30th Mar 2006, 10:21

I think you need to go try out a Subaru WRX.

Better quality (as far as reliability), better handling than an Audi, and significantly cheaper.

Granted Audi has much better interiors, but that's about it.

29th Aug 2006, 17:05

My girlfriend drives a 2004 Acura TSX. Great Car. I just purchased a 1999 Audi a4 2.8 with 70k on it. Also, a very nice car, but not comparable. Previously, I owned two VW's a 1986 Jetta Carat and 1997 Jetta GT. Both Excellent, well built, solid cars and they kept their styling. As a result of these attributes, I decided to upgrade in the VW family and bought the Audi. The 1997 GT WAS the most reliable car I have every come across with 175k. The 1986 was good for its time with 250k it ran like new. To date I HAVE not found a Japanese car that has same level of curb appeal, driving performance to weight ratio, owner satisfaction, and build quality of the VW/Audi group of vehicles.

However, that may be changing now with Toyota. They have had vast improvements over the past two years in design and interior and exterior finishing.

Repairs to Audi's are expensive at the Dealer, but so are Acura's. However, if you have a private Mechanic you are in the green. The best years for Audi's A4 are 1999-2001 and 2006. Stay away from anything in-between as cost cutting measures were used.

31st Aug 2006, 16:15

Audi A6 runs great when it runs. Maintenance on this car is very expensive. Any minor electronic glitch can cost your hundreds of dollars. Drive it as long as it is covered under warranty, as soon as warranty is over! get rid of it.

Allways, buy a used Toyota or Honda, never buy a used Audi.

24th Sep 2006, 12:22

Would anyone like to take my 1999 Audi A4 Avant off of my hands!! It has 95,000 miles and financially, I cannot continue to fix the endless problems I have had with this car. Two weeks after purchasing the vehicle, we spent $500 to fix the brakes.. new pads and rear rotors. One month and $1200 later, we replaced the timing belt and water pump. After one year of owning the car, the air conditioner went out. $600 to replace the condenser. Now there is a problem with the fuel injection system and the car continuously stalls...mid-driving. We replaced a sensor on one of the cams..$200. Not to mention the recall and replacement of the tie-rods. We just want to get rid of the car at this point. We love the way it handles on the road...but, cannot afford the repairs going at this rate.

9th Apr 2007, 12:49

Keep in mind this guy said he payed $7,000 to replace the transmission, hmm... I was in the market for an A4 or 6 and have heard of the various issues with the timing belt tensioner etc. but this is just ridiculous, what kind of person is gullible enough to pay $7,000 for a transmission, it's an Audi not a Lamborghini...

6th Jul 2007, 20:38

You know what... I'm 18 years old and a picked up a flawless a4 quatrro at an auction for 4,200 bucks. It had 103k on it. I owned a Honda civic ex before this car with the same mileage. What a joke. Clearly, you took extremely poor care of your car. All this talk of japanese cars running forever may be true... but you might as well be driving around an RC car. Audis are the real deal. Just change the oil.

19th Sep 2007, 13:42

Why would my brother who has 133000 miles on the car put 5w 50 oil in it since hes had it so he says, and I will be getting it next week.

16th Nov 2007, 11:15

Maintenance is absolutely essential on these cars. If you can find one that has been well-maintained (and that history is documented), the car won't let you down. Timing belt failures are a major concern and if the previous owner can't prove that it's been done about every 80k miles, plan on spending another $700 on top of the asking price to get it done. In fact, it's not a bad idea to budget in such a way that you have about $1000 ready to spend on any unexpected repairs within the first year or so of ownership. I think that that is good advice for ANY used car, though. Parts can be expensive and so can labor, but you can always buy parts cheaper online and save some at an independent mechanic. Of course, if you're even moderately mechanically inclined, you can save even more by doing the work yourself and there are lots of great DIY guides around for common problems on the A4.

Having said that, if you're really strapped for cash and will be for the foreseeable future, don't buy an Audi or ANY other luxury car. Every part and repair will come at a premium.

I love my A4 Quattro Avant.

23rd Nov 2007, 21:41

I have a '99 A4 2.8 with 220,000 miles. Timing belt change is written as standard maintenance. I have owned and driven many cars. Nothing has compared to the overall performance of the Audi, especially in the snow. Tire quality and balancing is important, but even a wheel bering is simple to replace unless if you like giving money to a dealer mechanic. Sound systems perform better in an Audi. Also makes for a useful work truck.

25th Feb 2008, 00:00

I have just purchased an 1999 audi A4 2.8. It runs great and is very clean. The car has 89000 miles on it and the records show that it has been maintained... My problem is it didn't come with a warranty because of a private seller. can anyone tell me who I can get a good warranty off of for around a thousand may b fifteen hundred dollars. thormotocross@yahoo.com

9th Jun 2008, 16:30

I have a '99 Audi A4 2.8 with only 74k miles. It's a fabulous car! Luckily, I bought it from my dad, who bought it new and took extremely good care of it. I can only agree with previous comments that as long as you take care of it well, it will run perfect for you. (That's why it's risky to buy used Audi's, unless you know it's history like I did). It is German though, so repairs won't come cheap; but if you didn't know that before you bought it, you're extremely naive!

10th Jul 2008, 21:29

I just bought an Audi 1999 A4 2.8 with 134K miles on it and after one week (300 miles) it started "smoking from the engine" from the passenger side. I look under the car an it is WET from oil. I saw the mechanic and he just saw the smoking and he said the car needs to change a set of gaskets (pressure gaskets), but at the same time we need to change the water pump, the timing belt and the pressure gaskets of course to fix the problem of linkage. This job will cost me $1,500. Can anyone make a comment with similar problems you might had with this Audi. (what should I do after this.. should I keep my Audi or I need to get rid of it)

Thanks.