First off to say im a honda guy but its time to go get a daily now. My friend has a b5 s4 that I really enjoy driving and like the features a lot but I know the price of the s4. So the a4 a step down is what im looking at for a daily with the 1.8t fwd preferably. My main questions that I have that I can't find answers for are is the 1.8t difficult to work on/get around for someone who is mechanically inclined. 2nd can it get or get close to the hp of the s4 reliably. I do plan on doing some things to make it look good and custom but it won't be driven very hard or tracked I just have some of those days were I need some sprited driving or flying by jerks on the road.

 

If you're mechanically inclined, these cars are pretty easy to work on. Turbo Audis will give you plenty of chances to become familiar with them. I would tell you though, it's worth getting a Quattro, whether or not you're in a state that gets winter weather. If nothing else it'll help you put all the power down when you mod the car and make power. The other thing is to get at least a 99.5, the facelift model with projector headlights - the lights are much better, the interior is jazzed up, and there are some nicer features not found on the earlier cars.

You can do whatever your budget allows. An elim (eliminator) kit, so named because it eliminates the need for a different exhaust manifold, can make upwards of 300chp with the right turbo. You can simply chip the car for a 40hp gain. Or you can go all-out like Mike Hood (a member here, who owns Ringer Racing and is a great guy to deal with for parts as well as advice) and build a 9-10 second monster.

Go up top and read the sticky FAQ posts there as well as at the top of the A4 general forum and you'll get a lot of insight into what's possible, what to look for, and how to go about achieving what you want with the car.

 

If you buy an Audi you gotta go Quattro.

 

I have a 1.8t FWD and I wouldn't want a Quattro, but IATD is right when he talks about putting the power to the ground.

My car is relatively stock, with a quarter million miles on it and I still might as well not even have a 1st gear (because it lays the power to the ground so hard & so well).

What I can't understand is: Why make an inline 4 then make it FWD? If I had a choice, it would still be 2WD, but RWD.

Either way you go, you'll be good, since they both have an equal amount of benefits and drawbacks of their own.

GL w/everything!

 

You're just saying that to make yourself feel better. Why would you pick FWD over Quattro? I'm curious.

2WD RWD buy a BMW

 

I daily-drove a FWD B5 A4 1.8T for 3.5 years. Here's my answers:
-better gas mileage
-better gear ratios for manual transmission (IMO)
-less drivetrain power loss
-far fewer components to fail or require replacement (center diff, center driveshaft, rear diff, rear axles, rear bushings/control arms)
-less weight
-still handles great with good suspension, and being lighter by ~300lbs makes it more agile/nimble
-no major driveability benefit (for DD'ing) in places without snow (like SoCal or Florida)

However, since "upgrading" to a Quattro car, there are two major benefits I see:
1) Can put power down through a corner, whereas FWD is more likely to spin tires (where it might understeer under power).
2) Can use throttle to control the rear of the car. In FWD you can't control the car nearly as well as you can with Quattro. I'm finding this even more-so true since I did the 4:1 diff mod last weekend.

 

Well at least you have reasons. Not sure if I agree with them but at least you have them. Fair enough. I think the Quattro is great coming from a FWD Saab.

 

I came from a 1997 Camry I4 automatic before my FWD 5spd A4, big upgrade there! One more reason: FWD A4 is still longitudinal, so unlike most FWD cars which have transversely-mounted engines, the FWD A4 doesn't suffer from any torque steer.

Also this is sort of region-specific, but where I live it's incredibly difficult to find 1.8TQM models. Other than the one I bought a year ago there have only been a few of them pop up on the local Craigslist which would even be worth looking at. Don't think I've seen a single 1.8TQM Avant for sale in SoCal (Craigslist) in the last year either.

 

You'd have a tough time here in the north east not finding a Quattro Audi. I just didn't think they made a whole lot of the FWD Audi's but I guess they made more than I thought.

 

They probably were mostly delivered to California and Florida