Im new to the forum but not new to Audi. I had a hand me down Audi in highschool (early 1990's). It was a 1986 Audi 5000 CS auto turbo. Titanuim in color with navy leather. Loved that car to death but at the time I couldnt afford to keep the maintenence up to date nor could I afford the costly repairs. Great car, ahead of its time really. I can remember paying $35 dollars for a can of hydrualic fluid for the brake system!

Im actually am a diehard Honda/Acura enthusiast. My wife and I auto-X a lot, me in my all motor high compression Acura Integra GS-R powered 1995 Civic Ex sedan (it can outrun a stock S4 with ease), and her in her bone stock 2002 S2000. We also have a 2005 Honda Oddysey Touring (5 kids) and my daily driver a 2003 Acura CL-S 6MT coupe. I love Honda/Acura but for some reason they refuse to offer anything sport oriented in AWD/RWD form, with the exception of the new SH-AWD RL, which isnt particularly sporty. Is SH-AWD a Quattro beater? HAHA!

Im in need of a sporty, fast 4 door car. Ive narrowed my list down to the Lexus IS300, the older BMW M3 sedan, and the Audi (Bi-turbo) S4. The Lexus is probably the most reliable of the 3 but its not that powerful, and the manual tranny is gross. The M3 sedan....WHOA. Nuff said, a little pricey and hard to find. The S4 is great, AWD, affordable, luxurious, fast, and stylish.

I have a few questions. Is there anything I should look for when looking at an S4? Such as electrical issues or drivetrain abuse? Are these cars more reliable than past Audis? Are parts very exspensive? Do I have to worry about high milage cars, say 100K? Not really high milage but you know what I mean. Any and all imformation is greatly appreciated.

Patrick

 

FIRST OFF...EVERYONE HERE IS GOING TO BE A LITTLE BIAS...DUH! BUT I LOVE MY S4...I HAVE TEST DRIVEN A LOT OF DIFFERENT CARS...AND AUDI OUT PERFORMS THEM ALL! BESIDES...FVCK BEAMERS!

 

Yeah, I think you'll only hear kind words about the S4 here.

I purchased a 2000 S4 a few months ago and found the following important:

1. Timing belt should be replaced at around 60,000 miles. If it hasn't, and the car is at or above 60,000 in mileage, plan on spending some cash on that ($1200 comes to mind, but I may be off, and I'm sure it varies).
2. Don't buy a chipped S4. I ignored this tip in favor of a MTM stage 2 S4, but only after being assured by a shop that specializes in Audis that the turbos were in relatively good shape (along with everything else). Besides, It was too fun to drive. Which leads to...
3. Have a shop check out the vehicle before you buy. This is obvious, but important.
4. There's some (arguably minor) weaknesses in the 2000 S4 versus 2001+ (e.g., f-hose). I still went for a 2000, but still something to keep in mind.

Also, http://www.s4biturbo.com/faqsdowns.php might be worth looking at (at least to see the differences between the different versions of the B5 S4).

Check out this thread: https://www.audiforums.com/m_129079/tm.htm

It's comparing an '06 S4 to an '04 M3, but it's still at least a little interesting. The whole quattro improving control around corners argument should probably apply to any S4 vs. M3 comparison.

All that said, I love my S4. I'm sure there's additional tips and refinements to these points that people more knowledgeable can give, but this is my $0.02.

 

get the S4, it has everything. Sure teh M3 is a lil faster but not as good looking and 2 doors (i think they made a 4 door in the E36). The IS is very nice but until u have forced induction on it, it sucks. The s4 has it all. Here is the best resoruce for the newbie s4 ppl. http://forums.audiworld.com/s4/msgs/1407640.phtml i would like to take ur wifes S2000 and play with that engine. That has some crazy potential, seen a few crazy ones. Also just to tell u the S2000 is RWD (95% sure) but i think u were just talking about RWD sedans.

U could also buy a A4 2.8 and supercharge it with teh PES (around 5 Gs but it sounds liek u have $$$) It will be at least as fast as the s4 more likely faster. It is very very reliable and cheaper to maintain, but u dont have the otehr mods liek teh s4 does, i mean if ur going to go stage 3 then that would be sick.

 

Yes I was speaking of RWD/AWD sedans not sports car. Yes the S2000 is in a league of its own for the money. I bought it in April of this year (wifes anniversary present), its a 2002 and it only had 3700 miles on it, all for 21k.

I know with the German cars that I will have to spend more money with repairs/maintenece but I dont want a car that lives in the shop. I know of a Audi/VW tuner here and he is VERY experienced. He has an older early 80's Audi (the boxy hatchback/2door) and it runs high 11's with big 18inch wheels.

Ive driven a 2.8 Audi and Im still waiting for the car to reach 60mph...LOL. A 2.8 is out of the question! Ive always liked the S4 but wondered about its reliability. Everycar has its issues, some more than others. Im still considering the IS, E36 M3 sedan, and the S4. I just have to drive all 3 in the same day and go from there.


Patrick

 

i didnt say anything about a 2.8 i said a 2.8 SUPERCHARGED. It will be the same if not more power (depending on octane) 91 will be around what a s4 puts out on 93 (255) and 93 will be a lil less than a chipped s4 but u dont have to worry about blown turbos. But that is only if u were gonna keep it stock, a s4 with K04s will be very fast but its alot of $$$$$.