My girlfriend is looking at a new Audi A4. Is there anyone with any experience with these? The guy at a Benz dealership disagreed and said to drive the Audi after 30,000 miles and see if she still likes it. Are they known for deteriorating after they are driven for a while or is he just being a salesman? He recommended a BMW, but she doesnt like their styling.
Thanks
Mike

all wheel drive all of the time............did not work for a typhoon,cyclone,bravada,and astro vans..........it looks like a vw bug, but way more cool.........i do not have one,,,,,,,but all the girls i know like them........you would rather have a beamer(me too), but for a girl?????????a sporty/race bug(chevelle ss/malibu)??????????????i got my girl an 89 2.8 rs camaro over an ls1 camaro.........
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y291/ford-six/b8_1.jpg
6 speed........i got an 89 camaro 2.8, but i still am probably going to buy this one...............jamie

My Brother-in-law has one. Awesome car. His is now 1 year old and he still loves it. He has the 2.0T with the 6-speed. I can't see how you'd tire of the thing. Quick, fun handling, and awesome out here in the snow and ice. The Quattro helps it stick like glue on dry pavement too.

My sister (his wife) drives an V8 '05 VW Toureg, so the German engineering thing has bit them pretty good.

Great car, I'd have no problems getting one. Sounds like a typical salesjob.

I had a '96 A4 for a while. It wasn't a quattro though. I also had a '95 Passat too. My experience with VW/Audi products is that they get really troublesome at around 100k miles. Some of them don't even make that mark. They are known for lots of little electrical problems, the kind that make you want to put a rope around your neck.

My advice would be to visit the Audi section of www.vwvortex.com and ask or search around. You'll find plenty of guys who know about them there.

EDIT: After all that's said, I STILL wish I had my Audi back.:( I think it was the most fun I ever had in a car!

my son has had one for around 3 years and still loves it. it was at least a couple years old when he bought it but is still very reliable. i have driven it a few times and i enjoy driving it a lot. good power, nice ride, handles awesome. i would own one.

I worked at the Audi dealer in the mid 90s and they were good cars then. Like jpete said. They start having little troublesome problems around 100k that are just a neusance to deal with. Im not sure what kind of issues the new models have when they reach that kind of mileage.

Well, my brother has owned two variations of Audi products in the past, both with great liking and little mechanical trouble.

As far as the new A4's are concerned, they are definetly the most stylish of the seven generations of A4. Are they reliable? If you are looking at the 2.0T, then why wouldn't it be? Audi stocks this engine in multiple cars, and VW has the 2.0T in almost their entire lineup. I think that's a pretty heavy gamble if the engine is "unreliable". Back onto the new A4, you can go ahead and step it up to the 3.2L V6 if she's interested. This same DOHC engine is primarily the same 2.8L VR6 that Audi/VW has been stocking in their lineup for almost two decades, just with slightly more displacement. However, if the 3.2L is a bit too pricey, then I'd recommend looking at the A4 2.0T with the S-Line trim package. The extra cash on the Sline package definetly is well spent, and the styling hands down establishes Audi's reputation as one of the premier designers of Europe.

So my vote? Go to your dealer and take a test drive. I gurantee she'll love it... As for the Benz guy, I think it's fair to say Benz is Audi's #1 competitor, so I doubt their salesman would recommend Audi. If anything, I'd rather hear it from a technician than some guy who gets a commission from sales...

I agree, go test drive the audi and you will be hooked. I have an A6 and just sold an A4, both quattros. They are awsome cars.

I have a VW 1.8T with 67,000 miles on it, basically a less luxurious version of the A4 (unless you're talking the AWD Quattro). The car is still as tight as the day I drove it off the lot. Love it. Wouldn't expect anything less with the A4 and even more.
Check out the reviews of the A4 at www.edmunds.com.

Those car are plenty reliable, My A6 looks like the day it was new. 2.8 TT QUATRO. They suck for gas mileage, but are fast and handle well.