Thinking of getting a 2 year old A4 - Any suggestions?

Chris, I'd be wary of a car that someone got rid of after only a couple of years - it would seem to me that there is a great potential that they either abused the car knowing full well that they were going to get rid of it, or so many bad things happened (control arms, bearings, tires, coil packs, timing belt?) that they soured to the A4 and the thought of keeping it after the warranty ran out. The complete set of records would be a good thing to have for sure, but it would also be a good idea to talk to the previous owner to find out why they are selling it - and answers like, "I didn't like the colour"...are hiding the real reason. Cheers! Steve Sears

1987 Audi 5kTQ 1980 Audi 5k 1962 and '64 Auto Union DKW Junior deLuxes (SPAM Blocker NOTE: Remove SHOES to reply)

Good comment in regards to the reason of why would someone be getting rid of it after just two years. But here in Montreal, there seems to be a lot of cars on the market that are put on sale by dealers/used car places which were taken in as trade-ins, which makes it hard to talk to previous owner. I did take note of the items you mentioned in your message as things to check when inspecting the car, thanks for those.

Some used car dealers even offer warranties for the vehicles they sell, making it a sweeter deal. Also, for a 2yr old Audi, the original manufacturer's warranty ought to cover it still, right?

Chris.

Chris, the 2004 A4 is probably the best of the B6 series cars - the

2002 and 2003 had some of the issues that Steve mentioned (the coil packs specifically). Control arms haven't been an issue (yet?)..... Not sure aboout the Canadian warranty but here in the US they had a 4yr/50k mile deal that is transferable. I have found the 1.8T and 6-speed to be fine for my current driving needs, but I don't tow....

Dan D '04 A4 1.8Tq MT-6 Central NJ USA

Chris, It is possible that the warranty is transferable, but Quebec has a substantially different legal system than the rest of Canada and the US and you might want to check with the transferability of the warranty there. In Ontario, the seller of any used car must provide a $20 Used Vehicle Information Package issued by the Ministry of Transportation to the buyer - the package has a list of all the previous owners. Cheers! Steve Sears

1987 Audi 5kTQ 1980 Audi 5k 1962 and '64 Auto Union DKW Junior deLuxes (SPAM Blocker NOTE: Remove SHOES to reply)

2 years ago I got a 3 year old A4 quattro with 13,000 miles US. It was a turned in lease that the person either couldn't afford or didn't want. It came with 1.5 years on warranty and 2 year extended warranty. I love it and will hopefully keep it another few years before doing the same again. Let someone else take it off the lot and pay out the nose. Just take over when they are done with it as long as it was kept up to the lease agreement of scheduled maintenance.

Thanks for the info, will look into the 2004's. Hoping that by the time I will be ready to buy (early 2006) the prices of 04's will go down.

Chris.

Quebec law is oriented highly towards the consumer, so I believe the warranty ought to be transferrable. I will verify with the Audi Canada prior to making any purchase. Might consider an extended warranty option from the dealer, assuming it will come at a decent price. I've been reading that Audi's become expensive to maintain after the warranty runs out.

Chris.

Chris,

We got rid of an aging sedan and got a 2000 A4 wagon to make more room for kids and luggage on trips etc. If I had it to do over again, I would have gone for the A6 or the Passat Wagon. The rear legroom is pretty meager in the A4 Avant. If kids are in your future, you might reconsider.

As it is, I'm 6' tall, and if I have the kids seats in the back, I have to pull the driver seat forward so much that it begins to be uncomfortable to drive the car.

*Besides that*, the A4 kicks ass. The AWD is excellent, and the 1.8T is a fine motor. Again, not sure of how the line up works in the 03-04 model years, but IMHO the 2.8L 30v V6 is not worth the efficiency penalty compared to the 1.8T.

-Arthur

P.S. Also consider that chipping is so widely done now on the 1.8T, and it is robust, and fairly low cost. For the MY2000 cars, stock

1.8T=150HP, stock 2.8L V6=~190HP. Chipped 1.8T= 190-200HP, but chipped 2.8L=~200HP. By around MY2002 the stock 1.8T moved up to 170HP. I think the V6 got some tuning improvements as well?

Chris wrote:

Thanks,

Will look into the A6's, but I think their higher price point will be somewhat prohibitive.

Chris.