AGH! I love my car, but I hate my car. Here's the message I sent via audi.com:

Hi there, Audi people.

Let me start with the fact that I love my 2001 allroad, when it works. I bought it certified used here in Anchorage, and the warranty expired about a year and a half ago, I think. It's paid off, but I seem to be sinking more money into it these days than I was when I made monthly payments.

I've had many problems with the car since I bought it. Eternally the optimist, each time i bring it in for some major surgery or other, I hope that it'll be fine from here on out... but it's usually within a few months that I have another cash hemorrhage.

I've had the driver's seat replaced due to the heater burning through the upholstery; it took them a year and a half to figure out that a power-loss problem was a brake light sensor (meanwhile, I couldn't accelerate into traffic, which is a white-knuckle adventure); the sway bar brackets were faulty and needed replacement; the dash panel went out (sound system and climate control) which was caused by a faulty heater control head and instrument cluster; and a leaky front air spring was replaced. I'm not so concerned with wear items such as brakes and c/v boots. these things happen.

So far, that was all under warranty, so, whereas it was a bit of an inconvenience to take my car in often, at least it was only $50 a pop. I must tell you that the people in the service department at Morrison Auto, my local dealership, were great each time, even though they must have been sick of seeing me after a while.

My problem is that now, after my warranty is expired, I'm having more trouble. I just spent $2400 for the timing belt replacement and my scheduled 90K service. I expected that. But what I didn't expect was for my front suspension to collapse again. My car is sitting on its tires right now, in my driveway, and it's apparently going to cost me $400-$800 to get it fixed (most likely a conservative estimate, in my experience). I know that shit happens, but I really can't afford to replace air springs every couple of years (the last one was in October of '06). I was wondering: looking at Audi forums, this does not seem like an uncommon problem. Can I expect each air spring to go out? Just my front ones (the rears have been fine)? Will I have to repeatedly replace each one?

As I said, I love, love, love my allroad, and I bought an Audi for your reputation for quality workmanship and great service. But I'm going to have to move into this car soon if these repairs continue.

My current impression of what AUDI stands for: "All Ur Dollars Incinerated."

Thanks a lot for your attention,
Amber