Hey guys right now I have a 4 door jeep wrangler and I am fairly active on their forum website so when I decided I might be buying an A4 I knew I should come check out this site. I'm looking at buying a 1998-2001 A4 and could use some advice. What should I watch out for? What known maintenance issues do these older a4s have? You guys are the experts so I wanted to get some on advice before I just go buy one of these without knowing which is the best one to get. I'm sure that like all other cars, certain years are better than others and minor little details that you don't know until you own one can make all the difference. I think I want the 1.8t, front wheel drive just because I would assume there is less to break compared to a quattro. How long do the automatic trannys last compared to manual? Anything you can offer up that helps me focus in on what I'm looking for would be helpful.

 

You're best starting here: https://www.audiforums.com/forum/sho...d.php?t=109459

99% of the people here will tell you Quattro or bust, and I wholeheartedly agree.

Personally, the 1.8T (AEB, DBW), Quattro, manual > *. But it depends on what your plans are for the car.

 

This is a good advice. If you are more concerned about a reliable DD a 1.8T is good, but you can also look at the 2.8 V6. I personally have one and she has been dead reliable for 4 years. You'll definitely want a quattro though.

Basically if you know you will want to modify the engine and everything else, go with a 1.8T.

 

yes quattro. auto trans are tanks in those. never had any problems or with rear differentials of axles so front wheel drive isn't saving you any money in the long run. you need to look real close for oil leaks. valve covers and cam adjuster gaskets leak like crazy on them. you need to peek down under the intake along the side of the block. crankcase breathers tend to fall apart. you need to make sure if the car has over 90k on it that it has not only had a timing belt but the whole kit. belt, tensioner, rollers, water pump etc. you need to check the coolant. audi says lifetime antifreeze which is b/s if it looks like coffee that is bad and alot of times if its to bad when you do try and flush it out you end up clogging your heater core. you need to make sure parking brakes work. if you are getting an auto trans audi chances are whoever owned it never used the parking brakes and the rear calipers could be siezed because of it. and the only other thing off the top of my head is listen for suspension noises on a test drive. there are alot of control arms on these cars. lots of balljoints that can go bad.

 

Whats the fuel mileage difference between 1.8T and 2.8 v6?

 

Found this with a quick search: http://www.mpgomatic.com/2007/12/17/...4-gas-mileage/

I get about 21mpg in my 1.8T, I'm not a conservative driver and the car is not 100% stock.

YMMV (literally, ).

 

Where do you live? If it snows and/or rains a lot, you're definitely better off with Quattro (based on the testimonials of many here). But if you're like me and live in SoCal with no need for AWD, then FWD is great. There are fewer moving parts, so potentially fewer parts to replace/maintain, but in a FWD there will be more stress on the front suspension/hubs/axles than on the front of a Quattro.

You can see what I have in my signature, but basically 1.8T, chipped, manual, almost 130k miles. Lately my gas mileage has been 23-24 MPG for about 50/50 highway/city on 20min. trips, and the only time I'm easy on the car (not getting into positive boost pressure) is when the engine is cold.

 

I'm in norcal with no need for Quattro either, but best believe I wouldn't buy an A4 without it.

And I didn't. Handling wise they are different animals.

Quattro or bust.

 

you might as well get a Passat if you aren't getting a Quattro,,,

 

Passat's are ugly
Occasionally I check my local Craigslist for B5s under $6000, and it seems like the only manual 1.8T Quattro models that show up have very high mileage. Everything else is FWD/automatic.