Hi all, got a test drive on Saturday and already put down a securing deposit, but are there any dos and donts for buying an S4? Looking at an S4 Avant Black Edition '64 plate.
S4 buying guide?
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Make sure there are no clonks from the gearbox if it's S-tronic or it could be a £4000-£5000 bill for a Mechatronics unit.
Drive slow in 1st and listen for whining. My old one had a 1200rpm to 1800rpm noise when crawling along in traffic and up to temperature.
Diagnosed by dealer as gearbox fault and needed to swap out the box £6900+VAT and Fitting, so works out close to £10,000
The car had only done 27500miles and had been 'cosmetically' very well looked after, but I cannot vouch for how it had been previously driven.
So all in, the gearbox could cost you £14000 if it fails.
That's why I'm now back in an A4, as I didn't want the worry once the warranty ran out.
Drive slow in 1st and listen for whining. My old one had a 1200rpm to 1800rpm noise when crawling along in traffic and up to temperature.
Diagnosed by dealer as gearbox fault and needed to swap out the box £6900+VAT and Fitting, so works out close to £10,000
The car had only done 27500miles and had been 'cosmetically' very well looked after, but I cannot vouch for how it had been previously driven.
So all in, the gearbox could cost you £14000 if it fails.
That's why I'm now back in an A4, as I didn't want the worry once the warranty ran out.
You will get either the remaining warranty or a minimum of 12 months (if purchased from Audi Used Approved), whatever is greater. So probably nearer 24 months in your case.
Check the option list very carefully. If you are missing things like Drive Select, and HDD Nav then it would effect either your resale value or the chance of selling it on again privately. Make sure the advertised options are actually on the car, lots of dealers don't seem to know what things are or if they have them when they are listed.
Other than that, and the points above, they are pretty solid cars and not that much to look out for. Gearbox issues are out there but it's certainly not a common problem.
Other do's; Seek approval of your passenger before hoofing it, just etiquette if you're going to shove people to the backs of their chairs
Get a loyalty card at your nearest few petrol stations.
Look out for unmarked cars.
Don't forget to smile.
Other than that, and the points above, they are pretty solid cars and not that much to look out for. Gearbox issues are out there but it's certainly not a common problem.
Other do's; Seek approval of your passenger before hoofing it, just etiquette if you're going to shove people to the backs of their chairs
Get a loyalty card at your nearest few petrol stations.
Look out for unmarked cars.
Don't forget to smile.
You will definately find a change in 0-60 going from a 2.0 TDI . On a 64 plate you have the luxury of manufacturers warranty so thats a good safety net.
I can't imagine that you are going to find much wrong with a 64 plate car, but I would check the tyres see how much they have left in them . If it has had any new tyres on it this can tell you something about the previous owner.
I can't imagine that you are going to find much wrong with a 64 plate car, but I would check the tyres see how much they have left in them . If it has had any new tyres on it this can tell you something about the previous owner.
I've got a A4 2012 Black Edition Avant at the moment (2.0 TDI) so looking for a change in 0-60
Your in for an MPG shock then.
Mine returned 22mpg average over 3000 miles and 15.8mpg in the last 65 miles of ownership.
I couldn't justify that mpg when I have a Classic Subaru for the weekend too.
If that came out of the garage at the weekend and running the S4 in the week I was doing £80 a week on fuel for about 100-150 miles travel !!!
As the others have said there's hopefully not much wrong with a '64 plate. I would ask how come they have it just in case someone has traded a "Friday car". Options are pretty much personal preference. By the time I sell my cars the options have little bearing on its value. For what it's worth I only saw 1 car with HDD Nav when I was looking. All of them had Drive Select though.
Options are pretty much personal preference. By the time I sell my cars the options have little bearing on its value. For what it's worth I only saw 1 car with HDD Nav when I was looking. All of them had Drive Select though.
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Don't forget to put it into S (or ADS dynamic if it has that option) before testing performance. The shift points in D are set too low such that the potential of the engine is missed.
I agree with @Scott.T - although a 2014 car should be good, the risk is in the gearbox. Aside from the low shift points, driving in D should be smooth and you'll hardly notice the changes. In S the upshifts should be just as sharp and smooth, but higher up the rev range. Don't worry about it being very slightly jerky with downshifts in S - this is again just the effect of the shift points.
