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Anyone here own an audi A4? considering buying one used


Evan Purple240zt

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Guys, give me some opinions on the A4. I am looking for a new daily driver, and have the cash for one after i sell my 91 custom harley springer soft tail.

 

If anyone owns one let me know what you thought of reliability and build quality of this thing. I am torn between 6cyl and 4turbo. They both have appeal to me. This car WILL get riced out though so beware LOL.

 

Evan

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I have heard that they have similar electrical problems to the TT. And I've also read that the Audi Dealers don't like to recognize the issues. After reading all the stuff that I've read, I would stay with BMW or something similar.

 

OK...posting the links didn't work, maybe the urls are too long, but do a web search on "I hate my TT"

 

Tim

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my friend just bought a 2003 A4 1.8t and he loves it, although it has already spent a lot of time in the shop and is only a few months old. the first week he had it the ac compressor blew up and caused a whole mess. he then had to have it replaced again afterwards because the new one quit working. also, his fog lights have some sort of design defect where they filled up with water and he had to have those replaced. very nice looking, luxurious and sporty car, but on the slow side. he had his hands full with our other friends pos chevy beretta.

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My brother-in-law bought an Audi S4 (bi-turbo) last year. He says he's had no problems with it. And I know he drives it hard. The thing has some serious 'getupandgo' :eek: and corners like it's on rails. Very nice car. I suspect the A4 1.8T is pretty close to the same.

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Lots of folks on the BMW forums are having a tough time staying away from the A4 and A6 when it comes time to get a new car. They look great inside, and they're very solid machines.

 

MY opinion of them is that they look great and ride well, when they work. Audis have never had the long term reliability that I look for in a car. There are thousands of BMW's and Mercedes that have 250k on them (especially the older, simpler ones) but you rarely see that kind of mileage on an Audi. Maybe the sort of folks that buy them is a different breed, one who isn't so concerned with rigorous maintainence, or maybe the cars just aren't so well put together.

 

IMHO, I love the way the Audis look and ride, but I'd never have one as a new car (unless I leased it) and I'd never have a used one as my only vehicle. Since you'll have your Z as a backup, I say go for it. But be sure to budget for repairs, and prepare for atrocious depreciation.

 

Oh, if you haven't considered a BMW 3 series of the same age, you owe it to yourself to at least test drive them. Mash the brakes at 60mph and enjoy the feeling of having your eyeballs getting sucked out of your skull.

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Well im glad I asked! Seems a consensus that the audis are prone to faliure. I refuse to purchase a used vehicle for 16k and then spend another 4k in the next year in repairs LOL. Hell, I can spend 13k and buy another GN and have it be reliable.

 

I think the bimmer 3 series would be badass, but ive heard horror stores about these things in snow. I live in the boonies, and snow is a big issue in illinois. Anyone care to comment?

 

At this point, im still considering the new Mazda6 which looks absolutely goregous. Honestly, whatever I buy will be modded to all he** so used is probabally better. If i go turbo, i will mod, if i go n/a I will probabally end up spraying it. There are so many choices, i just want a good daily driver, sporty and comfy. My gn was comfy, but the ergonomics just didnt do it for me!

 

Maybe ill just drop 10k on a sweet gn again, and pay off 25% of the house instead.. who knows.

 

Thanks gents - Evan

 

BTW feel free to suggest vehicles! I am open to anything used (maybe new) but no way anything over 25k.

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This may be surprising, it was to me, but a collegue at work bought a new (2003) Hyundai Tiburon GT.

I drove it (hard), and was quite surprised. V6, six speed manual, very nice bucket seats and contemporary interior styling. Very nimble and handles well. Brakes are excellent!

Only downside I can see (from a personal preference standpoint) is that it is front wheel drive, and the power steering is a tad too light. I would prefer manual steering in a sport(y) car....but only peronal preferences here!

 

Tim

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Former employee of mine bought a 94 A4 last year and had rear axle problems...

 

I've said all along that the sleeper of 2003 will be the Hyundai... The 350Z should have looked like THAT car... They kick but at the track too!

 

Mike

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Couple of cars worth considering.

 

Subaru Wrx. Now that these things are in the states there will be a even bigger after market for them. Lots of fun and sound wicked when opened up.

 

The new VW Passat W8 has just been released here. Looks like a pretty wicked piece of kit. Here its 50k cheeper then the Audi A6 V8 and has pretty awsume build quality.

 

My folks are looking for a new set of european wheels so I have wondered around a bit with them. The New VW's and Audi's seem to have a better build quality and definitely better feel then the latest Merc's. A lot of the car Mags seem to back this up.

 

Happy Hunting

 

Douglas

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Guest Anonymous

Being that I live in Audi country and was at one point considering buying a used A4, I seen first-hand the reliability, or lack thereof, of Audis. As of late, Audis and MB's, seem to have biodegradable electrical systems. My mechanics works mostly on Audis and BMW's and he's been very critical of the A/C, climate control problems that Audi's have. At about 70k miles, drivetrain problems come out of the woodwork. Dealership costs are a nightmare as well.

 

That being said, I still do like Audis. I like the A4 but for the money, I'd take a WRX. I drool over the 450hp RS6 though.

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Originally posted by Evan Purple240zt:

I think the bimmer 3 series would be badass, but ive heard horror stores about these things in snow. I live in the boonies, and snow is a big issue in illinois. Anyone care to comment?

You want 4 wheel drive? No problem Look for the letters iX on the decklid of the BMW. Problem is, they weren't manufactured in the last generation of 3-series! To stay in your price range, you'd have to go back to the 1991 model year. Those are running about $8k for an excellent example. Yeah, it's expensive for a twelve year old car, but I guarantee you that you'd have a smile on your face every time you drove it. smile.gif

 

(I have to admit, I like the WRX, too!)

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