Hi guys,
Just want to start by saying great stuff on these boards...I have been a part of many other car forums and this one looks top notch. I have a few questions as I am very much considering buying an 2001 A6

The car I am looking at is a White 2001 A6, and I am sorry, but I have only seen this car one time, and it was for about fifteen seconds so I do not know what engine model it is...please forgive me I am going to take a closer look at it tomorrow, and will post back with the info....I DO KNOW, that it is an all wheel drive, and the previous owner lived in Washington state. If that helps at all....

I just have a few general questions that I would love some help with.

1) I am not a rich man, average income, but not a bunch of expendable money, is this the right car for me? I have owned a range rover and a BMW 5 series in the past so I am familiar with high maintenance costs. WITH THAT BEING SAID, I have heard of some horror stories about these vehicles...just wondering what your guys' thoughts are?

2) supposedly the previous driver had the cooling system and timing belts all done 4000 miles ago, so most prevent maint. should be done for a few thousand miles...right???

3) Can I / Should I expect any un foreseen things when looking a this car, any thing I should look for that should make me not want to buy the car?


Thats all for now...Thanks a bunch guys, I look forward to being an owner of the greatest car on four wheels...

 

sorry forgot to mention car has 80000 miles on it...I looked up pp on KBB and it says for a great condition it is worth 8050.00 should I try to pay a little less for this one?

 

1) Try do some search on the 200-2001 models - they've been known to have lots of electrical issue. When they start it's a neverending story.
2) The TB having been done is a plus, but beware of the "supposedly" wording. You ought to know for sure, otherwise you need to save some money aside for either taking it to the dealer to have it done or DIY (I believe it should be done by 105k miles)
3) Expect suspension problems from present mileage on - VERY expensive components, unless you can live with aftermarket. However - these cars ar f-ing heavy, so cheap parts (in the lesser quality sense) may not represent an ideal marriage at times.
4) You really need the CARFAX and a thorough check/inspection on it before you do anything else... you definitely need to be friends with the old adage "caveat emptor" if you truly yearn for the A6.
5) IF it's the case - stay away from CVT trannies
Welcome to the forum

 

Ok, thanks for the help! I am about to drive now, and the A6 is an auto 2.8 quattro....I will get verification on the TB as well, and def. Plan to carfax this thing. Anything that is "buggy" with 2.8 quattro?

 

I personally don't have a quattro, but the 2.8 engine has been the staple of the A6 in terms of reliability.
Mine @ 167,000 miles has no cylinder lip. If taken good care of, these engines can last a pretty darn long time. The downside - they're sluggish off the line. If you're into "sportier" stuff, thenlook for either the manual 2.7T or the 4.2L (V8 - 300 HP).
And this a good segway into what I forgot last post:
you can definitely afford this car if you're a DIY-er. However, a big ticket item going bad (such as the transmission) can upset the budget balance to the point to where you start cursing all the gods, saints, or Punic wars heros you may remember.
Someone on the forum has a good, favorite "adage" about his A6 "The relationship with my A6 is a love and hate one"
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$ 8000 is the high end of the stick for the year, as you already found out. You need to figure out the total condition AFTER you do an inspection (invaluable $ 100-150 spent) @ a good independent shop that works on Bavarian (actually Baden-Württemberg) girls. Based on that, drop your offer accordingly.

 

I just got done driving her, and the acceleration is similar to my 5 series BMW, so that is not something that concerns me. You say tranny problems, all I can find on the forum is people that have had them go wrong, is this a traditionally common problem with the 2.8 quat? DIY is something I always consider first, whether or not I can actually get the job done is another thing, but I have been pretty successful on other luxury cars....thanks for the time that you have spent on here with me. It is greatly appreciated,

BTW the guy at the shop that is selling it has quoted me 9400.00 because that is what NADA has said...I don't think I will be getting into for more than 8,400.00 though as I feel I could find another one for about that. Especially after you have told me that I could do one for about 8000. THANKS!

 

Where are you located? Where I am, which is Northern California, I think even $8400 is way high. 2.8 quattro auto is pretty much everywhere. Yes it is a low mileage example, but it is not that special. For a 2.8qa, I would consider $7000 to be the reasonable amount.

BTW, I am not quite sure about your location, which maybe different than mine.

 

I live in Kansas, not sure about comp prices my guess would be that there are more Audi were you are so the price may be a little lower than here where they are more rare....just a thought though....I think I am gonna ask 8000$ n e thoughts? He told me originally 9900 then told me nada was 9400....

 

I am sorry, I guess that I should say that the Audi that I am looking at is for sale by an authorized Audi mech. He gets some cars in at his shop, and ends up buying them cause the people cant afford to fix em, or just dont want to pay the price for the fix, so they sell this guy the car for a deal of a price, and he turns em....He has a binder full of receipts, and work history on the vehicle....needless to say if I WAS going to get a pre-buy inspection it would probably have to be by the guy selling the car as he is the best in town.....haha

 

If you want something lower than that, you can search Craigslist, then narrow down to have this guy doing the pre-purchase inspection for clean bill of health. Not necessary to buy one from him.
2.8 are most popular so easy to fine a good one, it saves gas. 4.2 is the best engine that most agree.