I agree with @Scott.T - although a 2014 car should be good, the risk is in the gearbox. Aside from the low shift points, driving in D should be smooth and you'll hardly notice the changes. In S the upshifts should be just as sharp and smooth, but higher up the rev range. Don't worry about it being very slightly jerky with downshifts in S - this is again just the effect of the shift points.
A 64 plate should have the latest CREC engine, which is a bit more economical, easiest way is to check the DVLA site for CO2 emissions which should be 180g/km. Codes and CO2 are also in the service book label dealers adverts often have the wrong CO2 for the later S4. Mine is brilliant, just wish it had the range of the 3.0TDI I had before.
Mines a 64 plate and has had a wheel bearing changed - I don't think this is a common problem at all though and otherwise an absolutely stonking car. As it has the newer 'CREC' engine the fuel economy is pretty good for what it is. You'll easily see 30 mpg cruising about at motorway speeds and a few blast off's from a roundabout but obviously nothing like that in town driving or short trips or more performance orientated driving. After 12k miles the long term average on the computer is showing 27 mpg.
You need:Glad you like it
Not sure about the v6T badges though, im sure ive seen some 'supercharged' ones as a replacement? S4 US versions?
http://www.audi-sport.net/xf/thread...n-saloon-my-thread.240456/page-8#post-2488403
Such a good looking car. Can't wait until it's my turn! Only a few more months until i've finished saving.
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Looks cracking! All I'd say is I have no idea how thirsty the earlier cars must be! Mine is a 65 plate and I managed mid 20's on the way back from Salisbury to Hove when I collected it, but have not made it over 20mpg since. Granted almost all of the miles have been either B road fun or town crawling, but they are thirsty! If you're happy with this sort of mileage though then you are in for a treat. I'm loving mine.
Easy ...Yay it's not a Sepang one.
& why thank you for promoting my Supercharged badge post
Unless the CREC engine is actually less economical than the earlier B8.5 engine in mine or they take a fair while to loosen up I still don't understand how I could get under 20mpg regularly without something being wrong or literally sitting stationary in traffic with the engine running for long periods at a time.
I went down to a Goodwood Breakfast Club early this morning most of the way in convoy with an F355 Ferrari, a brand new Jag F-Type R and a friend in his R8 V10. We certainly weren't racing or doing anything daft but given the clear early morning B roads we were making what could be called pretty rapid progress and significantly quicker than I could ever normally manage with regular traffic etc, yet over the ~35 mile journey the dash still showed about 23mpg for the journey (although probably nearer to 21 actual given its slight optimism).
I went down to a Goodwood Breakfast Club early this morning most of the way in convoy with an F355 Ferrari, a brand new Jag F-Type R and a friend in his R8 V10. We certainly weren't racing or doing anything daft but given the clear early morning B roads we were making what could be called pretty rapid progress and significantly quicker than I could ever normally manage with regular traffic etc, yet over the ~35 mile journey the dash still showed about 23mpg for the journey (although probably nearer to 21 actual given its slight optimism).
short journey of stop start could probably get under 20 or track style driving but otherwise I agree with the above.
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24.95mpg is my average over 6000 miles so I too don't know how under 20 is possible. @Chiefbadger are you sure your car doesn't need a trip to the dealers?
@Chiefbadger are you sure your car doesn't need a trip to the dealers?
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24.95mpg is my average over 6000 miles so I too don't know how under 20 is possible.
I'm pretty sure it will start to creep up! It hasn't really come out of S mode when I've been driving it, so even at a dawdle I've been enjoying the noise/instant response of it holding a lower gear.
I've also almost aways got a full car (wife/kids/buggy/general crap) to lug around so probably another 150kg or something too.
Managed to nudge it up to 24ish on a round 40mile trip yesterday.
I think having come from the a6 ultra, I'm just over excited about being back in a car with a proper engine that handles again!
The 'ping' seems to have died down too, so think everything is bedding in. It has used some oil - the display shows its dropped by about a 1/4 but it does get used for lots of short journeys by my wife, so will just keep an eye and change it regularly.
