I'm very close to picking up a 2003 A4 3.0l with 6-speed (~69k) miles. I'm taking it to my indie mechanic for an inspection this weekend. I've got decent experience with my A6, so I'm not an Audi noobie. I'll be getting the timing chain et all replaced at 80-85k.

I've seen mpg ratings of 17-25 and 18-28 for this vehicle. When I test drove it (only about 25 miles) I reset the computer and it seemed to be getting around 22-23 mpg. My 2.7T gets a little better than that.

Anyone have some real world, extended driving experience with this configuration and can tell me what kind of mpg to expect? Looking for some granularity: around town, mixed city/highway, and then extended road trip on the highway.

Thanks for any input.

 

The 2.7T gets better gas mileage than the 3.0L, they made the injectors too big on the 3.0L. Just another reason why audi doesn't make the 3.0L anymore, its full of design flaws. I would stay away from the 3.0L if it were me, others here love the engine, but from a mechanical stand point, i think its the devil.

 

I drive mostly highway to and back from work and I must say I'm currently averaging about 29mpg. I have had no problems with my 3.0L. I don't know what auditech is talking about. I actually have smoked a lot of 1.8Ts on the weekends with it.

 

Just wait, you'll know what im talking about soon enough....

 

i got up to 31.5mpg on my way to waterfest, that was keeping it around 80mph with my 3.0. and as for problems, ive had my car for almost a year now, put 14k mi on it and never ran into trouble, but ive heard more bad then good.

 

lol auditech79 HATES the 3.0 motor with a passion... as far as the twin turbo 2.7l getting better mpgs than the 3.0 im going to have to say thats a crock... i get 24 mpg city in my 3.0, occasional country road but lots of stop and go, my buddy is extremely lucky to get 20 mpgs in his b5 s4 and this is after her replaced the spark plugs coil packs and fuel filter as well as the air filters, under the same driving conditions

 

I would say your buddies S4 has a vaccum leak then cause i average 25 mpgs in the city and driving 90 on the highway with my old S4.

 

Thanks for the responses. The car is now mine (actually, my daughter's). I look forward to mileage in the high 20's based on your feedback. I'll be taking her on a RT to Detroit in a couple weeks and measure both via computer and the calculated method.

I agonized over the 1.8T vs the 3.0l. At the end of the day, the balance tipped with all the extra features on the 3.0l (premium pkg, cold weather pkg) vs losing 4-5 mpg. It just seems more elegant than the few base 1.8Ts I looked at. And the power torque is nice and smooth, which will be easier for the kid to drive on ice and snow. This is not a car to be modded or raced - it's her transportation for the next 6 years and I wanted something safe and "reliable" (oxymoron - it's an Audi). The previous owner did take exceptional care of it and I have the service records from the one dealership that did all the work.

 

Wow, I love my 3.0. I get about 26mpg from home to work and back, mostly HWY. In town it drops to 22-24mph. I have the manual and I keep my RPMs under 2,000 in town, (and I can stick it in 6th at 35). On the HWY I keep it under 3,000rpm's. On long trips at 75mph just under 3,000rpm I can manage 29-30mph. Not bad for such a heavy car with AWD. I like the engine and I think it's a great fit for the platform.

 

I must be doing something wrong...My '06 3.0 gets 17 in the city and about 20 on the highway. It has about 70k on it and it runs great. I don't want to hijack your thread, so I'm not really looking for answers.

Good Luck!,
John