Possible new RS4 Owner

[Bazgti]

Hi,

Im brand spanking new to the forum and im after some information on a possible purchase.

Im looking at an RS4 cab (07) with 52k for £16995.
I am currently in a stg2 Mk5 Golf gti running about 270bhp. If im honest the RS didnt feel that much quicker if at all. So 1st question
- where is the power band in an RS? It didnt seem to have much go until about 5k.
- how much is servicing for lets say from 50k onwards?
- what price are we looking at for wear and tear parts such as :-
- clutch
- discs and pads
-Does it have a cambelt or chain?
-Is this DRC suspension as prone to failure as the internet would suggests?
- Is there anything else that i should know or be looking out for.

Sorry for all the questions but this is a big and potentially expensive purchase for me. Need to make sure that i am armed with as much knowledge as i can get.

Thanks in advance

James

 

[desertstorm]

The RS4 cab is a heavy car over 1850Kg, It's heavier than the Avant so this blunts performance a little and substantially heavier than your Golf.
They can be quite down on power depending on how much carbon is filling the intake valves and whether there are any other issues such as vacuum leaks on the engine.
Compared to the Golf the RS4 will be expensive to run,£500 road tax, a lot poorer fuel economy than the Golf, Then there is the RS tax as I call it.
Some of the wear and tear items such as brake discs can be pretty pricey compared to more mundane machinery.
I believe a pair of genuine front discs will knock something like £500 out of your pocket.
The engine is chain drive. You don't want to be changing it as it's an engine out job.

 

[Bazgti]

Hi desertstorm,

Thank you for the detailed reply. Is this carbon issue a common thing? Is it easy/cheap to fix? All the reviews say that the car is an epic drive. It was lovely but i expected more tbh. I saw the tax Its double mine currently. But im presuming that being part of the VAG family that itll be a reliable purchase generally? Ive had 3 golfs in a row. Just fancy something special before i settle down and buy a 'zafira'

 

[desertstorm]

The carbon build up on the back of the intake valves is an issue that all direct injection cars suffer from to one extent or another. Because there is no fuel passing by the valve to wash the back of it the carbon builds up and sticks. It causes more of an issue on cars like the RS4 because they are such a high revving performance engine.
Google "RS4 intake valve carbon"
http://www.audiboost.com/showthread...orsepower-after-034Motorsport-carbon-cleaning

As for reliable if you are unlucky you could have a lot of issues, where as some people will get very few. They are a high performance complicated car so things can go wrong. The noise they make is epic with the right exhaust on the car.

 

[Tfsi gone]

Save up a bit more and buy a GTR like me pal. Now they will leave you thinking your golf is like an old allegro in speed comparison.. Awesome - less than 3.5 to 60mph...

 

[Bazgti]

Would love one Mike. But its well outa my league price wise

 

[rossdagley]

B7 RS4's are one of the most expensive cars to maintain properly on the market IMO. Full set of OEM discs and pads are over 2k. Decent tyres (MPSS) are about 700 a set. Clutch and DMF will be 1.5k+. DRC suspension issues - 500+ per corner - more if the accumulator is shot. If the cab you drove felt slow it maybe has a vacuum leak - rarely does a carbon buildup alone cause a huge loss of power (maybe 20hp or so), but a vac leak is quite common (30-40hp has been seen) - combine the two and the cars can be 60+hp down on stock. Frequently when you get a carbon clean they'll fix the vacuum leak at the same time, restoring the lost ponies.

Your golf is turbo'd - it might 'feel' quicker but in the real world on the road, a (correctly functioning!) RS4 would tear a 270hp golf to bits. Hopefully the one you're looking at just needs some love - if you're seriously considering it, make sure it's got good tyres and brakes - that's half the battle