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What is it like owning an Audi S5 for a full year?
Guys in this video I am going to talk about my Audi S5
What I like about it
What I dislike about it
A few of the modifications that I've done
And most importantly the financials where I break down
How much money a month I'm paying
And things like my auto insurance
How much everything costs for maintenance?
And then lastly
At the very end I will do a nice tribute to Doug Demuro and have my very own "John score."
Where I will rate the Audi S5
Before I get started
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Since last August I put on a total of 12,820 miles (20,631 km)
Over the span of 370 hours
I was driving an average of 32 miles per hour
And I earned an average fuel economy of 20.7 miles per gallon
If you're unfamiliar with Audi's lineup
The S5 is the performance variant of the Audi A5
with the RS5 being the top-of-the-line performance model
which attempts to compete with BMW's M-division
and Mercedes-Benz AMG
The S5 has traditionally been a coupe
However Audi has come out with a four-door variant called the Sportback
that my brother actually owns right now
And its stock configuration has a three liter turbocharged V6 engine
that produces 354 horsepower and 369 pound-feet of torque
utilizing an 8-speed automatic transmission
and that engine will launch the coupe from 0 to 60 in just 4.3 seconds
and contrary to popular belief the S5 is all-wheel drive
sporting Audi's famed Quattro all-wheel drive system
while all-wheel drive is no replacement for good snow tires
it does help the Audi S5 perform really well in snowy conditions
which is a must-have for me in Pennsylvania considering
that occasionally we do get some harsh winters
With the stage one ECU/TCU tune from 034 Motorsport
my Audi S5 produces a whopping 431 horsepower and 567 pound-feet of torque
with true launch control and better shift points
basically the stage one tune turned my car into
the poor man's RS5
So what do I love about my Audi S5?
Is the ultimate daily driver
It has the performance of a sports car however also has
the luxury, practicality, and comfort of a GT car
of a nice grand tourer
While the S5 does sport good performance
It is coupled with an amazing interior
The car features a d-shaped flat bottom steering wheel
Carbon fiber inlays
and tons of soft touch material all throughout the cabin
There's diamond stitch NAPA leather seats
and stitching all across the inside
The seats themselves are sleek and racecar-esque
However they also have luxury features like being heated and a massage function
Guys, there's nothing like finishing a long shift in the ER
and then having your car massage you on the whole drive home...
There's special interior lighting at night
And the Bang & Olufsen sound system was a must-have for me
as I love the upgraded audio in my prior Audi A3
This one has 19 stereos
What's crazy is that it is mega loud
There is a ton of power in that audio system
Audi has always been about electronics and
the virtual cockpit gives you an amazing driving experience
and all the information you need right at your fingertips
everything also is controlled via infotainment which features
Apple CarPlay and a few native Audi interfaces
Cargo space is actually much better than my Audi A3
and I never really had an issue with my A3
The S5 far exceeds my needs you'll be surprised how much stuff you can fit in here
However the S5 coupe's cargo space is not as much as the S5 Sportback
What I love most about this car is the exterior
and while I did definitely buy this car for myself
You would not believe how many compliments I've received.
If you are all about external validation, then the Audi S5 is right up your lane.
Honestly my favorite angles of the vehicle are the profile and the rear.
The huge haunches make the car appear wider and lower to the ground.
The 3/4ths and top down angles also look very good.
My least favorite angle is actually from the front
I love that my spec comes with the
added sport package which includes 19-inch alloy wheels, red brake calipers,
More dynamic steering, adaptive dampers, and a sports rear differential
There's also a quad exhaust
Built-in mini spoiler
Real and fake air intakes
S badging
and chrome all around suits the car very well
And guys it is a coupe or coupé
however you want to say it
and I like that because I think personally the coupe looks a little bit better than the Sportback
Don't flame me in the comments
I bought the car for myself and I realized that 99% of the time it was just myself in the vehicle
I... I said why am I going to cater
to other people and get two more doors when I don't really need them?
