Faults:

Frequent annoyances with radio (changing frequency while off by.1mhz), display "blinks" occasionally

Upper Oil Pan gasket leaking at 40k miles (replaced under warranty)

Replaced wiring to fog lights 2x due to abrasion/shorting

Camshaft gasket leaking at 60k miles

Replaced timing belt at 67k miles

Rear drive train (rear differential, Torsen) failed at 67k miles - quoted $5200 to fix. Will be soon headed for the scrap heap.

General Comments:

This is a great car from a styling and performance perspective, but I agree with the other posts - keep it beyond warranty only at significant risk to your finances.

Faults:

Head gasket in first 10K miles covered under warranty.

Small tear in lower bumper less than 1K miles, finally tore through & fell off totally @ about 48K miles - my fault entirely.

Dealer called me while car was in for oil change at about 45K miles to tell me there was a small oil leak that I should fix. I told them no as there was no evidence of oil drips in my garage nor burning oil smell on the engine. Next oil change at same dealer resulted in switch to synthetic oil at around 48K miles. Haven't heard a word about the leak since! Now find out it is recommended that Audi use synthetic oil due to issues with the 1.8T engine?

General Comments:

Dealer is recommending that I get timing chain replaced before I hit 55K miles since it is almost 6 years old & we have a dry climate rather than wait for 60K service. Looking to get feedback from other Audi owners as the dealer I use seems to like to up their revenue -they have made many suggestions on service since the vehicle came out of warranty that they never suggested when it was under warranty. Such as wheel alignments, wheel balance, oil leaks.

Otherwise very happy with car - comfort, mileage, color, maintenance; so far. Now car is out of maintenance so we'll have to see. So far have only had one tune up.

Faults:

Nothing has ever gone wrong.

I use only high quality synthetic oil and change it every 5000 miles. I use only OEM filters and coolant. All else is by the book.

Those who have had significant problems must not maintain their cars very well. In fairness, the Audi recommended maintenance intervals (like most manufacturers) are too long. Pay attention to your Audi and use quality fuel, oil, etc., and you will be rewarded with a long lived vehicle.

In the long run, I believe higher end European cars to be superior to Japanese cars and much better than any American car. Sure, the Japanese have great quality, but most are uninspiring to drive and when they finally need repair the costs and magnitude of repair is enough so as to consider the cars nearly disposable. A good European car can be maintained well into the 300,000 mile range. And the driving experience is so much more enjoyable.

My early 90's BMW has 340,000 miles and has had no service other than normal maintenance. I expect the Audi to last as long.

General Comments:

I've owned dozens of Japanese and American cars since the late 60's. Switched to European cars for the last 10 years or so, due to boredom and frequent repairs.

The 1.8T, especially with the tip-tronic transmission, is quite slow from a standing start. Power is exceptional above 2500 rpm. In normal traffic, this is one of the quickest and best handling wagons I have ever driven.

The A4 has excellent highway cruising and spectacular bad weather traction and stability.

Stock, the power is more than adequate. Easily and reliably bumped to 210-240 hp with a simple computer upgrade if you desire.

Comfy and rather sporty driving position. Nice seats. Great handling.

The Audi design is very efficient. The drawback here is that the DIY home mechanic cannot easily work on this car. Timing belt / water pump change at 80k miles requires dismantling the entire font end. Do-able if you have the space and time, but certainly not the 1 hr job it is on my BMW or Chevy truck.