Insuring an Audi

In the world of luxury automakers, Audi stands apart from the crowd by manufacturing a wide range of vehicles that are suitable for just about any budget. While Audi offers a considerable number of exorbitantly expensive sports cars, it also offers more reasonably priced options as well. As a result, analyzing the cost of owning an Audi isn't easy. The differences in owning an economical A3 and an amazing R8 are vast indeed. However, the things that all Audi cars have in common are quality and performance.

Brief History

Audi was founded in July 1909 by August Horch, who had already given his name to a previous auto-making venture. As a result, Horch opted to use the Latin form of his name, Audi, for the new company. The official name of the company was Audi Automobile Works, and luxury vehicles were its primary focus from the beginning. Through the years, Audi has produced some incredible vehicles that have included amazing innovations. The Audi Quattro, which debuted in 1980, wowed the world with its all-wheel-drive system. The elegant cabin of the Audi 5000, which debuted in 1983, set a new standard as well. Today, Audi is headquartered in Ingolstadt, Germany, and is almost entirely owned by Volkswagen.

Low Theft Rates Promote Reasonable Insurance Costs

Insurance companies take theft statistics into account when calculating premiums. If you're interested in buying an Audi, you should do some research about how much it will cost to insure one. The average annual cost to insure an Audi is $1,842.82, which makes it rank 28th on a list of 36 vehicle makes. Fortunately, theft rates for Audi vehicles are quite low. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the most popular Audi vehicle with thieves was the 1983 5000S. Modern Audis like the A3 and A4 have very low theft rates, so those models tend to be more affordable to insure.

Great Safety Ratings on Popular Audi Vehicles

Today's most popular Audi vehicles have generally earned great ratings in government crash tests. The Audi A4, for instance, earned a perfect score of five stars nearly across the board. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety also performs crash tests and issues safety ratings. Audi vehicles like the A3, A4 and A5 have all earned excellent scores of "good" from the well-regarded organization. It is safe to say, then, that Audi vehicles are generally safe to drive. Insurance companies take note of that, which is why many Audi vehicles are affordable to insure.

MSRPs Affect Insurance Rates Dramatically

The cost of the Audi that you choose to buy is going to have a profound effect on how much you'll pay for car insurance. Audi prices are all over the place. The 2012 Audi A3, for example, has an MSRP of $27,270. The 2012 Audi A8 Quattro, on the other hand, has an MSRP of $78,750. On the especially high end of the scale, the 2012 Audi R8 Spyder Quattro has a starting MSRP of $210,300.

You can get a feel for how much it costs to insure various Audi vehicles by considering the information below:

• R8 SPyrder Quattro 10-Cylinder - $3,384.00
• A8L Quattro 8-Cylinder - $2,153.00
• A3 2.0T 4-Cylinder - $1,403.00

It is clear that the MSRP has a very significant impact on the cost of insuring Audi vehicles.