hey guys, I used to have a 1998 audi a4 (b5), and absolutely loved it. Im looking to get back into the audi world and will most likely be buying a 07-08 a4. My question is, are there some specific things I should look for when buying these years? I know with my B5, there were certain things that were prone to failure / problematic. Are there any problems associated with the B7 a4's?

Thanks in advance

 

all the same, the newer the car the pcv and valve cover is fixed, but nothing that aftermarket fixes couldnt fix if you went with an 06.

get xenon lights!

 

Stickies up top. I have a super duper informative one.

 

Thanks, I read the sticky, very helpful! One last question... My old Audi was a Quattro, and I LOVED it. I lived in Wisconsin at the time and it was simply amazing in the snow. The A4 I'm looking at right now is FWD. How much of a difference will I notice while going fast around corners? I know the Quattro will out preform the FWD in snow / ice. but on dry roads, how much of a difference will I notice?

Thanks

 

I have the quattro, but drove a FWD loaner. I could tell the difference very quickly. First, it was hard not to break the front tires loose on the FWD in dry conditions when accelerating from a stop. You can hammer the quattro, and that doesn't happen. The CVT also seemed to make the turbo lag more noticable. I'd have to give it plenty of gas to get going, and if I didn't back off at about 1800 rpm the tires would screach as the turbo fully kicked in. I also noticed right away a difference in the steering. In the FWD, the front wheels are taking the entire load of moving the car. It makes the steering behave different. I've also experenced both in snow. The quattro is amazing. The FWD, was like a bigger version of the terrible in snow Jetta I use to own.

 

If you get a FWD, make sure to get a manual transmission. Otherwise, you get a CVT and all the issues that go along with that.

I live in Georgia and the roads are fairly dry and rarely snowy/icy here. I searched around until I found a quattro because I just wanted the better handling. I've driven a FWD loaner for a day, but it was a 6-speed, so it's hard to compare. It felt a little different--almost like it had to pull the back end of the car around corners, but it was a B8, so there are a lot of differences to try and account for there.

 

i've only had issues with the PCV and breather hose. it has since been replaced. i also had the intake runner motor fail but that should bring up a check engine light. the PCV problem didn't give a check engine light.

no oil consumption issues, no cam follwoer issues, no carbon build up issues, etc.

 

I had a fwd CVT. It handled well and very well when I put 18's on it. It was one of the better handling FWD cars I had owned second to my GTI. That is a sport suspention though. It handled better than my B6 sport as well.

I lived in FL before so FWD was fine unless you were drag racing. If you might race or have snow get an AWD manual for sure.

 

I agree with a few of the others. If you don't mind a manual transmission, get a car with one. The traditional automatic in the quattro isn't bad, especially if you use the sport mode, but the manual is more fun.