Drive both a few times. go to different dealers. drive automatics and standards. but remember the a4 1.8T will really come out of it's shell with a few thou worth of mods.

 

alright... now with the 3.0 is the 5 spd the more reliable tranny, and what sort of price range should i expect to pay, right now im lookin at a silver 2003 3.0 with 39k for 19995... what you think?

 

The 5 speed manual is the same for both the 1.8 and 3.0, the clutch is a lot stronger on the 3.0L however.
Thats not a bad price depending on what options it has, i would ask for 18,500 just to try.

 

manual is always the way to go (you should look for a 6 speed though) and 20k sounds maybe a little much.. id look for somethingcloser to 15-17k range

 

alright... i would love to find one in that price range in the color scheme im lookin for... ha heres the one i was talkin about.http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.js...amp;cardist=41..

 

oops try this...


http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.js...amp;cardist=41

 

Very clean car, i would still try to offer 18.5 for it though.

 

safety is a pretty big issue as well, me and my girlfriend are looking into having a child... other styles i was looking at were the 2.8 late 90's models a4... how are they as far as everything we have been talking about?

 

ask the othernew guy Rob who just bought a 3.0 he sells audis all day long and should be able to let know what a good deal is for the mileage. alsoif you go on carmax.com you can put in the make, model, years, etc and pull up a list of all those cars in all their stores. usethe year, options and mileage as a guideline so you know what to pay. at last - the last day or two of the month is always the best time to buy. any salesman behind on his quota will not let you walk out of a dealership without you getting the car for as little as they will let it go. i was in sales too - its stressfulsometimes when they can't make theirquotaso they gotta get whatever revenue they canbefore the end of the month even if there is little commission inthe deal. and the rookie salesmen will almost always do this - buti never have seen a the dealership near me hire any sales rookies,probably for that reason. good luck.

 

as far as safety, my friend just flipped his '99 2.8 A4 last nightand walked away without a scratch... these cars are tough
read this if you want some details: https://www.audiforums.com/m_680904/.../tm.htm#680904