recycled

I am continuing the search with my daugher and son in law to look for an suv for her. What are the main differences between the F model and a new 2017 base model?
They are both priced the same at the Lexus dealership. The F model has 25k miles on it. I will get a ppi done if she decides on it. She wants to try a used Audi Q5 but I am advising here against it but in the end it is her choice!
Thanks for your input....

Lex2000TL

All I can say (personal experience) STAY AWAY from Audi, unless it is new and you will lease it.

TechNut

I agree from a reliability point of view. I bought my Audi twice once you add up repair bills. That said, I had it for seven years and really enjoyed that car.

TorontoIS

I agree with avoiding the Audi as it will be worse in terms of reliability.

in regards to the 2015 F Sport vs the 2017 base, much of the difference will be cosmetic and perhaps sportier ride for the F Sport.

recycled

Oh the horror. The daughter and her husband are tending to go towards an Audi Q5 probably around a year old. I have noted your comments above and I thank you for that. At least I have an RX350 in our family!

DampDuffer

My wife used to drive an Audi Q5 and now drives an Audi Q3....she loves both of them, and over a period of 92,000 miles has never had a reliability or maintenance problem besides normal wear and tear.

I had a Q5 and liked it so much I almost bought the redesigned 2018 model (much prefer the quieter ride, craftsmanship and radio/navigation over the NX), but went with the F Sport because of its more radical look and the larger boot that could more easily accomodate my golf clubs.

My Q5 did have a rattle that drove me nuts for a couple of months, but after visiting a second dealership a young mechanic knew what it was within 10 minutes and fixed it under the manufacturers warranty. On the other hand, the 4-year rattle in my previous Lexus never was resolved.

Bottom line, we've had an Audi and a Lexus (RX400h) that had rattles, but only the Audi rattle was solved. Other than that, no maintenance issues with our 2 Lexuses and 3 Audis, and I would recommend both brands to anyone who asks.

mikemu30

I think Audi's reliability has improved drastically last few years.

zkl2003

F sport model is more sporty look from the front and it normally have good package to pair with it. Base model of 2017 is newer but I it doesn't have much thing changed compare with 2015. This upcoming 2018 model has a few changes from outside and inside. I feel like I would pick F sport 2015 rather than base model 2017.

I also switched from Audi Q5 to Lexus. I like Lexus a lot more, but I don't hate Audi, but the cost of repair does cost a lot and my luck was not best with that Q5. A lot problem starts to come after 30k milage. But yeah newer Audi does looks nice, but I am satisfied with Lexus.

Lex2000TL

I like how my NX drives, but it is not close to Audi handling. Nothing drives like Audi! I still missing that car handling, but... Audi reliability is horrendous.

TechNut

There's much to like about the Audi products so I wouldn't blame them. The quiet/solid ride and tight handling was one of the things I liked about my Audi, and while the NX handles just fine, it probably cannot compare to the Audis. It has been a number of years since I owned the Audi and I would certainly hope they have improved - but I am one of those "once bitten, twice shy" kind of people. I would certainly consider an extended warranty with the purchase.

Oh, and as for the rattles, don't they all have a few after a while? The dealer will find and solve some, they sometimes make matters worse by taking parts of the interior apart chasing them, but eventually any car is going to develop some rattles. There are just too many pieces in the construction of a modern car. My Audi was 12 years old when I sold it and it rattled everywhere at the end - but let's be honest, some of that was also caused by the owner or friends/family that thought filling it with birdseed would be a funny wedding prank. I had a heck of a time getting those seeds out of the rear deck speakers.

Floorance

I can only speak from experience, I've never met another Audi owner without some sort of problem with their car. (I was a frequent member to an Audi forum and attended alot of Audi meets in SoCal) My last A4 can best be described as a Love/Hate relationship. When all is working the car is fantastic, but always some little minor issue comes up. Rattling squeaking noises, check engine lights you name it. My neighbor just recently purchased a new SQ5 and is already experiencing issues with his headunit. My advice is if you really want an Audi, lease one, if you are ok with the high costs of ownership and the headaches of taking your car in for issues then more power to you. I purchased one in 2001 and it came with 4yr/50k miles all maintenance covered. Lets just say by the time 50K came up i had a stack of paperwork of work performed by the dealership. Even though it was all covered and i paid 0$ out of pocket, my time and frustration it was a major factor. I swear I must have put my independent mechanic kids through college with how much work I had done outside of the warranty window. My personal experience with Lexus is that they are are more reliable, easier to work with, lower cost to maintain and higher resale value. But honestly even though outmatched in every performance category my Audi was more "fun" and rewarding to drive than my Lexus (01' 1.8T A4 Quattro Vs 08' IS350 w/all Fsport goodies). Not trying to knock Audi, just know what you are getting into, I kept mine modded the heck out of it after it was out of warranty and only recently got rid of it, 200K miles on it with original turbo and clutch. I even find myself wanting the new S5 Sportback now, then my sensible side kicks in.