The few times that I do have to take people somewhere
Audi does make getting into and out of the vehicle as easy as humanly possible
The back seats are comfortable so it is doable
Now what do I dislike about my Audi S5?
First and foremost, the color.
I know that gray is in vogue right now
a lot of people have gray cars
I don't really care for gray.
To be honest, I thought the nicest color on this car was that blue
and since I did go to Penn State it would have been my Nittany Lion blue
My second favorite color would have been the black
I just love black cars
My last Audi was black and there's something about
just blacking out the whole Audi that is really special
Secondly, on the inside
I'm not a huge fan of tacked on appearance of the infotainment screen
I actually wish that i could lower it up and down like my previous A3
Luckily the newer generation Audis have integrated the screen much better
so at least Audi is self-aware that the tack on screen stuff has to end
The maneuverability of the car for its size is actually very good
it can turn on a dime and it is very easy to do u-turns and k-turns.
With that being said, there is a tad bit too much dead space in the wheel
even in sport mode
and auto enthusiasts and auto magazines have said that Audi is less responsive
You could kind of feel the car being a little bit more disconnected
Yes, you are lower to the ground and you have that road noise and
you have that power and performance to kind of feel connected to the drive
but the steering does leave a bit to be desired
Likewise before my tune I drove 90% of the time in Sport Mode.
My issue was that the "Drive" mode was next to useless
I mean it was good for gas mileage
The car wasn't driving and shifting the way I wanted it to...
The way I would think that an S5 should
and in sport mode it did exactly that
So I would only find myself in "Drive" mode when I was maybe
stuck behind somebody going like 10 or 15 miles an hour under the speed limit
because it was really to me that useless
My last gripe with owning an Audi S5 coupe
Guys, it's the Audi dealerships
you know they pamper you
they spoil you they make you feel like a million bucks when you go there to service your car
my car is still under warranty for 50,000 miles
until they figure out that I have that tune...
They'll give you the nicest loaners and everything
but at the end of the day the service departments make them money
every time you go to the Audi dealership they will find
a way to extract an extra $600 an extra thousand dollars from you
using the OEM Audi dealership is like a last resort
you know
you really have an issue that no other shop can kind of figure out or it is obviously
uh, where you would go if your car is under warranty
or if you have a lease
Modifications
So far I recently tuned my Audi S5
and in the near future I'm going to upgrade the standard S5 grille to an RS5 honeycomb grille
I think it suits the car
I will still keep the S5 badging
I'm not trying to impersonate an RS5
I like the honeycomb grill more
and luckily the B9.5 generation all the S5s already have the honeycomb grille
The car just looks nicer with it.
I've also considered de-chroming the vehicle
adding a light tint
possibly lowering it changing out the wheels
The world is your oyster when it comes to modifying your Audi!
I just think that it is definitely a rabbit hole...
If I go and upgrade my wheels I'm going to then want to lower my car
I'm going to then want to add a tint
I'm going to then want to do a car wrap....
and before you know it I will be five,
six thousand dollars in the hole in terms of modifications
for a vehicle that i'm still making car payments on...
So it makes no sense to me to spend thousands of dollars on
modifying a car when I'm still paying a loan
I think all that type of stuff can come down later in the future
once the car is actually paid off.
And the thing is every time I think about modifying my car
I then just see my car stock in the configuration that is and say,
"You know that that looks very nice,
like why am i gonna change anything? It looks it looks beautiful the way it is."
If I do some crazy mods maybe I'll make another video for you guys.
Now, talking about the part that we all love
the financials
Guys this is a quasi-financial channel so I will run you guys through everything about this car
Over the last year I spent an average of 176 dollars a month on premium gas
I spent a total of two hundred and twelve dollars on routine maintenance at the Audi dealership
I spent a total of ninety three dollars over the last year on car washes
I've paid 65 dollars for my PA State Inspection
which is good for one year
And I paid about $200 for this front license plate cover
Auto insurance
Auto insurance varies so much depending on your age,
your zip code, your driving experience and habits
What type of vehicle you're in
I freaking love GEICO this video is not sponsored by GEICO
but they consistently give me the most amount of coverage for the least amount of money
My first six month quote with GEICO while owning this car was $529
My second six month quote was a whopping $622
I guess they realized that a 20-year old in a sports car is not a wise investment
Just for reference competing auto insurance brands with
similar coverage wanted anywhere from $600 to a thousand dollars
I like to pay just six months all up front
You save a little money and you forget about it for six months rather than paying month-by-month
How much did this car cost?
