Considering a 2001 Audi A4 2.8 avant quattro wagon to use as a parts getter for the shop. 110K on the odo, manual trans. Other than a bit of googleology education I know very little about specific things to be wary of or to watch out for on the engine/drive train mechanicals of this car.
Would anyone with knowledge/experience with these cars be willing to share what you know? Lots of thanks in advance!!!
I had a '98 2.8q back in the Summer of '02. Nice driving car. If the timing belt breaks, or a previous owner/mechanic botches a timing belt change, bad things happen to the engine. After if was fixed ($4000 bill that I fortunately didn't have to pay), I sold the car by Thanksgiving. Those 4 months are the shortest time I've owned a car.
How much money do you have to set ablaze?
Control arms and their 8 balljoints, many of which require replacing the arms. The 2.8 has a number of emissions and other control systems distributed throughout the car that like to fail from time to time. The PCV breather system likes to fail due to heat and its wrapped around the engine requiring pulling the intake, etc.
Dad has a 98 A4 Avant 2.8 w/auto and its been a nightmare to keep the CEL off long enough to get it through the local emissions control, so its been off the road longer than its been on, since he bought it. Nothing like making a monthly payment on a car that's stuck in your garage.
Personally? I'd avoid any VW or Audi's from this time period to current unless it was under full warranty or was being used as an engine donor for something silly. It just seems to hit or miss and the buy in is too high still for something so complex and expensive to repair.
I had a 98 Audi 2.8 Quattro with the auto. The trans was wonky and I lived in fear of huge repair bills. The Bose sound system blew out speakers at the idea of turning up the tunes. The car did handle better than I expected and when I was rear ended by a 5.0 Mustang, the car held up phenomenal. (The guy tried to run, but I was able to keep up and get the plate, but that is another story for another time.) Overall Id give the car 3.5/5 stars.
I had a 97 2.8Q (12 valve vs 30 valve in 01) bought at 40k. Beat on relentlessly. Over heated the clutch to the point of it not moving until it cooled, holed the oil pan (small crack) at a rallycross and didn't realize it until the 'no oil' light came on next day. JB welded pan, changed oil and kept going (120k). I did replace the control arms 2x (100k, 160k), did the timing belt at 90k, replace the AC condenser at 140k. Sold at 190k, never left me stranded, no check engine lights, to this day the most reliable trouble free car I have ever had. Full disclosure, I sold because clutch was getting soft and needed a rear wheel barring, not bad for 190k.
Wow, you guys are fast. I'm listening and all much appreciated.
Datsun1500 wrote: I'm a huge Audi fan. I love them. I'll defend them to anyone. I'd pass....If it was the 1.8, I'd enable you, but the 2.8, 5 speed is slow, boring, and expensive to maintain.
Basically this. People bought the V6 models because in the 90's bigger was still better in the publics eye, even though the 1.8T was better in practically everyway compared to the V6 besides for sheer max hp (which was pretty low anyways). A 1.8T model I could get behind, but the V6? Bleh.
I live in Michigan which does not have to pass emissions. I am thinking of getting one for my son when the time comes. I may just give him my BMW though. (the devil you know vs. the devil you don't)
My friends mom has one that is likely going to get scrapped in 2 years, because it needs new cats ($4500 in parts, dealer only), and the car wouldn't even sell for that much if it was fixed, and won't pass emissions testing how it is.
Thanks for the replies. Sounds like the car has a good chance of becoming a money pit so I'll think I'll just walk away.
My wife has a 2001 A4 Quattro 2.8 V6 Manual w/ about 90k miles. It's needed every control arm replaced which I paid a shop to do as I was thwarted by a multitude of seized bolts, which has never happened to me in 30 years of wrenching. They did cam belts/seals, all the brittle plastic CCV/evap hoses and the water pump and hoses. It all cost about a million bucks, and they managed to destroy one of the ABS sender rings on a front CV joint, then managed to reinstall the joint minus one ball, so I got to replace it a year later. It's used up rear wheel bearings, the fuel level sender has quit, lots of little electrical stuff has failed and most recently the heat quit when it was no degrees out and I found that to replace the (stuck open) thermostat is essentially 99% of the labor of doing a timing belt service. As in remove the front half of the car.
I have a '98 M3 and an '01 525iT as well as a race car, a Miata and an early 60s British car. I like to work on cars, and as a machinist, fabricator, welder, painter, composites person, I'm very comfortable doing ~anything~ on any vehicle.
Listen closely:
"I would rather catheterize myself with a jagged length of red-hot TIG filler rod than work on that B5 body A4"
It drives OK - It's manual, we've got Bilstein HDs and Vogtland 1" drop springs on it and it handles alright, But the really excellent vehicle dynamics that make my '01 e39 wagon a joy to drive just aren't there.
They're not cars for people who ~love to drive~, and they're not cars for people who like to work on cars.
Good move skipping this one. Try an e46 BMW wagon instead, or a nice Volvo.
I love Audis (I've owned two S4s, a B5 for 7 years followed by a B6 Avant for 7, which I still own). I disagree about them not being for people who like to drive -- different than a BMW, yes, but a hell of a lot of fun in their own Audi way.
I'd pass on the 2.8 -- the motor is too small for the weight of the car. The 1.8T is good when appropriately modified, and the 2.7T in the S4 is capable of tremendous amounts of power, but the 2.8 is blah.
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