I have never sat behind the wheel of an Audi until today. I liked what I felt and I love the styling of the Audi I think better than the BMW in the price range I'm looking.

I don't want to spend more than 8500 or so, so I think I can get into a 98 or maybe 99 A4. The quattro isn't really an issue for me. But, it seems either black on black doesn't exist or they are very hard to come by.

Another question I have is regarding the sport pack. Did that include a stiffer suspension? Because I really want to feel the road as much as possible and don't want to do all that much modding, at least not right away. What else does the sport pack include?

Was there ever a trip computer offered on the A4 like those found on the bimmers?

Anything else I should look out for before the purchase, aside from the preventative maintenance that should have been done by the previous owner?

Sorry, one more, many of you have warned of high repair costs. I have owned an older BMW for some time (E30 model). Are they particularly high even for other import (European marques) or are they pretty comparable to BMW, Saab, etc.

Thanks and looking forward to joining the discussions here.

 

Sure black/black exists.

example: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...&category=6003

Probably going to have to look in the usual places. Ebay, auotrader, and call your local luxury dealers that might have gotten a trade in.

 

black on black audis do exist, i have one. the sport package does come with a stiffer suspension. i don't know what the bimmer trip computer looks like. i'd say for a luxury car audi's aren't that bad for repair costs. it amazes me though how much you can actually do yourself on these cars if you have the time and the know-how. if you aren't looking to do any modding, i'd go with the v6, they have more options and are a little nicer.

 

Wow...that was quick. Were you guys watching me type? I was originally turned off by Audis as I thought they all had the burled wood on the dash, and I'm really not into that, so if the v6 has that, it wouldn't be an option. What does the trip computer for the Audi monitor? The 2 I have seen so far today didn't have it. Were they even offered on the 99 models?

 

I believe: outside temperature, time, speed, distance and mpg. My car doesn't have any wood trim in the interior, so I'm sure it is purely optional.

 

Now, another thing I notice that is that there seems to be a couple different configurations in the auto climate control area in the 99 lineup. One has one window and the other has 2 windows? Was there 2 different specs during that period?

 

Wood trim is what comes in the 2.8 model. Lots of people replace it for brushed metal. The trip computer display was an option for all models. Just depends on how the owner ordered it.

In 1999.5 Audi made revisions to the interior, including a new climate control. Pic below:



1999 and older: