Why the A4 B5?

[ScottD3]

I'm bored, trying to look busy and also a little bit curious as to why you picked your Audi A4 B5 over the other Audi Models and the different makes that are out there.

I was orignal after another BMW, mainly a 5 series touring. A E39 diesel sport would have been lovely but my budget changed so I could not get the one I wanted and my grandad was thinking selling his A4 Avant which he's owned since 1999.
He set a price and I agreed.

Thats my short story.
Whats yours?

 

[Jason.s]

Price...and when i sold my Civic i was either looking at a Passat or an A4. Thankfully went A4 as the Passat doesnt look as good, its even more of a fat barge and i wanted something i could make handle pretty well and still be fun aswell as something a bit more suited to driving longer distances than what the Civic was..The A4 covered both those where as the Passat would only cover the distance part really.

 

[aragorn]

Hmm, my dad had one when i was younger, which i liked.

When i started driving i had the usual small FWD hatchbacks thats typical of new drivers, then we got a puppy and i wanted an estate car. I looked around at the options and quickly realised that German was the only way to go. French cars are plastic and ****, Japs are dull looking and plasticy dullness inside etc, and i'd had my fair share of "british" cars (vauxhall and ford really) to never want another one.

So i went on ebay and remembering dads old A4 started looking at Avants. I ruled out Merc and BMW because they both tend to use large inefficient petrol engines, or clarty underpowered dervs (especially in the ages that fitted my budget), they also had dated much worse than the B5 avant. Audi had the 1.8T option, giving performance and economy in a reasonable package. My budget was effectively the amount we could get for the Ford Fiesta we had at the time, which parkers said was worth £1300, and ebay turned up a 1.8T Sport Avant which looked reasonable and the guy accepted my offer of £1200.

Shortly thereafter i decided the next step had to be a Quattro, and as such never modified the FWD in any way that couldnt be transferred to a Quattro once we could afford one.

 

[skinz]

ive always been into mod cars, but had to stick to my sort of price range an have ended up with mainly vauxhalls, did have a couple of other cars like escort, mondeo, accord but mainly cav's astras and clibras, but wanted a turbo but read up on vauxhall turbo's an they all had the same prob, they dont like turning corners, masses an masses of under steer so starting looking at other turbos cars and the best 1 in my price range and had more than 2 seats was a4 1.8t, i was just looking for a standed 1 that need a little tlc to give me something to do and found my 1 for £650 with a couple of things wroung with it, when i got it home an went through the paper work i found it had been chipped and a couple of other things, so i was buzzin, this is the best car i've had yet for build an that but think i might sell it after the wedding and ether go for the 1.8t quattro or i might go all out for the s4 cause mine is the old model its a bit harder to up grade bits like the turbo or get it remapped, but still the best car yet by far:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

 

[GhostWKD]

Because I work ~60 miles away from home and my other car drinks a bit more fuel...

Pretty much A4 came up at decent price when I needed a diesel runabout - I blame Jason.s also as went in his A4 a few times and preferred it to my old Bora

 

[Jason.s]

Dont blame me...you made the decision

HKS looking better than old can too

 

[Oranoco]

I wanted a Focus ST170 estate but everything I looked at was silly money or past its best. Decided to get an A4 Avant as a stop gap until the right Focus came up. Circumstances changed and we lost the horse so an estate was no longer needed so I decided to shift on the Avant and started looking for a 1.8T saloon.

 

[kriswa428]

Being 19 I was looking for a faster car than my bravo 1.8 16v Fiat! Brand new cars have never done it for me, so I started looking at audi 90's because of that lovely 5 cylinder but most/all need alot of TLC.

So the 2.4 v6 B5 started to look appealing, and then with the 2.8, bought a Black 2.8 30v QM with cream leather, a cool car and still quick enough until I reach the age of 21!

 

[Blue_Thunder]

After seeing a few of my mates settling down, having kids and generally making lifestyle changes which meant they couldn't spend their money on toys anymore, I thought it was my last crack of the whip to buy a decent fast car.

I had a budget of £7500 and I wanted something fast. I've also always loved the power delivery of turbo cars, so started thinking what sort of cars were out there in my price range. Didn't want anything too old, so fast Fords were out, Subaru's were too chavvy, didn't like the look of the old Evo's and couldn't afford an Integrale/Evo 6/etc. I also wanted something practical that I could get 5 people in plus decent luggage space, and something like an MX7 or Supra was just never going to fit the bill.

Then I remembered lusting after a Misano Red S4 when I was at college. Used to walk passed it most days back in 1998, back then it looked absolutely awesome. After a few years it got robbed (along with the guy's Coupe Cabrio) and I remember seeing the story in the local papers. The scallies managed to crash one of the cars makng their escape, don't think the other was ever recovered. Anyway, after that, I never saw an S4 again.

But, the seed was sown. The S4 ticked all the boxes. Practical, twice as many turbos as I'd wanted, fast as ****, looked awesome yet discreet (a welcomed attribute when living in Liverpool!) and they were just falling into my price range back then in 2006. Went and bought the first one I went to see.

The looks of the B5 have fared much better than a lot of it's rivals. You only have to look at a B5 parked next to a boxy E36 M3 to see how much better the B5 has aged.

 

[GhostWKD]

Dont blame me...you made the decision

HKS looking better than old can too

Meh still blame you

HKS looks loads better and isnt quite as ear piercing on idle etc... sounds nice though

 

[Keyser Soze]

The B5 still looks fresh. The build quality, the comfort, the oomph all packed up in a tasty package that isnt ostentatious or "in yer face" as others.

 

[Jp-tqs]

The quattro appeal did it for me, years ago a mate took me out in his 2.8Q on a snowy day. His words were "quattro power, i can go anywhere.....!" it was awsome, sat in a lush leather seats in a sleek looking saloon, admiring the amazing interior while he 4 wheel drifted around a roundabout! Did it for me. I owned an rs2000(mk5) at the time which i loved. It had recaros, a noisy NA 2.0L chain driven lump, and wanted to race everything. But all the interior rattled, and you could see the rust growing daily! Id had enough, b5 a4's were still way out of my price range so i got a 1990 quattro coupe (s2 shape) for 700 quid and i was hooked on audis! But then came kids, and the coupe went. Got a 5 door mk3 golf gti for a family car! The missus still has a mk3 gti now, IMO a quality, cheap to buy/fix/run/ect.. Practical 5 door hatch. And still has a little bit of respect (i think) to it. Anyway, i saved and got a 2000 1.8t quattro sport a couple of years back. Fitted some bilstiens/h&r springs and some rs4 reps and it still looks fresh alongside many other modern cars now! Oh, and once a year we get snow down here (hants) and i can still go anywhere!! If i won the lotto id buy a b5 rs4. Not many cars still look good 15 years after first release.... The b5 is a bit special i think!

 

[Jason.s]

Meh still blame you

HKS looks loads better and isnt quite as ear piercing on idle etc... sounds nice though

boo for being quieter

 

[SonicDeathmonkey]

Left my job and the Golf PD150 that went with it, flew to australia for a month to chill. While there, I saw an S4 for sale in Bristol, 4 years old. Flew home, hired a taxi from Heathrow to Bristol, bought car, drover hire car off, drove home face beaming.

Sweet.

That was 2003/4. Now on 188K and original turbos.

 

[audiv8quattro]

Well I've always loved audis since I was a kid, my dad started of with an old Audi quattro think it was something like a 4.2 litre and that thing moved,then he had an 80 then 100 then a coupe then he brought a a4 and I loved it it was a 1.8t quattro then he upgraded to the 2l now sadly he's got a BMW but still claims the audis were the best, anyway I brought my a4 2.6 v6 quattro as I was told that they are solid I brought it a couple of months ago and since I've had to change the power steering pump water pump and tensioner I've gone through 3 viscous fans, two new cats new coil pack and new hazard and indicator switch so nothing but problems but you know what??I still love it strangely, the quattro system is amazing interior is perfect for long drives and enough space to take the kids out so all in all a good allrounder.

 

[mike-a]

I moved job three years ago and needed a second car so had a mk3 Golf and then a Vento and kinda got into the dub scene a bit.The Vento acquired a mystery water loss and rather than spend time and money chasing ghosts I sold it on and made £100 on it.Then got looking at Passat estates of the same era as the B5.Diesels were silly money and 1.8t's hard to find.Saw a couple of A4's and quite liked the look of them.I got my Avant off eBay for £700.I've probably spent another 5-6 hundred on servicing and fixing a couple of niggles.Fairly happy with the A4 now.Wish it could be remapped easier (its a 96 Aeb engine so needs a chip physically fitting to the ecu) and I need to get around to cleaning out the sump and replacing the oil pump as a precaution but it's going great at the moment.
I'd have more/bigger plans but as it's only a second car I can't justify the time and money at the moment.

 

[tsporta4]

I got offered it for £100 needing a new engine couldnt turn it down i love a challenge
Previously i had my mk2 fiesta zetec on the road built by myself and owned for 4 years. but put that in the garage and stripped it for bits. My daily at the time was a £250 1.4xs peugeot 106 mk1 clutch died from too muchabuse was sold on ebay for £250. For the price my A4 was too good to turn down not as quick as i expected but nothing a remap wont sort.

