Hello,

I am looking for a newer car than my 1991 BMW 325ix (317k miles).
I am a huge BMW fan. However, I live in central Ohio (USA) that means snow and ice. BMWs, at least the ones in my price range (<$8000) do not go well in the snow (love to have a 540i 6 speed). However, they did not make any AWDs in the mid to late 90's. So, I am looking at Audis. I know what I am looking at as far as problem areas in BMWs. I do not know much about A4s. My questions are: How many miles are too many for an Audi. I am looking at cars with around 100k. Manual transmission BMWs can go 250k+ with no real issues and I would buy one with 100-150k without thinking about it. I know you never ever want to buy an automatic BMW...junk transmissions. How do the Audis autos hold up? My mother had a 2002 or 2003 (the B6?) with an automatic and it had the push buttons (triptronic?). That was a blast to drive. I would actually prefer that to a manual if it was durable (mostly because I feel like I am a F1 driver when I drive with push buttons). When did the push buttons become available? How does the quattro drivetrain hold up? The audi quattro is front wheel biased, right? My iX BMW is 63% rear biased so it will drift in the snow a little (great fun). I have read the newbie thread. So, I have dropped a bunch of my original questions from a different audi forum. Thanks for any insight.

 

Just an fyi, read up on the cars of your liking on this forum. There are TONS of people who are certified techs, and even more people who are audi enthusiasts. You will learn a GREAT deal of information in just a short time here. I've been reading for months and months, and I still learn everyday, but if you just concentrate on the cars that you like, and read up on them, then you will learn more. For example, if you like the A4's, which is a great choice IMHO, then read up on which year you like. There's a few different body styles. Pick one that is in your price range, and is the body style you like, and just start reading it. Don't let anyone push you to decide for you. YOU pick the car you like. Picking a car for me, is like someone else picking a house I'M going to live in. The 5 speed manual transmission A4's are a BLAST to drive, I have a 99 A4 right now. The 1.8t (turbo) engine will be plenty for what you want. It's got pep, it has a little bit of power, and its just a blast to drive. AND... you can upgrade it to be an EXTREME car. I've seen some that are around 450-500whp. But whatever you decide to do, please please please just read up on this forum. People are here to help, and would answer any questions you have.

 

ive read that the quattro can be biased 60/40 anywhere up to 95/5 to the front depending on conditions. the quattro system drives like no other car ive been in.

last winter was somewhat mild with the exception of a few days where we got several feet of snow/rain. i remember coming home from work those days. everyone else either stuck on the side of the road or reduced to 5mph or else they would fishtail everywhere. while i was crusing in the left lane doin 35. must have passed several hundred cars on the way home. if you know how to drive you can make that car do almost anything.

but do NOT make the mistake of some people and think that you can put your seatbelt on and drive like a lunatic down an icy highway. it takes a bit to know your cars limits. but those limits are miles above any other car. but quattro is not a licence to drive like an idiot.

look for one around 100k miles, theres alot of them out there. as long as the car has been taken care of, it will last you to 200+k miles no problem. but you do have to know a little about preventative maintenance, if you fix problems before they start, it costs wayyyyy less then if you fix something after it breaks.

ask about the timing belt. it needs to be changed every 60-80k miles. if they cant provide reciepts, assume it didnt happen. its $300 in parts, and about $900 to have it installed. if the timing belt breaks your looking at $2000 atleast in damage.

 

I'm pretty sure quattro is a 50/50 split regardless of condtions. I've never read that it adjusts as ghost suggests. The only two I can think that would do that are the TTs and A3s which, iirc, are a haldex based AWD system rather then the Torsen based quattro, the latter being more dependable. If you're looking at a high mileage A4 def ask about the timing belt, also shouldnt cost $900 to install, at the right shop you can get the whole thing parts and all for less than $700. also check the suspension components, control arms, tie rod ends, ect. as they can be a common issue. If possible find a '99.5 or newer as they have the facelifted front ends which look way better than the '99 and older. Good luck.

 

Ok, now I am getting answers. Great! Thank you. I am not so concerned about the difference in the front end style. After all I am driving a BMW whose style has been around since 1989. However, I have to find one of each A4 and go from there as far as which I like better. How are the 1.8t for reliability? They are more economical as far as gas mileage and purchase price. Were they all 150hp in the B5? But how well do the turbos hold up? One of the things with newer BMWs is they do not have the owners maintain them like they used to from new. They did that to combat the cost of ownership complaint. Now, by the time they come down to around $10000 for a 3 series or 6 cylinder 5 series (100k miles) they are in fair-poor condition. All of the fluid are badly burnt and many of the mechanical systems are in need of repair due to the lack of maintainence. Is Audi doing that too? Do I have to be concerned about a 2000 A4 1.8t quattro not being maintained because the factory says so? 1999 was about when BMW started that whole mess. I am leaning towards the 2.8 just because it has the extra power without mods. And because I have read they are a little more reliable. I don't care to go much above 200hp. My 325iX is 168hp and is pretty small. So I think the 2.8 would offset the size difference. I am partial to 6cyls anyway. My BMW has a viscous coupling center and rear diff. open diff front. It splits 37f/63r. Makes for great power slides in the snow. I was passing everything in the world when we had a big storm last winter on all season tires. Search youtube to see some if you ever get a chance and are looking for good entertainment. So, how does the quattro drivetrain hold up?

