Would you buy a used Audi?

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If you like the car and it looks to be or is well kept, buy it. There's a lot of chickens in here afraid of a little work.

I would plan for at least $1k to get it up to snuff if you DIY. That would cover the timing belt parts and tool rental, a new "crack pipe," and all new fluids and filters.

The B5 platform is solid. The V6 is solid. The auto trans is solid. I've seen plenty well into the 200k range.
 
Originally Posted By: rustypigeon
Originally Posted By: 901Memphis
Is it a timing belt engine, was it replaced recently?


The engine has a belt. It is unknown when it was done last, I would do it right away if I bought it. I priced the cost of parts and added the cost of the car and it will come out below KBB value.

That 3.0 engine is very reliable. What's not reliable with Audis of the early millennium is the electronics. That is what will nickel and dime you to death. For example out off nowhere will the power windows stop working and then you'll have to buy the whole module. If it's the engine you're worried about then you're worrying about the wrong area of the car.
 
Originally Posted By: Nick1994
They really are that bad. Just run away.


Total money pit. Was on its 3rd Dual Mass Flywheel and ………...


Laugh !!!
Nick1994, Thank you so much for saying all that. I couldn't keep my old Audi running without bleeding money into it. I felt a bit bad in the end for giving up on it, but I had a new baby in the house and I just had to cut my losses on it. But you just made me feel a lot more at home and relaxed with that decision. Thanks.
 
My dad bought a 3.0 A4 last year knowingly it had a leaking valve cover gasket(s). We had everything off and noticed a cam was all chewed up. A few months later and it had a "new" engine. I can't help but wonder if running the correct oil on the PO's behalf would have helped.

Aside from that MAJOR expense, it has been a great car. We did an ATF drain and fill and a few oil changes. It has been issue free for about the year we've had it with the replacement engine.

It also has a slight coolant leak which requires about 1-2 cups every month. It seemed to have a decent amount of oil consumption with M1 0w40, but I am running Pennzoil Ultra 5w40 now. It's been in the car almost 5 months and I had to add half a quart.
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*Oh it did need a new radio too.
 
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If you are not familiar with them its best to leave it alone. Maintenance is one thing but when things go wrong but they can easily put you under water.
 
Don't do it. European cars are nice under factory warranty, [censored] outside that.

My SiL had a A4 3.0 and I was always working on that thing. It blew a head gasket with around 60k. She now has a Lexus and I have not had to do a single repair to it yet after 2 1/2 years of owing it. Just oil and soon tires.
 
I don't know a lot about that specific model, but if you're willing to use it as a learning opportunity, it might be worth it. If you can do your own work and are willing to get some manuals, your life will be much easier. When I had my Audi, I found that parts weren't too expensive. However, as Trav notes, it could put you under water in a hurry. The stuff I was doing with my Audi wasn't expensive, but it became oppressive with respect to my time. It was like maintaining a helicopter or something like that.
wink.gif
 
How good or bad are the electronics and how difficult to troubleshoot?

How are the wiring harnesses and connectors, get a lot of corrosion and poor harnesses equals lots of gremlines.

Of course I wouold question anyone buying any car with 150K miles on it, now worth more than a couple grand in my book. Just
too many potential pitfalls unless you knew the owner and maintenance history.
 
Just one small example.
Electric fan failure is common on some VW/Audi models, there is a $130 relay, 3 sensors and18 wires to the relay alone.
Diagnosing it is difficult (time consuming) compared to American and Japanese but relatively simple in the German car world.

On used cars you find a lot of broken connectors and some can have serious electrical gremlins especially if someone previously tossed the under car splash shields.
Many Late 90's-mid 2000's have cats that beak up. A flat battery or throttle body disconnected for some reason may result in a trip to the dealer for a reset if you don't have the equipment.

I did cam chains and tensioners on an S4 last year, over 3K in parts alone and over 19 hrs labor it requires the engine to be pulled.
 
The electronics are simple with the right diagnostic software. Purchase the Ross-tech VCDS cable and software and you're in business.

The only common "electrical" issues on the B5 are the door latches. I replaced at least one a month it seemed (on various customer cars). The rest depends on the vehicle's specific options and condition. You will have a sensor fail here and there. They're not particularly robust, but they're not particularly expensive either.

You will have to get used to buying parts online. Dealer parts can be prohibitively expensive depending on dealer, and parts store parts are either relabled dealer parts, or junk.

I've been doing Audi/VW and BMW for over ten years and I love it. Things that some people see as giant hurdles become cheap and simple once you understand the systems and how to diagnose them.
 
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My neighbor poured >11 quarts of oil into a 2002 A4 3.0l V-6. It smoked, believe it or not.
I drained and measured the oil. My >11 qt. number is accurate. Lucky no hydrolocky.
I put >1,000 miles on that car to gain familiarity and it drove EXTREMELY WELL.
Audi dealership mechanics I met said that buying the cam locking tools (a $400 set) was an absolute must. They knew my capabilities and still insisted I needed the locks to go ahead. "Half a tooth out will bend valves", they warned.

'Twas tempting. It was available for next to nothing but still I passed due mostly to busy times.
I have to live without knowing if I could have done the timing belt change successfully for the rest of my life.

The pink coolant was long contaminated, the transmission fluid was black (I did a drain & fill) and someone had left the engine's wiring routing covers in the back seat and the owner's hadn't a clue.

One thing I didn't like was the design of the oil cooler. A collar of coolant piping was added to the oil filter boss. This arrangement left a mere 2 threads for the filter to screw onto. Also, the standard sized filter ended up living 3/8" from the radiator. The whole engine bay was full as a matter of fact.

A4's should be "4"s. A6's should be "6"s.

Good luck with your decision. Kira
 
Originally Posted By: rustypigeon
I am looking at a '03 Audi A4 3.0 Auto transmission AWD. It has 150,000 miles. I have never owned an Audi before. I do all my own maintenance. I can get it just below KBB value. Should I buy it?

Personally, I'd consider used, but not THAT used. But if you don't mind DIY (not just maintenance but also repairs), then why not. They are nice driving cars.
 
I would buy yours for $500 after you gave up and then part it out to the rest of the suckers
 
Nope. Audi= VW. Don't trust them, and the maintenance costs are ridiculous. There are other choices out there that are better, especially now that whatever prestige they had is gone.
 
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