The dealership price for the car was $41,997
but then once they added on taxes and fees
it did come out to about $43,000 in total
We put eighteen thousand dollars down and took out a loan for twenty six thousand dollars
which was to be paid over 60 months at a 2.99% interest rate
and as of the time of making this video I have $22,500 remaining on my car loan
my car payment is $489
which is less than an honest day's work as a Physician Assistant in the ER
so in my mind if I go to work one day
I'd pay off my car now and a portion of my auto insurance
and I did the math at one point
My auto payments, my auto insurance, my maintenance (including gas)
under seven percent of my total earnings
If you like cars then six or seven percent is a an easy pill to swallow
If you don't like cars then obviously there are cheaper options and routes out there for you
My Audi car loan is actually more money than my student loans at this point
You know, I have really no other debt so this is the only debt that I've taken on
Now since this is a quasi-finance related channel
The real finance geeks will say
"Your out the door costs are more than just the car itself!"
And I agree.
I spent the eighteen thousand dollars
and bought a car and had no car payment and then if I invested...
let's not say a hundred percent of that money because I doubt that i
would be that disciplined to invest all of it
but if I invested a portion of that car payment to the stock market it would have been
100,000 by retirement age
I did these numbers before i purchased the car
I knew what I was getting into
So I tell people that are graduating from PA school or college
Don't... don't run out and buy a new car just because you have more money.
Now guys for the John Score.
How does the Audi S5 rank up?
Looking at the weekend category firsr
We have styling.
Styling is the most subjective
The S5 looks better than the average car but it is no Porsche 911
and it earns a 6 out of 10.
For acceleration the stock S5 is no slouch
moving from 0 to 60 in 4.3 seconds
and earns a whopping 7 out of 10.
The category of handling
The S5 handles better than the modern SUV or run-of-the-mill Toyota
but fares worse than the typical performance car
and it gets a 6 out of 10.
Fun factor
The car is certainly fun to drive but its
automatic transmission and dampen steering earns it a 6 out of 10.
And lastly the cool factor
The Audi S5 certainly turns heads and gets compliments
but it is no exotic
and earns a 5 out of 10.
That gives the 2018 Audi S5 coupe a total weekend score of 30
On par with the Audi s8
The Porsche 928 GTS
and the Lexus RCF
And now the daily category looking at features:
The 2018 Audi s5 offers a host of modern amenities: infotainment,
keyless entry, and earns an 8 out of 10.
In terms of comfort you have low amounts of road noise, heated and massage seats...
The car is stiff and you will feel some bumps in the road
and it earns a 7 out of 10.
In terms of quality
The Audi S5 certainly has high quality materials throughout the interior
and the maintenance is reasonable in terms of luxury marques
it earns a 7 out of 10.
For practicality it is a two-door coupe
with modest fuel economy
and it earns a 4 out of 10.
Lastly value Audi offers a ton of value with the S5
but compared to something like the GT Stinger or the Q60*
You realize there's a 10k premium for the Audi badge alone
It earns a 6 out of 10.
That gives the 2018 Audi S5 coupe a total daily score of 32 out of 50.
Add it all up the 2018 Audi s5 earns a 62 out of 100 placing it up here with cars such as...
the Lotus Evora GT
the SL65 AMG
and the 2017 Corvette
the Audi S5 Sportback would actually score even higher due to its better practicality.
Long story short, there's a lot to love about the 2018 Audi S5 coupe
Personally, I think life is too short to drive a car that you do not enjoy
The Audi S5 ticks all the boxes for me
I wanted to take advantage of this window in my life to own one of these just not worry about it
So I did.
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