 

[tdia4]

I wanted one around 3 years ago now, but instead bought a Legacy twin turbo then lost my job and had to sell it and i bought a VW Bora, loved the car but was then offered quite abit more then I payed for it so sold it, then went onto a golf 1.8t and then sold that, got a 1.7tds astra to runaround in and then almost bought a passat estate, the garage I was going to buy it from were being Cun*s to be honest and went home rather annoyed, then thought again about the A4 B5 and started looking for them again, mine came up on ebay, put in a max bid of £1100 and ended up winning it, had the car 14months now which is the longest i've ever owned a car so goes to show I must like it.

 

[Bradderz_1988]

Basically I went for my a4 as I had a vauxhall corsa c sxi (toss) then that got wrote off and picked up a a4 b5 1.8 ADR '97 with 84k for 1400 and just loved the smooth comftable drive as I've never had or driven an audi before then I wanted more power and looked at getting a 1.8T so browsing the trader I noticed they did a quattro sport never seen or heard of these so thought they must be rare and with the 180bhp I thought hmm tempting so found one in southhampton with 114k for 2800 I rang him he said he would take 2500 I said done got the train from Manchester went down the car was well worth the price as it had the half leather recaro's and all the others I'd seen didn't car all in all looked like it was well looked after part from the obvious stone chips and the corroded boot trim and DIS. Got in the car ready for the journey home and I was grinning ear to ear most of the way home as this was definitely what I was after. And I wouldnt like to part with the thing at all yes S3's look tempting but I just feel that mine is a unique A4 with not many around and also love the quattro in the snow lol

 

[JS4]

I have to admit that coming from a long line of BMW's the Audi is now my chosen car, unless I want an úber performer like a new M3. I have had e30, e36 and e46 3 series, I then moved to Audi's I bought a 2001 reg B5 1.9tdi and it is still the best car i have ever owned in terms of comfort, looks and reliability, I can only describe it as superb. I then traded that in for an upgrade and got a B7 1.9tdi, and no joke the build quality was not as good, sure it was newer but it wasn't as efficient, the paint was no were near as good and was no were near comfortable.

I now have a B5 S4 2001 Avant, and although it is currently costing me an arm and a leg and I can't really afford it somebody will have to pry it from my dead cold hands before I give it up. I love the car, the build quality, the look and more importantly the power. Plus it can be like a 2.0 focus when you want to just potter around town, just at 19 mpg

Get a B5 they’re superb.

 

[jcb]

had a 90 quattro saloon that I loved.
Set my hed on tuning a 1.8t engine having owned a Mk2 golf previously and nearly doing an engine swap.
need an estate for hauling crap around,
needed 4wd

1.8t 4wd estate only two options and one has haldex and a skoda badge!

 

[aragorn]

JS4: when its costing you money, just remind yourself of all the lease payments you would otherwise have been making on a new BMW, then smile

 

[adamss24]

As the other said, very few cars still look good after 16 years from launch ! I only owned 1 ford (fiesta courier van wich served me well till it started breaking then it was a money pit) and a vauxhal, never again. I love e39 5 series but the rear wheel drive puts me off every time is raining outside. I had a 97 audi a6 c4 2.5 tdi (5 cylinder engine) with 140bhp and auto gearbox wich never gave me trouble in 5 years of ownership and traveled round Europe in it, that would do 45-60 mpg ! Since then i was hooked. Then i saw a 98 a4 v6 tdi quattro sport and i went for a test drive and i was hooked: 180 Bhp (car was chipped), 4 wheel drive, leather and all the toys i could ever want wich would keep-up with petrol cars, sound nothing like a diesel whilst still beeing cheap to insure ! I started playing with the engine then i sold it (had a fully loaded a6 v6 tdi FWD at the time- memory seats,folding mirrors and heated leather and the like) but i have missed quattro ever since. Went and bought another quattro estate then started playing with it to the point that i cannot part with it anymore. After that i had a string of a4 and a6 quattro's then setled to a v6 tdi allroad avant. My b5 is my weekend toy and it puts a smile on my face every time i chuck-it into corners !

 

[ex911driver]

As an old geezer,who has sampled some fine machines of speed and comfort and prefered bmw..and needed a car with a good size boot(could'nt fit a ladder in my z3!)...and it had to be german built,there were no 3or5 series that were cheap enough,so i bought a '98 a4,...now being a bmw purist,...i was thrilled with the a4 from the word go,the comfort,the build quality..that especially...and the other reason was to start getting back into doing my own servicing again...and so far it has been fun to work on...mind you thou,when i replaced the top n/side radius arm on the front suspension,my language(apparently)was so bad that bernard manning would have been proud,buying my a4 was one of my better decsions...and when i grow up to be a big boy i want another audi with a BEEG! engine.
all the best.
General Heinz Guderian. aged 40 and 3/4's.