Looking to buy an s3 8l

chadney

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Hi guys, im going to look at a couple of s3's tomorrow and im just after some advice as what to look out for and what the common problems are.
Thanks
 
I've heard Clio 182's are way better and have a better spec standard, probably have a look at afew of them also!:p
 
You are a disgrace to the forum :angrymod:

Main things to look for I'd say:


Corrosion, usual spots are bottom of doors, roof rails and front arches quite poor for a car that's meant to be galvanised that's another debate...


Haldex (Quattro)wiring issues or noises, skipping when on full lock. Due to poor servicing mainly.


Rear wiper motor or washer jet being intermittent or not working.


Wear on leather bolsters


Stock head units can have a fault when volume is adjusted even slightly can make the speaker volume on max all the time.


Wear on switch gear for example headlight controls and climate control the paint just comes off and looks terrible some cars are worse than others some are perfect.


Chrome trim around gear knob can chip and flake off


Broken glovebox hinges


Previous owners covering warning symbols on instrument clusters to hide ESP errors for example. (Happened to me)


Brake servos are known to be a weak point.


broken springs suspension.


Alarm siren fails and the warning for this is beeping on startup


instrument cluster the LCD screen in the middle starts to gets line and becomes hard to read.
 
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Cheers for thr replys. What are these cars like at handling milage because the 3 that im going to view, 1 has got 85k, 1 has got 98k and the other has 108k. All are the pre face lift models so I presume are the 'apy' engine? Also what are the cluthes like because I will be looking at getting the car remaped.
 
I heard your S3 was really slow. :p

Oh it is, still its an S3 :eyebrows:

They handle mileage well but look for a good service history with regular oil changes, factor in the cost of dropping the sump and changing the oil pick up. The clutch wont last long with those mileages and remap...unless they've been done already.