Newbie Intro...just got an 04 CTT

[5thlilpiggy]

Hey Everyone,

The ol' 2001 Audi A6 was gonna need about $1500 in parts and a couple weekends of my spare time, so the wife and I decided it was time to move on.

Was looking for something fun, pretty roomy, pretty reliable and DIY-firendly. After a bunch of research on the 2 "renn" forums, I decided on a 2004 CTT with 120k miles.

Before you laugh at me getting a Porsche for reliability, I come from the DIY Land Rover world and consider an old Discovery a reliable vehicle :D

Anyway, the new ride has had the coolant pipes and fuel pump done. Have to do the front rotors and pads and deal with a brake booster fault (pedal feels fine, so hopefully just a cracked hose), but other than that she seems pretty solid.

Just wanted to say hi and happy to be here!

[parabolic]

Welcome :) ... I wish you the best of luck with your Porsche..... you´ll have plenty of fun filled DIY hours with these cars ..... :)

[clarksongli]

Welcome :) ... I wish you the best of luck with your Porsche..... you´ll have plenty of fun filled DIY hours with these cars ..... :)

Same and i agree. I'm a 100% DIY person, so there isn't nothing i don't do myself. with that said.....prepare to become an electronics specialist. Old Rovers don't compare to the craziness that Porsche decided to do in these cars.

And not to judge.....but a 1500 dollar job on a 2001 A6 vs. a 2004 CTT with 120k.....probably not a decision i would have made haha. unless that audi had 500k on the clock, i think you just traded a 1500 headache for an unknown, but certainly much higher $ headache haha.

i await your first fault code post!

[Pkscheldt]

I hate to jump on the bandwagon, I currently have a 2013CTT and had a 2003 and let it go with over 150K (from new) on the ticker - I love the car! It still ran like a champ in between various electronic break downs. All I have to say is be ready with suspension bushings(really anything rubber), vacuum hoses, fuses, sensors, coils, wiring harnesses, Modules etc and send out for your durametric tool right now. I am also a DIY'r and I absolutely enjoyed working on the car and the fixes were fun to track down, they just start to become more expensive as the modules age. I spent over $8K in my last year of ownership on the 2003. If you had a rover then you'll really appreciate the fun of trouble shooting the air suspension on your CTT.

Cheers!

[5thlilpiggy]

And not to judge.....but a 1500 dollar job on a 2001 A6 vs. a 2004 CTT with 120k.....probably not a decision i would have made haha.

The $1500 was just the parts cost to replace the front control arms and coils/shocks all around. I did not mention the multiple oil leaks, slow coolant loss, and broken auxiliary fan (overheats with AC on in the summer) or the fact it had 170k and the 2.7 turbo is NOT the most long-term-reliable engine.

The only regret is getting rid of a 6-speed manual :P

[5thlilpiggy]

I hate to jump on the bandwagon... If you had a rover then you'll really appreciate the fun of trouble shooting the air suspension on your CTT.

You guys are scaring me!

Also, from what I have read, it sounds like the Porsche air shocks are a hell of alot more robust than the Rover.

Is that not the case?

[Pkscheldt]

Don't be scared, you'll love it!

They are, with mine I rebuilt the pump twice over 10 years no big problem. The trouble I had was diagnosing a persistent suspension fault, the coil/shocks were great in my case it was the actuator that the airline fed into at the top of the "shock" that ended up being my issue. They all ended up corroding and causing intermittent problems when driving. My local dealer ultimately wanted to replace all of the "canisters" at about $1600 per and it ended up running me the cost of a special wrench bit and about 250 for the parts

Edited March 19, 2014 by Pkscheldt

[5thlilpiggy]

Haha, I hope so! The wife drove it back from SoDak and wants to make it her daily driver...oi

And yeah, sounded like the main issue with the suspension is the pump needing a refurb, which is no biggie. Being in winter salt country, Ill remember to check those actuators out when I tear into everything next week.

[Pkscheldt]

you hit that one on the head. Apple Valley Minnesota here. Home of the salt corrosion!