Hi folks,

Been through all the "newbie" sections and found a mountain of great info on major maintenance and troubleshooting for my new B5, but I'm curious to hear what you all do in terms of the basic stuff... daily care and maintenance to keep your A4 in top shape?

 

full synthetic oil every 3k
large oil filter for the 2.8L every 3k
spark plugs every 3k (NGK BKR7E (overkill, but the set only costs $8))
check all fluids weekly
stay out of boost 'til oil&coolant are up to temp.
rotate my tires every couple weeks (I drive alot)
clean my k&n filter every 7-10k (do not over clean)

oh, and the best way to keep the car happy is to keep it clean and buy it a mod ever month or 2

besides that, just play it by ear.....these cars will always surprise you with a funny new noise....like a wheel bearing or a dentist drill[:@]....lol


as long as you keep up with basic maintenance, the car will hold up forever....

 

stay out of boost 'til oil&coolant are up to temp.

So now it's time for a real newb question - short of installing a boost gauge, is there a rule of thumb to know when the boost kicks in? For example, at a given RPM?

 

you forgot 1, do the manufacture maintenance schedule

link: http://www.bentleypublishers.com/tech/audi/

 

boost kicks in around 2500 - 3000 RPM's and tapers off around 5500 - 6000RPM's or something around that area.
You should be able to feel the car pull all of sudden when it hits.

 

Only feed it 93 octane!!! No cheap gas either! BP or Shell
I let mine warm up til it idles down in the summer and take it easy for a few mins. In the winter at least 5-15 mins. Then I let mine cool down from 1-5 mins. Depending on driving circumstances. I baby my cars. Get a boost gauge too.