B6 S4's. Enlighten me please

[Oranoco]

Starting to think about changing my old B5 and the B6 S4 is on my short list (along with a B5 S4 and an E46 M3).

Anything to watch for with these, common problems. Have been told the gearboxes aren't too tough.

CheeRS

 

[AlexGSi2000]

Go for the E46 - I was out over the weekend in a mates car, first time I have driven sideways, its pretty damn satisfying.

 

[dualmono21]

both cars have there achilles heels

the big v8 needs to have been looked after and run on fully synthetic oil
when starting from cold listen for chain rattle , if it lasts any longer than 1 second jump in your car and go look at another
clutch can be dodgy on the manual version if its had some abuse uprated versions arent much better
if its a tiptronic , make sure its had the oil and the filter replaced at approx 60,000 even though audi state its sealed for life
same for the rear diff

like all a4,s the top arms are a bit of a weak spot , but a full set of new arms from all german is quite reasonable and makes the car drive like new again

engine responds well to tuning especially if you get rid of the pre cats as this is the big strangle hold audi put on the car to get the emmisions down
make sure the inlet manifold is working correctly , by revving the car above 5000rpm (the second stage of the inlet should open up above 5000rpm if it doesnt it can be very expensive to replace as audi do not sell the part required on its own )
auxillary radiators tend to get leaves caught in them and rot due to moisture , they can either be replaced or remove the leaves every now and again and spray the element with a water proofing agent
electrics are generally very very good

 

[IceHanger]

both cars have there achilles heels

the big v8 needs to have been looked after and run on fully synthetic oil
when starting from cold listen for chain rattle , if it lasts any longer than 1 second jump in your car and go look at another
clutch can be dodgy on the manual version if its had some abuse uprated versions arent much better
if its a tiptronic , make sure its had the oil and the filter replaced at approx 60,000 even though audi state its sealed for life
same for the rear diff

like all a4,s the top arms are a bit of a weak spot , but a full set of new arms from all german is quite reasonable and makes the car drive like new again

engine responds well to tuning especially if you get rid of the pre cats as this is the big strangle hold audi put on the car to get the emmisions down
make sure the inlet manifold is working correctly , by revving the car above 5000rpm (the second stage of the inlet should open up above 5000rpm if it doesnt it can be very expensive to replace as audi do not sell the part required on its own )
auxillary radiators tend to get leaves caught in them and rot due to moisture , they can either be replaced or remove the leaves every now and again and spray the element with a water proofing agent
electrics are generally very very good

What he said

I've only had mine a few months and love it to pieces, It took me a while to find the right one, one good thing is they don't sell quickly so plenty of room for negotiation.
As said above the front arms wear but TBH any car that's over 10 years old is going to need some form of replacement suspension, the B6 front bits can be had for about £300 for parts plus fitting (or do it yourself). They wear the mileage well.
Enjoy!

 

[cmdrew]

Had mine a couple of months and its been a pain! Suspension as above but after 90k miles its all seized together so ended up replacing the entire leg on both sides as well as track rods. Electrics are ok but common faults seem to be with the flapper motors which control the air distribution. Also check the boot release as these are weak. Major problem on S4 other than timing chains is the air con. Make certain this works as often a re-gas won't cure a faulty system - it will be the pump which is very expensive.


saying all this it's great to drive, not saying it handles well but just so quick and with a decent exhaust sounds great. MPG is reasonable if you take it steady and so far parts have been reasonable too. Even though it has been trouble I do like the car just haven't got to the point where I 100% trust it but TBH that's not why I bought it as it is a second/fun car.