The Current State.
Today's condition of the fleet and what's currently in the shopping cart as we approach the Fall.
Within the past month we’ve had to sell a vehicle that began to creep up in high mileage, decide whether or not to sell another that’s in need of an engine replacement, and lastly handle a third which was damaged by an intoxicated driver. Yet, with all obstacles allow for opportunity.
Here’s where I stand for each vehicle class & my honest opinion on a few of the models that you may or may not have owned…
Premium SUVs:
My experience with the Audi Q7 is one similar to where you’ve gone to an incredible restaurant multiple times, yet it only takes one bad experience to make you not ever want to return...
Initially one of my favorite options in the fleet, it all went downhill in June when the vehicle started encountering inner engine issues in the 2nd and 4th cylinder. The Q7, earlier A4s, along with the A6 have oil consumption issues where some owners reported adding a quart of oil every 1,000 miles.
Simply unacceptable when offered as a rental, ironically my Uber last week was a Volkswagen Atlas that I’ll be acquring in September when considering 7-Seater Options. Both VW and Audi are beneath the Volkswagen Group, so hopefully maintenance stays linear, and I’m seeing enough on the road where in speculation, it appears they’re reliable.
It’s just unfortunate that my father and I came across Lucas Oil Stabilizer for the Q7, once the damage had already been done.
Luxury Sedans:
Mentioned above, the A4 is notorious for having oil consumption issues, same with the A6, and the A3 isn’t really spacious enough.. I know first hand from my own. The A7s now are a 7-Speed and renters already feel the need to go 80 mph down Broad Street so I don’t know how I really feel about that, and lastly the A8 is so damn expensive you’d practically have to sell plasma to afford it... so basically what the f*** is left?
The Audi A5 Sportback.
Simply put, I have nothing but good things to say about the A5 Sportback. There’s been multiple trips where renters have taken the vehicle to destinations as far as Florida and the vehicle has never had any issues.
(Knock on wood)
The vehicle doesn’t burn a drop of oil in between changes, has a comfortable ride when taking into account that it sits lower to the ground than your usual compact suv, and is truthfully the sexiest option offered at the moment.
If I had anything bad to say about the Sportback, it would be that the thinner tire ratio causes an occasional sidewall bubble which really isn’t even on the vehicle in my opinion. It’s the Philadelphia infrastructure…
I’ll be buying another in September and hopefully a third by the New Year.
Compact SUVs:
Often times when my father and I are working on the Q3s, I laugh because I know we’re going to look back on the earlier days of Stealth and know it was the Q3 that essentially built the foundation of the company.
The Philadelphia and North East region in general endure harsh conditions when you think about it.. whether its excessive heat in the summer, heavy snowfall after the holidays, or even the flooding that’s becoming more common… all of which that had to be considered when analyzing the area and choosing which vehicles we thought would last.
… and the Audi Q3 ending up being the solution.
We haven’t seen any major issues with any of the Q3s which leads to the confidence in purchasing the amount that we have.. and the only reason the most recent was sold was that it was creeping over 125,000 miles. If anything, it was sold as a preventive decision.
I’ll take as many Audi Q3s as I can afford. But in the meantime, two more in September while the others are getting repaired.
Additional Options:
I’ll be honest, back in July I bought a seasoned VW Jetta from a close friend just to test the waters. The vehicle was a great deal, and we were able to give it the tune-up it needed so that it was reliable, which it is! But.
I just don’t want it.
Personally, I’ve always agreed with the quality over quantity approach. Yes, it’s nice to be able to offer renters something affordable, that’s also reliable… but an obstacle I’m facing is deciding which demographic we’d like to target and sticking to it.
Just because you can, doesn’t necessarily mean that you should.
You won’t be seeing the Jetta come this time next year.
Training
Week 14 Training Block completed as below:
Monday: Rest
Tuesday: Aerobic + Speed 10 Miles with 8 x 10 sec hill sprints + 8 x 100m strides
Wednesday: Med-Long Run 14 Miles +
Thursday: Recovery 5 Miles
Friday: Med-Long Run 11 Miles
Saturday: Recovery 5 Miles
Sunday: Med-Long Run 18 Miles
Total: 63 Miles Week of August 15th, 2022
If you would have told me three months ago that I would be running 14 miles on a random Wednesday morning, working a full day of pickup and returns, to come home and read about glycogen storage, with a TENS unit attached to my right knee in one hand, and organic dried mango in the other.
I would’ve told you go f*** yourself.