Steve Q

Hello all, I know some members who own a6 c5 estates have been interested in the 7 seat conversion. I have found a company who can supply and fit the rear seats and carry out the conversion. The company is called Van Solve and they are based in Essex. The conversion costs £1429.99 and this includes fitting which takes 3 hours. All parts are new and you get a certificate of conformity. However the seats do differ from those fitted by Audi from the factory but they are also removable when not required just like the originals. On looking at the image the seat belts are mounted differently and you don't get any rear cup holders/storage on the side boot trims. Heres the link and image for those members who are interested: https://van-solve.com/collections/frontpage/products/mercedes-benz-c-class-estate-7-seat-conversion-07-2014 please note I'm not affiliated with Van Solve, I just thought I'd share the info in case it's useful :) cheers steve

Hi John, did you find a home for your dads Audi 100? Cheers Steve

We will do, don't worry :) im normally abit OTT with the camera lol

Welcome to the forum kapil :) youll find the members on here are a friendly and helpful bunch :) good choice on choosing a Q7 as they are cracking cars! Your budget is very good so it shouldn't be too hard find a nice q7 :) as with any car check the service history. This should ideally be full on a car like this. If it has full Audi history then you can ring Audi to see what work has been carried out. Also if your looking at a 2010 model then I would say it will be due a cambelt and water pump change by now. Mainly due to age rather than mileage. If it hasn't been done it might be worth trying to haggle in a car your looking at. To be fair the 3.0tdi is a good engine but I know this engine did suffer with intake manifold swirl flap issue on the Audi A6 but not sure if this affects the q7 to be honest. If the q7 is affected with this issue and it goes wrong, a repair kit can be purchased forbapprox £80. If you take it to Audi they will want to fit a new intake manifold which will cost approx £500 for the part alone! Again gearboxes are good but make sure that the gears change smoothly both in auto and manual as any issues can be costly to fix! One thing that is expensive for the q7 is tyres and they can be heavy on them. When looking at a potential car make sure the tyres have even tread on each tyre on that axle as uneven tyre wear can damage the Quattro system. And again the tyres should be matching on the axles. With the s line spec you get a lot of toys so make sure everything electrical works as they can be expensive to put right. When you are looking some of the more desirable options include panoramic sunroof, auto closing boot (button on the inside of the boot) and reverse camera to name but a few. When you have found a car your interested in, ask the seller if you can get an independent vehicle inspection carried out. Companies such as the AA or RAC offer this service. If the seller refuses or is reluctant then you have to wonder what they or the car have to hide. Hope iv helped :) cheers steve

Good info there Piotr :)

They sound like awesome ideas! :) by the way, my spec sheet includes: date of registration, spec, engine litre/fuel type, gearbox info, owner history, mileage, countries visited, achievements :) think il make the alterations for Audis in the park in august :) cheers steve

Nice one! Looks great :) what did you use for the inside?

Oo what you fitting? I'm curious! i thought of being random and fitting a bonnet bra, roof bars and a surfboard but not going to have time now lol

Not a problem steve, glad I could help :) better not to rush expensive decisions. The camper sounds good! What van did you use as a base vehicle? Have you got any pics? Cheers steve

Iv been sorting stuff out for the last week Dan :) iv got a folding table and chairs, sorted out a club poster thing, done a spec sheet for the a6, got snacks as well :) the only thing I haven't done is clean the a6 but this will be done Saturday afternoon/evening as I'm using the car for work on Saturday!

Welcome to the forum Steve! :) good choice on Audi, the a8 is awesome! :) for your budget you'd be looking at a 2005-2010 mode I would say. Make sure everything works! There are a lot of electrical components on an a8 and they can be very expensive to fix! Obviously check the service history and ideally this should be full. If it has a full Audi service history then you can ring them to find out what work has been done. Also ask the seller if you can get an independent vehicle inspection carried out. Companies such as the AA and RAC offer this service. If the seller is reluctant or refuses then they or the car may have something to hide. When on a test drive make sure the automatic gearbox changes gears smoothly both in auto mode and manual mode. As any problems can and will be expensive. Also check the condition of the bodywork and check for signs as crash damage. I ask this as the a8 body is made up of a high proportion of aluminium. This can be hard to fix if damage. Hope iv helped cheers :) steve

Very nice! :) except for that awful looking radio!

Hey Joe iv experienced them on the a4 and found them effective. I suspect the a3 one would be just as good :) you probably know this already but your best place to start looking for one is eBay :) cheers steve

It would take you ages to get to work though! Lol however id prefer this over normal cycling!

she looks lovely :) I do like the S Line spec :)

lol i assuming this is a trick question?! No matter, Il take the bate lol Here you go....

Hmmm, thats interesting Gareth. When I did a vehicle enguiry with the DVLA online the registration came back as s an audi registered june 1994 SORNed and last MOTed in 2010

Thanks Trevor! :) It would be worth buying for an investment! and wish I had the money lol I wonder what it will sell for? Cheers Steve

Just thought I'd share... A 1994 Audi cabriolet owned by princess Diana is going under the hammer by Coys Auction this weekend (Saturday 15th) at Blenheim Palace and is expected to fetch £35000-£40,000. the full article can be found here: http://www.oxfordtimes.co.uk/news/15403621.Classic_Audi_driven_by_Princess_Diana_to_be_auctioned_at_Blenheim_Palace/# Plus some pics when it was owned by princess Diana (taken from google images) cheers steve

190k on 1 turbo that's good! :) hmm, well my view is; if the cars a good one and you like it then I would get it done. As replacing the car would cost you more. The age old saying goes "better the devil you know rather the devil you don't know" chers steve

Well done Dave! That's a fantastic saving! :) It sure does pay off by shopping around! I wasn't that lucky when I had to change insurance companies but to be fair I'm limited due to having multi car policies. I think il put my old Ford escort on a classic car policy next year though. Cheers steve

This does sound good Dave :) sorry im not nearer to you otherwise I'd look to attend :) cheers steve

Welcome to the forum Robert! :) youll find the members on here are a friendly and helpful bunch :) sorry to hear the wiper broke, but glad you got it sorted! :) to be fair I have seen this issue on other VAG cars such as vw tourans for example. Youve done a lot of mileage in your a3! Is she running the original turbo? Cheers steve

Iv never tried it that way! Didn't even think too! Very clever :)

Very useful :)