times launch control was used

[R8ie]

CA_SL65 - Why how many times? Whats a bad number?

Once I actually have it, I will take it to Audi for a full inspection - but I've called them and they had it in in Feb for full service, and no reported issues....

[dajjy]

Why are you buying the car through a private sale?

Is it an uber-bargain? One which precludes you from looking through the holdings of Audi?

[NVRL8R8]

Why are you buying the car through a private sale?

Is it an uber-bargain? One which precludes you from looking through the holdings of Audi?

Why? There could be MANY advantages to buying private. You can clearly see who owned the vehicle and and ask them questions directly on the car. Especially if a one owner car, you can get a good bit of sense as to how they cared for the car by visiting them personally. Also, depending on where you live, it could be a huge tax advantage buying private. In Illinois, you pay a flat tax of $1500 for any private sale over $50k.

I would believe an owner private sale way before any salesmen!

[drifting]

Seats tend to go funny.
Clutch can be a issue if its been owned by the wrong person.
Tire depth.
The car is pretty bullet proof
Check for damage at the bottom on the bumper and underneath and around the oval exhaust pipes.

Don't do the I've travelled 300 miles I must buy it thing there are loads of R8s for sale quite a few with lower millage and newer for the same prices.

Personally I would make sure it has a few years of audi care as bills can get expensive very quickly.

Use you head not heart when buying a car.

Good luck mate.

[M3R8]

I would believe an owner private sale way before any salesmen!

It should very much depend on who that person is

[R8ie]

Hi guys. I'm buying privately for 2 main reasons:

1. The price is right, I'm buying about £1k over trade, ish. Basically, they guy needs to move it as it is on finance and I get the impression he just needs out of that commitment before the next payment date which is imminent- I've spoken with finance company, so it’s all good. He needs someone who is comfortable with paying the finance upfront, then paying him the difference. Some people are wary about this, but I’ve done it all before so this isn’t a problem. This is a typical situation for cars on finance.

2. I have asked him loads about the car, learnt how much he has actually cared for it. At 12,000 miles, he hasn’t done much in it over 2 years, and he has other cars too. This knowledge is bliss really, as buying from a dealer on a used car is buying the unknown - did this with an SL55 and was the worst thing I had ever done, found LOADS of issues - only god knows who had that car before and what they did, but something was not right. This guy has a few cars, has had a few cars, and seems well rehearsed in supercar ownership; which means that he should have already been comfortable with controlling power, and caring for cars of this size. Being the first owner too, he paid £112k for the car – so it was an expensive toy for him.

I have done my homework on the purchase itself; I have contacted his Audi (where car was purchased) for a full spec, service history, service log (no reported issues since new) etc. I've spoken at length to the seller, who assures me that apart from a small stone chip, there is nothing on the car. I felt he was even honest mentioning the chip because most people would just leave that out.

As for Audi, having no reported issues is a great thing – as that would always be the first port of call for any buyer; and this means that the car has just been perfect for him. I personally feel that in 12,000 miles and with no reported issues, he’s had sufficient mileage to learn the car well, and issues by this point would have been pointed out to Audi to be investigated under warranty.

I will be personally viewing the car on Thurs, and it won’t be a rushed decision, but I will bear in mind that I will still have warranty, which obviously makes a tremendous difference.

I will inspect all body work, engine bay, tyres, wheels, under bonnet. Then I'll do a small test drive to check acceleration, brakes, and all gadgetry.

What I'm sure of is anything on the R8 specifically, such as something with the blades, a specific leak to check for, gadgets that fail, anything like that. I have never even owned an Audi, and this means that everything I have learnt from my 3 AMGs is completely lost on this car.

I'm hoping all goes well, and because of my desperation for a perfect car - I don’t want to buy it and then find a fundamental issue that was obvious to check for.

I do appreciate the feedback, and I am very grateful.