What Do You Think

[AlpineThumperJ9 10+ year member]

I dont know where else to post this, this fourm looks like the most suitable. Anyways im in the market for purchasing a Audi A4 2001. I went out yesterday and looked/drove one it was really nice exactly what i wanted. My only concern is that he told me the oil pump failed and that he took it to the dealership and they replaced all the parts in the engine( the block was salvageable) but this leads me to belive that no oil= engine sized. I heard that once you break the seals on the engine and start taking it apart that the engine will never be the same again even though all the parts are new. My question is the car has 66k on it and its goin for 13,200 is it worth getting or will i run into problems later on down the road? any advice or questions i should ask him would be great thanks.

Click to read more...

 

[LoudCrownVic 5,000+ posts]

No, they are a terrible idea. ANd that car sounds WAY overpriced, even if the repairs were good, there is most likely going to be piston wall damage, and it will probably wear excessively and prematurely. I'd pay no more that 7 or 8k for that specimine.

 

[azbass 5,000+ posts]

sick car.but unless you have loads of money and its not gona be a daily driver. id look in to somthing else.

 

[Qoob 10+ year member]

I wouldn't worry too much about it at all. Audi and Volkswagen's oil warning system is very sensitive meaning it is very hard to cause damage internally (scouring), unless you were driving for months that way, and in a very abusive manner. What is your judgement of the prior owner? You could come across as being a little skeptical about this issue towards him; maybe he'll knock off a few bucks.

I don't exactly know how mechanically inclined you are but if you go to see it again here are a few things you can look for (common problems):

-Jack it up a little and make sure the suspension is tight. Shake the wheel with both hands to check the upper link ends and outer tie rod ends.

-The valve cover and cam tensioner seal likes to leak oil. Look in the rear of the engine right under the cover along the edge of the valve cover.

-The axle seal on the passenger side usually likes to leak oil. You'll see this if you squat down and peer under the car where the axle bolts to the gearbox on the passenger side. While your there, look at the transmission pan if it's automatic.

-Vacuum lines have probably been replaced but look at them and feel them. If they're rock solid, cheap to fix, but still not good.

-Obvious things belts, hoses ect cooling system components, follow every hose and look at the plastic flanges that connect to the engine. They shouldn't show evidence of coolant leaks.

-Should be pretty easy to check the brakes by looking though the rims and use your best judgement.

-Drive it up to operating temp and make sure it doesn't overheat with AC on or off.

-Ask him for every possible service record he has on the vehicle.

You should be ok.

 

[j3bus2k3 5,000+ posts]

Audi's, expecially A4's, always rate poorly along with most other german cars in maintenance and durability. IMO, buying it would be a mistake. Your going to have to pay for the previous owners mistakes and then some. For ~$14K, get a nice toyota, or Acura.

 

[Qoob 10+ year member]

Audi's, expecially A4's, always rate poorly along with most other german cars in maintenance and durability. IMO, buying it would be a mistake. Your going to have to pay for the previous owners mistakes and then some. For ~$14K, get a nice toyota, or Acura.

Something about German engineering that I've noticed... The cars, are geared slightly more on the luxury/performance side. There is absolutely NO way you could even put an Audi A4 remotely close to a Vigor. Lol. Anyone who played with both of these would agree Where did you read these reviews? I have a lot of automotive review journals and can't really say for sure if what you're reading is an authentic source. BTW I'm not to down talking any manucturer, but acuras and toyotas along with most of the other Japanese made automobiles are typically marketed as economy cars towards the older generations, college students, and people leary of recently gas costs not that there's anything wrong with that at all.

 

[j3bus2k3 5,000+ posts]

Consumer Reports....subscribe to it. and Auto mags arent going to give you a breakdown 5-years down the road. They do initial tests, give their impressions and then their done. They have a few long term tests but look at consumer reports website. Like I said, Audio ranks considerably low.

And I never said that a BMW, Audi was in the same class as my Vigor but I would certainly take a Lexus over a BMW/Audi anyday.

