Hey guys,

I am actually extremely new to this website and was wondering if i could get any advice.

I have my eyes set on a black 99 A6 and was wondering if i should know anything specific before delving deep into the buying process. IS there anything about this specific body type that i should get more information about before i buy it. ie water pump or anything else that if i took for granted might **** me over. What types of problems were common with these cars, and what should i be looking for in a 99. Any advice?

Much appreciated

-Fat C

 

Oh where to start....The A6's are known for control arms, expensive timing belt changes, window clip/regulators, cats (not always, could be software), front engine seals, prop shaft seal (awd), wheel bearings and bad instrument cluster lcd display. Other than an overly involved timing belt, water pump and thermostat job, the A6 is an average european car on maintinence.

 

Front enginge seal? what the hell exactly is that? im hearing alot about control arms and timing belts. What about the timing belts are so expensive, labor? and the control arms, what is it with them?

Also, do you have any advice to give pre-purchase? is there anything you would have done differently or anything you would want all A6 owners to know about their car? I know these questions are pretty gnarly ones but you dont know how much this means to me.

thanks...alot

 

to put it simple this is my new car inspection procedure. I did it with alot of cars not just audi's before i purchased my a6.

1) walk around, look for body work (repaint, bondo... etc) I actually would prefer some damage present and no body work done, then body work done because thats cause for suspicion in my opinion.

2)Pop the hood... First things first... open the oil cap, if you see sludge, go home. Any oil residue more then a thin film is no good, and also a sign of lack of maintenance.

3) take off the engine cover (plastic cover with 4 plastic screws that can be removed with a car key) and look around for oil leaks anywhere (i.e. valve cover gaskets) a leaking oil cap isnt terrible and is common.

4) if youve made it this far without trouble, start her up, let her idle, look at the tachometer, if the needle is jumping up and down more than a bar (250 rpms) then there might be trouble, let it idle for a few minutes more and do another walk around. come back if its still jumping around it could be something wrong (depending on how long the vehicle has been sitting around).

5) while the car is idleing , look at the exhaust pipes, any smoke? white or blue? There technically should be no visible exhaust gases, but some white smoke or steam actually may come out the first couple minutes if its been sitting and condensation has developed inside the muffler, give it a couple minutes, it should stop if, not go home lol. this is could be a hint of many different things... head gasket gone bad, coolant leaking in some how...etc etc.

6) if youve made it this far take it for a drive, go through all gears, there should never be a jolt or hard shift in an a6, unless he modified the transmission computer chip (tip chip_ which you can ask.) when you turn the wheel all the way left or right and step on the gas at low speed you may feel a vibration, this is normal with the quattro system. Drive it over 60mph if you can at one point on a smooth surface to feel for any unusual vibrations.

7) make sure everything works electronically, i.e. signals, sunroof, cruise control, radio... etc... etc.

final things to look out for...

look under the car, check the axles for any grease buildup (heavy grease build up not just youre typical "road grease") look at all the transmission components and rear differential, look for any leaks, all should be dry and and dirty (not greasy) if its squeeky clean someone may have wiped it down good to cover up something.


or take the easy and safe way out.... Find yourself a TRUSTWORTHY mechanic, pay the 100$ to have them check it over top to bottom, inside and out, scan the computer. everything. hell find something youll forget to lookfor lol. and it can save you pain and suffering in the future. I did it because i didnt know much about cars as much as now and im glad i did, my 98 a6 quattro has nearly 150,000 miles on it and no problems i can blame audi for as of yet. Only a worn out set of control arms, but hey i cant complain too much right? lol good luck

 

oh and btw timing belt needs to be done every 80k miles, some say 100k some say 70k i say 80 is a good number, essentially, if your timing belt breaks, your engine is finished. Its a pretty hefty job to do and runs normally about 10 hours in labor. So if you can get a good shop without ridiculous hourly costs it shouldnt cost you more than $1000.

 

What they said, I HIGHLY recomend taking it to a mechanic and have it checked

 

Is it true that the quattrovibratingwhen turned all the way to left or right and accellerating a bit normal? because thats been bugging me for a while now, and now i was thinking of changing the cv joints... ooh and i am new here...

 

Yes it is true, but you should check your whole front end to see if any thing needs replaced.

 

I know that the CV Boots needs to be replaced, the left one only though. i am gonna go all the way and replace both. and also i had an old cd changer sitting around, the cd changer in my audi was giving me a problem with the cd getting stuck like after 2 or 3 tracks, so it got the same input as the other one. although, my car is not detecting it. it is blaupunkt, and is like few years old. is it like i have programm it or something?

 

Thanks to all you guys, you are a big help. Luckily i am not stupid enough to by a car all by my lonesome, one o fmy really good friends grew up in a bmw servicing garagae and his father has serviced all bimmers his entire life. He will come with me to do some detective work because his word is as good as any.

Hopefully this will be the one

thanks again