Hi folks,

Been looking at A4 Avants and A3's for months now and could not find a color / option combination that worked for me. Found a 2005 A4 Avant with 2900 miles owned by a salesman at the dealership who traded up and I snagged it. Not even sure if I got a great deal as it has UltraSport and I don't know the value of that. Also Bose, Xenon, Premium, Cold Weather, 6 speed - all the goodies except for NAV. Paid 34,000 if anyone cares to comment on the deal. But I'm very happy with the car and don;t think I could have overpaid much, if at all.

Couple of questions:

1. Where do I find the color code? I think its Dolphin Gray, but could be another of the grays. Can not find a sticker by the spare tire and have looked everywhere.

2. What are the options for aftermarket NAV? Anything that looks good, mounts well and performs accurately?

3. I seem to have more wind noise than I would have expected at freeway speeds. Not sure if it is windows or sunroof. Is this a common problem.

4. Are you folks really doing 10,000 mile oil change intervals?

5. Do you use the "auto" setting for the headlights or avoid that for some reason?

And 6. Is there anything out there like a professional tire pressure gauge that is better than the things you find at Kragan and the like?

Appreciate the input.

 

Aftermarket navs are tough to install and you HAVE to make sure you have a good installer. What you lose is the steering wheel controls which I love. And the other thing you lose is the radio display in the center gauges. It's also more expensive than a Audi Navi. and if that's a flip open one, not the flush mount, then it just doesn't blend in, looks cheap. Kenwood makes a flush mount one that has 2 CD or DVD drives, one for nav, other for music.

You might have overpaid but considering it's hard to find Avant, it's not bad at all. Wind noise shouldn't be too much, just make sure the roof and windows are closed. I'm not sure about oil change, I think I might change it every 10k otherwise I'll follow audi recommendation I guess.

I just use Auto setting, one less thing to worry about while driving a stick shift.

I've never used or thought about pressure monitor, you think you really need that?

 

congrats on the new car its nice to have another B6 in the family
post some pics if u ever get the chance
and drop a post here
https://www.audiforums.com/m_56045/tm.htm

1. the color code is a sticker that will be around where the spare tire is
2. not to familiar with navs
3. could it be your tires maybe
4. most people are but im parioid and do mine now at every 5000
5. is there something wrong wit your auto leveling head lights casue they are automatic

 

If you went with a European NAV+ system you could get away for about $1500 I think with a lot of the stuff you need and have the directions pop up on the dash in front of you. However these don't allow AM radio function or ability to hook up a sat. radio and discs have to be modified to work (requires DVD burning). An American Audi Nav system (the new RNS-E like the B7's have) can be found for roughly $800-1000 more and is pretty much plug and play. Going aftermarket can create a whole world of headaches unless you go to a good installer or have the patience yourself. I myself looked into going aftermarket but by the time I had what I wanted done with install I was looking in the range of about $2000 (I like my gadgets) and would rather stick something with Audi on it in there and do it myself for a few hundred more. More info on Audi Nav: navplus forum

 

Patience will always pay off. dont jump at the first thing you see...

 

Thanks for the replies.

I didn't think the noise could be the tires. Possible with these wide UltraSport monsters. I'll have to listen more carefully.

I had thought as much about the NAV. I may have to look at portable units, but hate having anything mounted on the dash.

Not sure what Redgoat was referring to with "Patience will always pay off. dont jump at the first thing you see... "

And can not find the color code anywhere unless it is under the spare. Found the XM radio sticker, but nothing like color code.

And nothing wrong with headlights. Just curious if people left the lights on Auto as I have never had a car that had the choice and wondered what the reasoining would be if not left on Auto.

 

One last question:

In the back of the drivers door are three switches. Bottom opens the rear lid. Top turns off the angle alarm.

What does the one in the middle do?

 

top on is the tilt sensor
the middle is interior movement sensor
when it lights up it means it is turned off

 

the color code could be underneath your spare, you'll have to pull it out...if you got the 1.8T, DON'T wait 10k miles between oil changes...some people do it every 5k, some every 3k...5k is adequate...if you got the 3.0, you can go that long, but it's still a good idea to change it about every 5k...there are a lot of different kinds of tire pressure gauges..many places sell digital pressure gauges that seem to work pretty well, but i still prefer the old school mechanical gauges for 99 cents @ kragen

 

Ahhh. Thanks.


Could not find it in the manual.