I'm looking at an 06' A4 with ~39,000 miles on it. It is Certified Pre-Owned so that is good, only blemish I see on the exterior are some scuffs on the rims. The dealer starts the car and idles for a second and it seems smooth. He pops the hood and the engine looks to be vibrating pretty rough. Is this normal for these A4's or red flag? I took it out for a test drive and it rode pretty smooth.. I guess I'm just wondering what I should be looking out for the most here because I don't want to get burnt. I know I want an A4 but I can only afford a 3-4 year old model.

Generally: 3-4 year old models, what should I be expecting to spend assuming 30-40k miles?

Sorry if these types of questions are asked all the time or there is another place I should be posting. Thanks all

 

Well congrats on getting a B7. As far as issues, I have an 07 I bought new and have had almost no problems with it. My engine does not vibrate that I know of (what is rough?) The only things I had go bad on my car since July 2007 was two coil packs (Audi did a recall on these btw, so make sure yours are updated) And the PCV which is located under the plastic motor cover (where you see 2.0FSI and turbo). This was replaced under warranty and is not expensive. There are other problems that some of these models have depending on year etc. But not all people experience these. Cam follower, DV and PCV are the main ones. You can find them here or just google. Anyways good luck and enjoy!

 

The early 2.0t's do not idle as smooth as other engines, but smooth out once they get above idle. They also sounds a litttle like a diesel. The PCV and diverter valves have been know to go bad, but those are not hard to replace, and since you have a CPO, I would not worry. There is also the cam follower issue, that if not caught in time, can cause expensive damage. Do a search on the rest of the forum for more info, there is already quite a bit posted about it. Do make sure the coils have been replaced. I have only had a couple of small issues, non mechanical in nature. The quattro is absolutly awsome in the winter.

 

ya its idle is a little more rough than normal cars so that "rough" idle is normal specially if it evens out once u get above idle. These cars are pretty sweet, specially if its CPO, i wouldnt worry about much.

 

Two of the biggest things to check on the B7 A4s are carbon buildup and cam follower. 39k is relatively low, but you might still need the Intake Valves cleaned of carbon deposits. The dealership might not "know what you're talking about" but this is a big issue on these cars. We charge $150 for the service and it really helps in many ways to clean out the engine and make it run smoother

 

what does ur service consist of RAI? I can imagine breaking into the valves isn't an easy job to look at the carbon is it? I know the dealership will put in some fuel additive them go drive the **** outta your car for 60 miles or so to try to burn up the carbon and if that doesn't work, then they bust it open to look into it.

 

All direct injection engines are prone to the carbon problem. Due to EPA regs, the PCV valve sends oily crank case gasses back into the intake, to burn them off. The problem is that since the fuel is injected directly into the cylinders, there is no gas/detergent mix flowing past the intake valves. The valves then get gunked up. No fuel additive will help since the gas is injected straight into the cylinder. I have seen in a few different places that one of WV/Audi's recommendations it to periodically run the engine above 3000 RPM for 20 minutes to reduce the carbon on the valves. That does not take much. 60 MPH in 4th gear will get you just over 3000 RPM so will 75 MPH in 5th gear.