Hey all, been nosing around the forums and looks like a great site with tons of info. Though I know you are all biased, I'm looking for some advice.

I'm looking for a new(er) vehicle as I'm not sure I can rely on my base model 97 Integra to make it through another Wisconsin winter. No mods, just miles and good maintenance, 248k today and still fun to drive. Have done all possible work on it myself so I'm not intimidated by digging in deep and getting dirty (Tbelt, motor mounts, tranny sensors, coils/ignition modules, wheel bearings as well as the basics).

Found a 03 A4 1.8T 5spd manual, 78k miles on craiglist that seemed like a good deal. Test drove great, cosmetic great but the deal fell through on cost of the tbelt replacement as was still original. I had a quote for $1000 to get it done from a local audi specialist shop but the seller wouldn't budge on price.

Anyway, in my research of the vehicle and the couple test drives I think I'm set on an B6 1.8TQ Manual that I can do a little mod work on and bump the HP up over 200+ and still get decent gas mileage. What I've read is that manual trans gets the most out of the 1.8T and especially the turbo band. And the basic mods to add another 30-40hp are not that costly or difficult.

So am I on the right track? Sounds like most of the A4 issues are pretty straightforward DIY stuff for someone who knows their way around a toolbox and engine compartment at all.

On the tbelt topic: couple postings mentioned the "service position", the shop I got the quote from showed me tbelt replacement pictures with the entire front end off a B6. Is this really necessary? Not sure if I want my first A4 wrench experience to be that in depth.

Any thoughts or comments are appreciated!