 

i know quattro isnt 50/50, although i might have fudged up that 95/5 number from a haldex trans. i was trying to find the post but it was a while ago.

how well the car was maintained really has to do with the previous owner. for instance, my previous car was a 1997 2.8 manual. the kid who owned it before me wrecked that car. i got it for a decent price, but he used regular oil, not synthetic. put 87 octane gas in it. all the hoses were worn or cracked. the coolant was green, not the red G12 that audi uses and i doubt he flushed the system properly when converting it to green. there was alot of little mechanical problems that added up to alot of $ real quickly, all in all im glad that tree snuck up on me that rainy night, RIP.

my current car is a 1998 1.8t. the first owner was an old lady who actualy drove the car with a broken wastegate actuator for probably 6+ years. it was stuck open so the turbo never made any boost. the guy who bought the car 4 years ago fixed that and did a ton of maintenance on it. it was in immaculate condition when i got it, and ive been making it even better ever since. this car was well worth what i paid for it and i would expect it to last another 100k miles atleast (theres 110k on the clock now)

if you never ( and i mean never) want to do any performance upgrades on your car, get the 2.8. you will have around 180hp stock and no turbo lag, although with a k03 theres minimal lag as it is.

if you want around 210hp and 240lb torque, go with the 1.8t and get a chip for it. the car is 170hp stock, but with a $500 ECU upgrade, you get tons of more power. its the single cheapest $-per-hp mod you can get for the 1.8t engine.

remember these cars are much heavier then their bmw counterparts, so an audi with 170hp will loose to a bmw with 160.

 

The quattro drivetrain will hold up very well. Mike Hood has a 600whp A4 on the stock quattro system.

 

Believe it or not doing power to weight ratio on my 1991 325ix vs a 2000 Audi A4 2.8 quattro they come out almost dead even. My 325iX weighs in at 2999lbs at 168 hp = 17.85 lbs / hp the A4 2.8 Quattro weighs 3384 / 190hp = 17.81. Both are AWD. The sizes are actually very close. I always thought the E30 (1984-1991 3 series) BMW was pretty small. A mazda3 or civic is as big as the E30 BMW. Now I see that the Audi is actually kind of small for the age (newness) of it. Everyone else’s cars are getting bigger as they go through generation changes. Look at a early 80's civic. It was the precursor of the smart car. Well the new A4s are quite big.

I am taking my 325iX to a shop Friday. I am going to see what they recommend repairing and if it is worth repairing. They only brought about 450 325ix's into the USA in 1991. Mine is a sedan so even more rare. I think a total of 2647 for the production run came into the USA (1988-1991). If they say it is too tired and should be retired then I will sell it on the BMW board and make the A4 jump.

I talked to a local high end dealer today. I think he was full of poo to put it politely. He said it was $1500-1800 to replace the timing belt on an A4; 1.8t or 2.8 both. I keep seeing that people on the board here state something like $700-900. I was looking at a BMW 540i 6speed and he has had it for a long time. I think he is trying to scare me away from the A4 and into the 540i. That car is sweet but would really suck in the snow. Too bad I think global warming is a bunch of crap. Then we wouldn't have to worry about snow and I could just get the 540i. He also said that I should expect to pay about $11000-12000 for a decent A4. Does that sound right? I see them for about $6500 at another lot. I do not know the history though. What should I expect to pay for a good history A4 2.8 quattro?

The shop I am taking the 325ix to specialize in German cars so I will ask them what to expect with an A4. And if I go the A4 route I will probably have them check it out for me before I make a purchase.

 

I went from a 325i into my current 200 A4 1.8tq. I'm very happy with the Audi. They are different, and it's simply personal preference as to which one you prefer. I think the BMW has better road feel, (maybe the best there is!) but the Audi is still very good. I echo the opinion that get the 2.8 only if you are never going to modify the car. The 1.8 has tons of mods available, and you can go as far as you like as far as power. I paid 8k for a 2000 model with 73k miles on it. Paid another chunk for an extended warranty from Audi, so I should be OK there. I've put about 10k on it so far, and it's been rock solid. It still has that german solid feel. Think of it as kind of a luxury car version of your BMW.

 

I bought a 2001 67k mles $6.700, good condition, if you can spend up to $8,000, u should find something less than 100k miles, good luck, and quattro is awesome, really nice car....