A4 Cabriolet for under £8k.. 1.8, 2.4, 3.0 or tdi

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smallzoo

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I am replacing my wife's 124k A3 tdi with a A4 cabriolet. She will not be doing more than 6k miles a year and does not have a heavy right foot. We have around £8k to spend and on autotrader you can find 52/53 plate 1.8t and 2.4's. The 3.0 are cheaper and I have yet to find a tdi under 8k..

I know its a bit of personal choice but anyone know based on the miles etc which one would suit us better ?

As for buying one with higher mileage does one engine suit it better than the other

Thanks
 
I'd go for the 1.8T over the two others but that's just my personal choice. I have one currently and I'd buy another one again. Owners of the 2.4 and 3.0 i'm sure will be along to voice there side as well.

The 1.8T is better on MPG than the others as the 2.4 and the 3.0 basically have the same consumption. The only thing I would say about buying a 1.8T is that you need to make sure it's had regular oil changes but if you did buy one then as soon as you get it give it a good engine flush and oil change and all should be fine.

The 1.8T suffers from "Oil Sludge problems" Basically the oil pick up pipe gets blocked and starves the engine of oil. However as long as it's been looked after and had a good flush then as I've said all should be fine and if she only does 6k a year then 1 oil change every year will shoudl see you ok.

As for the higher mileage I'm guessing that the 2.4 and the 3.0 would be better than the 1.8T.... reason being that they are both V6's so smooth and are known for handling lots of miles.

End of the day which ever you get make sure you get one with as many toys as possible and heated seats are a must.
 
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thanks for that. I was thinking of the 1.8t but the reason I asked about mileage was that most of the 1.8t's with extras ( leather seats etc ) for under £8k tend to have 90k+ miles and I wasnt sure whether that was a problem ?
 
90k ish miles isn't a problem as long as it has been looked after and had regular services. Full dealer history then perfect but I wouldn't want one with like 150k
 
Thanks again.. would you have any suggestions of where to look for a decent one other than autotrader ?
 
my drive ! if you keep saving lol

my personal opinion would be to stear clear of an 18t with high mileage, there not the most reliable, solid engine with low mileage, trust me i found out the hard way along with quiet a few others on here, full service history didnt save mine.
 
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Thats interesting, so what would you consider a high mileage ?.. Our audi a3 1.9tdi has been brilliant and I must admit I thought all audi engines would be reliable. We certainly do not have the money for big bills..
 
i had a 1.9tdi before my cab and that seemed to me to be alot better engine, more durable, better economy and quicker, i would go back to diesel in a flash, not give it a second thought.
alot on here rave about the 18t for economy and speed, personally i cant see it at all.
if it was me in your position,with your budget, id be looking at the 3.0ltr, more durable, not much difference in economy, usually comes loaded spec wise and a liitle more peace of mind having a solid V6.
1.8t's seem to fetch a bit more to so maybe get a better deal on a 3.0ltr
 
If its for economy then go for the Tdi - save some more and buy you a looked after one.
If you wanted (...and i say wanted) a tuneable petrol between the petrol models available then its the 1.8T all the way.
As said above, if you want both economy and a torquey terror then defo go with the Tdi.One of My next 4rings will be a Tdi.
 
Thanks again. so why has one of the users said the 1.8T is not very reliable. As I said I cannot afford big bills...
 
1.8t's can suffer from oil sludge, basically there is a build up in sludge in the sump that will clog the pick up pipe thus starving the engine and turbo of oil, worst case, new engine/turbo etc 1 wheel was 'lucky' (!) as when it happened to his it only killed the turbo :( and that was 4 years old on 56k with full audi servicing......
 
Some 1.8ts that have been well maintained as in Oil servicing especially still have resulted to oil sludge and has done so for quite a few of us on here. Infact 2 guys on here have suffered oil sludge in the past week, one being my old car. Its the same with any car, look after it and maintain it with servicing and you should be ok but there is no telling these days with any of the models. seems to be a common thing with coil packs too with the 1.8t.

Dont let anyone put you off though, go for what you want yourself, doesnt mean that if you buy a 1.8t you'll be doomed but for what you looking for I say go with the Tdi!
 
My old B5 1.8T has 186K on clock, have owned since 115K and no problems whatsoever, same turbo, clutch etc. I do change the oil twice a year with the quantum silver synta. My new B6 1.8T 190 is on 60K and i will do oil changes every 6K miles with quantum longlife 111 fully synthetic, and the bigger oil filter. In the worst case, if the oil light does come on, stop the engine immediately and drop the sump and replace the pickup pipe and oil pump, that way you will save the engine.
 
J7USS said:
Some 1.8ts that have been well maintained as in Oil servicing especially still have resulted to oil sludge and has done so for quite a few of us on here. Infact 2 guys on here have suffered oil sludge in the past week, one being my old car. Its the same with any car, look after it and maintain it with servicing and you should be ok but there is no telling these days with any of the models. seems to be a common thing with coil packs too with the 1.8t.

Dont let anyone put you off though, go for what you want yourself, doesnt mean that if you buy a 1.8t you'll be doomed but for what you looking for I say go with the Tdi!
Click to expand...

He could alway go for the 1.8T engine and just pay a bit extra at the first service to get the sump dropped and the dreaded oil pick-up pipe changed for piece of mind. Or is it not as simple as that..?
 
AudiSport said:
He could alway go for the 1.8T engine and just pay a bit extra at the first service to get the sump dropped and the dreaded oil pick-up pipe changed for piece of mind. Or is it not as simple as that..?
Click to expand...


Thats correct, thats what I did soon as I bought this Blue one.Didnt wanna take any chances but yeah thats what he should do if he does get a 1.8t just for that reassurance hey!!!
 
lol, i think the best thing to do is a forum search, its everywhere.....the sludge that is.
Dont want to frighten the OP.

SmallZoo - its just a bit of banter mate so dont let it put you off, as audisport says it might be a good idea if you did get a 1.8t that you give a good servicing and have the pick-up/pump done just as a reassurance to yourself because i know some are looking at this and saying "here we go again etc" but some have also suffered from the issue but if you are on top of it then you stand a far better chance getting away with it.dont think i should say anymore....feels like im digging a deeper hole for some reason :blink:
 
J7USS said:
SmallZoo - its just a bit of banter mate so dont let it put you off, as audisport says it might be a good idea if you did get a 1.8t that you give a good servicing and have the pick-up/pump done just as a reassurance to yourself because i know some are looking at this and saying "here we go again etc" but some have also suffered from the issue but if you are on top of it then you stand a far better chance getting away with it.dont think i should say anymore....feels like im digging a deeper hole for some reason :blink:
Click to expand...

Agreed...it wouldn't put me off buying one but I would factor in the cost of a new pick up pipe and a couple fo coil packs.
 
J7USS, how you doing mate,your advise is sound advice. deffo drop the sump and sort straight away, peace of mind.

audisport, mine wasnt just the car, the wife didnt help matters !! the oil pressure light came on ! then the knocking started ! so the bride saw it fit to carry on driving another 10 miles. end of story, begining of large bill. lol
 
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