Hello everyone,

Well like the title says I am looking for a used B7 Audi a4 for my fiancée. I would like to get some firsthand owner reviews for the a4 on its reliability, build quality along with daily drivability. I have done much research of my own from the likes of Edmunds, consumer reports, and other magazine reviews along with a few forums. Also I have read many user reviews from these companies and I have gotten mixed reviews. The general census is that it is a great entry level luxury car but has serious reliability issues. I am learning that these cars have faulty electrical issues, a burning of oil problem, a defective head gasket just to name a few. Most of the reviews that I have read have been negative due to its faults. I know German vehicles will not be as simple and reliable as a Japanese vehicle due to their technicality but these issues seem a little extreme. I drive a Mercedes CLK 500 so I am familiar with the quirkiness of these German cars. Other vehicles were considering within our budget (15k -18k) are the 07’-08’ VW Jetta, 06’+ Acura TSX and TL and 06’+ BMW 3 series. Thanks in advance for any input I’m sure you guys will help us out greatly.

-Wazim

 

Its not going to be any worse than your benz. Like any german car, it has issues, but they aren't really catastrophic. If you find a good mechanic, you won't have many problems.

 

i think you're both misinformed. my audi has been great. on the other hand, my old lexus was a piece of crap.

there are no electrical issues. there were some problems in the 80s.

there are no oil burning issues. if the oil level gets low, an alarm will sound. it's best to change the oil every 5000 miles.

defective head gasket? maybe the edmunds or consumer reports editor has a bad head gasket. that's rubbish.

i'm very happy with my cars and i'd never buy japanese again. don't put all your faith in those articles.

 

The A4 quattro is a great car. I live in West Michigan, and deal with major lake effect snow. The car goes right through it. Parking lots that caused my Jetta GLX to get stuck are not a problem. It handles great. You can change lanes quickly, with little or no body roll, unlike my old Jetta.

Depending how you drive the car, you might notice a bit of turbo lag. Get the manual transmission, it is better matched to the car. I had a FWD A4 with the CVT transmission for a loaner once, and missed my manual quattro. I happened to have the loaner the same time a bad snow storm hit, and boy the quattro makes a difference.

My only minor grumble is the vague on center feel of the steering, which I have heard is an Audi trait. I have only had a couple non mechanical issues with the car. The glove box door started sticking, and the Homelink got water in it one winter and shorted out. After it dried, it started working again. My car uses no oil. My sister had way more problems with the Benz she had, than any of her 3 Audi's she has owned.

I love the car!!!!!!!

 

You seem to be missinformed sir, oil burning issues are real but some have them and some dont but if you do buy a car that burns oil, it really is not a problem whatsoever. All that will happen is that you have to add a quart every 4k-5k miles, just buy 6 quarts of oil at your oil change, put the 5 quarts in and keep 1 in the trunk and if the car yells at you that the oil is low, just throw it in there and your good to go after that.

I've owned my b7 for about 6 months now and have not had 1 issue whatsoever *knock on wood*. I have an 07 quattro with 54k miles on it and have minor oil burning issues. The other known problems for the b7 is a cam follower failure, if that fails then you need to replace the cam, the follower and the fuel pump which can be veryy expensive, but as long as u replace the cam follower every 30k miles or so, you'll be fine. The follower itself is a 40$ part from the dealer and is a pretty simple DIY that will take less than an hour for a first time doer.

Other known faiilure is a PCV failure which really isn't a big deal, you'll just notice some oil around the filler cap and some slight idling issues, that part is another 60$ part and once upgraded, it should not need replaced again. If you do decided to mod the car and increase the HP, than your diverter valve is known to fail which if it does fail, it does not do damage to the car, you will just notice a loss in power/boost. The is an 80$ part which upgraded, should not fail again.

Last known problem is the intake flap motor, which again if failed, you will only notice a CEL and a loss in MPG and is not an expensive fix either.\

Of course if you do some extensive searching, you will always find the exceptions to where some crazy **** breaks and it cost the buyer thousands of $'s to fix but that happens will any and all cars and is a rare occurance. I do suggest buyin a manual transmission as well, because the CVT auto tranny has been known to have some problems here and there and the manual transmission is a beast and alot more fun to drive IMO.

I owned a 2000 a6 2.7t before i owned my 07 b7 and I think and the little research i've done over the years throughout the forums, i think the b7 is the most reliable car audi has produced, other than maybe the b8 but I haven't messed around with anything newer than the b7. I would suggest getting a CPO audi but if not, as long as u change the oil at its normal intervals (audi says every 10k miles but not hurt in doing it every 5k) and do its schedule servicing, you should be alright.

I'm very happy with my b7 and plan on owning it until atleast 100k miles so I'm in it for the long run, I would suggest this car to anyone and everyone that is serious about an extry level luxury and I would even consider it a sports car as well. It is very easy to mod and you can get it relatively quick for pretty cheap unless you really want upwards of 350 hp, then your looking at a turbo upgrade and can run you several thousand $'s. But I'm happy with around 250-275hp with a basic exhaust, intake, tune and maybe a FMIC.

Hope I could help.

 

Thanks for the input

- Wazim

 

Thanks for the input. I will keep these points in mind as they were very helpful

- Wazim

 

i'm not sure if you noticed that honda and toyota have recalled millions of cars over the past couple of years alone. all for pretty catastrophic issues. where's the reliability there?

makav3li, you should be changing out the oil every 5000 miles, retard, especially for a turbo car. no wonder you're "Burning" oil. how often do you change it? i had no cam follower or PCV failure. i had a problem with the intake runner flap motor. covered under warranty. the intake flap motor is a minor problem that doesn't affect anything other than less MPG. you say you want to keep your car for a long time, so then change your oil.

 

I think you need to learn a bit of tact. We're both misinformed??? I currently have 4... yes 4 Audis and one Mercedes Benz. I have owned 32 cars to date, domestic, euro and japanese. If I cared about reliability, I'd own a Toyota or Honda any day. However I prefer fun to drive cars, and Audi fits that bill very well.

 

you're suggesting that every german car owner should know a mechanic. really? i don't think so. don't be so dramatic when dishing out your valuable advice. "like any german car, it has issues"...nonsense.

hondas and toyotas are no more reliable than any other car. they've been recalling millions of cars in the last year for catastrophic problems and you're still giving credit to the cheap throw away vehicles. i've owned a money pit of a lexus. my uncle has had the same benz for 20 years and it's been flawless.

i have no plans to "look for a good mechanic" either, pal. no need. stick that tact in your pipe and smoke it.