 

[AlpineThumperJ9 10+ year member]

first off thank you all for your advice, im going to take it to my mechanic this saturday and hes going to tell me whats up. the car just got re-painted, and the brakes jus got done too, and the got the belts replaced to. Its practically a new car with the rebulid and all the cosmetics (very clean inside). this guy im buying it from kept all the matience records and only serviced it at the dealership. as far as the price im going to try to get him to at least 12,700 is that good?

 

[Qoob 10+ year member]

12,700 is a good offer considering most dealership pricetags for that particular year model are anywhere between 12-19 thousand depending on the condition of the vehicle. I checked out some consumer reviews per the other poster's recommendations (not one time tests, but actual owner reviews) and the car scored pretty high. Note that this is an average from 68 different reviews.

Overall 8.81

Vehicle Styling 9.12

Braking 8.86

Handling 9.41

Fuel Economy 7.43

Interior Comfort 8.53

Acceleration 8.9

Dependability 9.19

Fit and Finish 9.3

Transmission 8.2

Ride 9.23

 

[AlpineThumperJ9 10+ year member]

thanks qoob for all the help , you made my decsion alot easier.

 

[spudracer326 10+ year member]

i wouldent touch that audi...had one and it was the most unreliable piece of crap...if its been repainted and **** just walk away...why would they need to paint a 2001??? probably its been in a wreck....Also if its already had motor problems you know they arent gonna disappear for the time you own it...and 12 is a descent price for that year but one in perfect condition.....buyer beware....if you buy this car you might as well bend over to....

 

[Sleeklsc 5,000+ posts]

i wouldent touch that audi...had one and it was the most unreliable piece of crap...if its been repainted and **** just walk away...why would they need to paint a 2001??? probably its been in a wreck....Also if its already had motor problems you know they arent gonna disappear for the time you own it...and 12 is a descent price for that year but one in perfect condition.....buyer beware....if you buy this car you might as well bend over to....

x2, repaint on a 01 is a warning sign....unless its a non standard audi color dont buy it...if it is it was most def a accident or someting...

cars are like women, there are millions more to choose from....dont settle for this hunk of germen crap...just remember that chevy, ford, pontiac, dodge ect, are statisticly more reliable then european cars..

nissan> toyota > honda> GM > ford > europe> ????

 

[AlpineThumperJ9 10+ year member]

Again thanks for the help, the reson why he repainted it was because hes an asian driver and some dude keyed his car, dont ask me why because i done know and as for the preformance/ engine he did ALL the repairs at the dealer so...Im taking it to my mechanic tommorow and he'll tell me if its a lemon so until then im with you guys on this. My friend has the same car and hes had no problems with his at all... and he drives that car into the f'n ground. so i dunno if i would say unreliable?

 

[yacob.naif 10+ year member]

I drive an audi, personally, but that car sounds like it's been driven hard and put away wet.

Wait for a better one to come around. I bought mine off my dad when he bought his allroad, with 188k miles on it. He took care of it, and it still runs like it's brand new.

And audi and vw reliability problems are the same ones that plague all german car companies that rely on bosch for the majority of their electrical parts. It's a known fact that bosch has been having a lot of reliability problems with their electronics over recent years, due to the forced breakup of many german automaker unions, and decreased wages.

Look at mercedes, even. Their reliability has slipped tremendously over recent years. On the bright side, most known electrical mishaps on these cars ARE covered by service bulletins and warranty.

Mechanically, however, german cars are still very solid. Although the cars themself seem to throw simplicity out the window in favor of overengineering, their engine and transmission designs are solid and understated. It's not uncommon to see people running 28-30psi on a stock 1.8t block and head, with upgraded fueling and cooling modifications. If simple, solid german engine design could be coupled with the amazing japenese head designs, you'd have the best engines in the world. It's just unfortunate that electrical problems have been ruining their reputation lately.

 

[LoudCrownVic 5,000+ posts]

German cars= ****ING HUGE MAINTENENCE COSTS!

If you don't have much money, any German luxury car is gonna be a big ass white elephant to maintain and service. For instance, my Porsche 924s, bought the car for 2500, spent 5k to get it to run right.

But if you HAVE CASH TO SPARE, by all means do it.