hey guys, its nice to join your forums. I am currently looking at a 96 a4 2.8l and i want to know what you think. The asking price is 2200 (i think i can get it down to 2100 or 2k). Its a high mileage car 180k miles. Now im pretty sure those are all highway because the interior is mint with the excpetion to the drivers seat. The car has had 2 owners, never been in a accident. drives smooth, had timing belt replaced, waterpump, rear suspension redone ( bearings shocks, etc) and the car just passed NJ inspection. Now for the bad. the car is throwing a code for bad rear o2 sensor, tires could be replaced, theres a clunk in the front driver side when hitting bumps (maybe shocks?). power steering works but u can feel the pump (maybe needs new fluid? i heard its expensive), driver seat and door panel are worn. now do you think this car is worth bargaining for or just pass? i've never owned an audi or known someone that owned one. Also what should i expect in terms of gas mileage on this thing? i'm seeing an average of 23.6mpg on fueleconomy.gov BTW i can easily work on my own car so labor is not an issue

 

The interiors in these cars hold up well. Don't let the condition of it make you think most of the miles are highway miles. The 12v 2.8 is probably the most reliable engine Audi has made, yet there arent any worthwhile bolt ons/mods for it (depends on what you consider "worthwhile" i guess.) Sounds like it's been maintained. The clunk is probably a bad control arm or sway bar link bushing(s) or ball joint. To pinpoint it, take the wheel off and grab the rotor/hub and try to turn/twist/move the whole suspension/shock assembly and look for movement. Otherwise use a prybar. MPG should be low to mid 20's city and close to 30 on the highway. $2000 is probably a fair deal. Make sure to check out the A4 Newbie Guide sticky.

Like I said, the engine is reliable, but it would probably be a good idea to have head gasket funds available at all times when approaching the 200k mark.

 

thanks onepoint , so headgaskets would be problematic on these models? i dont mind fixing the suspension, but since this will be my winter car i dont really want to have to worry about the headgasket. if this is the case i might have to pass on this deal. if anyone else has any opinions let me know. this would be my beater for the winter as i feel it would be much safer to drive than my supra in the winter

 

I think he is just mentioning the head gasket for the fact that it has 180k miles. Head gaskets can go out on a car for a number of reasons but usually wont unless the engine is over heated. I wouldn't be scared of the engine but would consider other things like the transmission.

 

I'm just saying things can get crispy at ~200k miles on any car.

 

oh ok thanks. is there any know electrical problems with these cars? also i hear they are very underpowered for a v6, any comments on that?