Well, that is me done with VAG cars!

Lovely motor the S80 - without doubt one of the most comfortable (if not the most comfortable) in its class. It most likely is keyfob batteries causing those problems, and they are only pennies and dead easy to fit - I would be surprised if they needed re-programmed though, as that is a process that is usually only required for new/replacement keys.

You should have kept it rather than trading it in - kept in good nick, it has the potential to become a classic in years to come.

 

I changed the batteries last year when I started having trouble

I don't have the interest in keeping a car around if I'm not driving it - and nowhere to keep it. We don't have a garage and it would be in the way on the drive. I might even have to wash it!!! (Only ever done that once in the ten years - and put it through a carwash about once a year )

 

Reduction of emissions is not a bad thing - the problem comes in when those in positions of power mandate that it happens within an unreasonable timeframe, and without researching the technologies needed to make it happen.

Of course, if you cut through all the BS, you will realise that the main reason that these changes were mandated were in fact to prop up the world economy, and to make it look as though capitalism (and predominantly bankers and financiers) hadn't completely shafted the bulk of the Western world........

 

I have had a brief look at the CX-5 and CX-7, and both are really nice cars - I need to find out more about them before they would be added to the list however; I am slightly put off by the fact that a colleague bought a CX-5, and was distinctly unimpressed with it (given that he had traded a decrepit old Audi with an intergalactic mileage on it, and that was a bit of a shed, I was very surprised at his lack of enthusiasm. I haven't spoken to anyone else that has one to get a more balanced view though.

Take a long hard look at the ASX - since Mitsubishi climbed into bed with Renault and Nissan, their quality seems to be taking a hit, and the Outlander PHEV that was for a very short time the 'darling' of the 4x4 scene is now being criticised heavily in various circles