<font face="Times New Roman, Times, serif">Advise Required</font>

I have an opportunity to purchase a, 1999 Audi A4 1.8t Quattro, fully loaded with 50,000 miles has anyone had a bad experience with this model or are there any unusual maintenance issues that I should be aware of. I will be putting about 45,000 miles a year on this vehicle.<font size="2">Advise Required</font>

 

i belive it is a good year (after 98) buying off a used car dealer or off an audi dealer? warentee? good records (for service/maintenance)? </P>


as far as issues go i have a 2.8 so i have no experiance with turbos..but if alllooks good than just normal items for wearand tear. if something goes it just costs a bit more to fix...this goes along with the audi name</P>

 

At 60k miles you will want to do the timing belt replacement and the water pump too. Audi recommends you do these at around 90k miles, but you will want to do them earlier since they tend to let go around 60-70k.</P>


Try to dig up the service records for the car and make sure it has been in for all it's scheduled maintenance. As for the turbo care there really isn't much you can check. If you do buy the car make sure to warm up the car and cool it down properly and the turbo can last forever. </P>


I would suggest a 99.5 model year since there were several mid-year changes made during 99. (one piece headlight projectors, updated interior, updated door handles, new tailights, and various other upgrades).</P>


Good luck</P>

 

what other vehicles are you looking at? An audi is gonna cost twice as much to maintain as a honda, but its an audi, and therefore is better. How much money are you looking to spend initially and over the course of time? If you are going to buy the car, I'd take it to a mechanic for a pre-purchase inspection, escpecially if you're bying it from a used car dealer (not certified Audi) or a private party. Generally, the certified Audi dealers are reliable, although you do pay for it.