1999 A4 Quattro 2.8, Considering Buying?
Thread Starter
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1st Gear
Joined: Jul 2013
Posts: 76
From: Fargo, North Dakota
1999 A4 Quattro 2.8, Considering Buying?
Hello,
I apologize now if this is the wrong subforum for this type of post, but I am looking at buying a used 99 A4 tomorrow, specifically this one:
99 AUDI A4 QUATTRO (AWD)
It seems to be in very good condition and I'm going to try to talk the dealer down to $3,800, hopefully. My only concern is that when I went to look at the vehicle, the middle LCD in the cluster is almost entirely dead, and the airbag light is *always* on. The dealer assured me that neither would be problems, but I thought I would ask a dedicated forum for input..
Thank you!
I apologize now if this is the wrong subforum for this type of post, but I am looking at buying a used 99 A4 tomorrow, specifically this one:
99 AUDI A4 QUATTRO (AWD)
It seems to be in very good condition and I'm going to try to talk the dealer down to $3,800, hopefully. My only concern is that when I went to look at the vehicle, the middle LCD in the cluster is almost entirely dead, and the airbag light is *always* on. The dealer assured me that neither would be problems, but I thought I would ask a dedicated forum for input..
Thank you!
Administrator
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 11,670
From: Binghamton, NY
Bad displays are common and can be replaced. For the airbag, have the airbag module in the ECU scanned with a Vagcom scanner and see what's up. Chances are its a driver seat side igniter/bag open momentarily. It's common and happens when the seat is moved too far. Zip tie the connector tightly and turn off the code (Vagcom is needed for this). If it comes back, follow the DIY I posted on fixing the light for good - it's in the DIY sub forum on this site.
1st Gear
Joined: Jun 2013
Posts: 352
From: USA
3,700? How many miles on the motor? Do you have any previous records of maintenance? How many previous owners? Did you carfax it?
I know your looking to buy at a dealer, but I purchased my 2000 2.8 30v last November for 1,700 at an auction. I bought her with 80,500 miles, now she has 82,400.
I know your looking to buy at a dealer, but I purchased my 2000 2.8 30v last November for 1,700 at an auction. I bought her with 80,500 miles, now she has 82,400.
Thread Starter
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1st Gear
Joined: Jul 2013
Posts: 76
From: Fargo, North Dakota
3,700? How many miles on the motor? Do you have any previous records of maintenance? How many previous owners? Did you carfax it?
I know your looking to buy at a dealer, but I purchased my 2000 2.8 30v last November for 1,700 at an auction. I bought her with 80,500 miles, now she has 82,400.
I know your looking to buy at a dealer, but I purchased my 2000 2.8 30v last November for 1,700 at an auction. I bought her with 80,500 miles, now she has 82,400.
Carfax reports three previous owners, regular maintenance records through Carfax, no reports of damage, crashes, etc. I've settled for 4,000, and that's still about $150 below book for the AWD 2.8L, at least according to KBB...
I'm going to pick the car up on Thursday..
2nd Gear
Joined: Nov 2008
Posts: 591
From: NC
$4,000 out the door or $4,000 plus processing and sales tax ? Just something to bear in mind.
Also, since this hasn't come up and it seems at though this is your first Audi B5, you should know the 2.8L V6 has 0 performance mods. It will not go any faster than it already is. You could drop a couple thousand on a used supercharger and pray for someone to tune it, but it's more sensible to buy a different car. It can, however, sound nicer, look nicer, handle nicer, and may not have as many issues as the mod-friendly 1.8T. I think you can buy a TIP chip to make the transmission more aggressive, but a real chip will only increase HP by about 10 to 15..
EDIT: 034 Motorsports has a turbo kit they were designing for the 2.8L V6 but moved their R&D to the S4 platform instead. It's still doable, but will still cost you more money and headache than buying a different car.
Also, since this hasn't come up and it seems at though this is your first Audi B5, you should know the 2.8L V6 has 0 performance mods. It will not go any faster than it already is. You could drop a couple thousand on a used supercharger and pray for someone to tune it, but it's more sensible to buy a different car. It can, however, sound nicer, look nicer, handle nicer, and may not have as many issues as the mod-friendly 1.8T. I think you can buy a TIP chip to make the transmission more aggressive, but a real chip will only increase HP by about 10 to 15..
EDIT: 034 Motorsports has a turbo kit they were designing for the 2.8L V6 but moved their R&D to the S4 platform instead. It's still doable, but will still cost you more money and headache than buying a different car.
Last edited by Skythe; Jul 23, 2013 at 07:33 PM.
2nd Gear
Joined: Oct 2009
Posts: 712
From: Toronto, Canada
I wouldn't pay over 3.5k for a car like that, even if it was low mileage and mint. It's prefacelift, which is a shame, and auto 2.8's aren't exactly rare or special. I bought my '99.5 with right around that mileage almost 3 years ago for 4.3k, and what was only because it had every option under the sun (including sport leather seats), 5spd and very well taken care of.