Well i am seriously considering selling my A4 for something else now....

[Charlie Farley]

As in the title really guys,
after 6 months ownership of my a4 avant i am now thinking buying this model may have been a mistake.
Dont get me wrong, i love the looks , and the performance is brill two of the main reasons for buying it, and the endless array of possible mods is great too, BUT, and its a big but, in the last 6 months its been back to the dealer so many times for a whole range of issues that it really is getting a bit tiresome now, still no resolution to the huge oil consumption with more time in the dealers to come on that front, now the steering seems to be acting wierd, its just one thing after another every few weeks.
Not really what i was expecting for a £12,500 33k miles one owner car with full audi service history and 12 mths full warranty too.
I can honestly say that my previous 2006 subaru legacy was only in the dealers etc when serving was needed, one a year for me , not every fortnight as with the a4.
In the 4 years i had the legacy i covered 40k and had no real issues other than an annual ecu pack file updates for the fueling.
maybe its just me loosing interest now in the car due to continual issues, or maybe its just the way a4 b7's are, whatever it is i'm not a happy bunny with mine right now,l have even started looking at newer bmw 5 series estates with decent specs.
praps i should just hold on a bit longer and see how the a4 pans out, any thoughts guys.

 

[V6 Quatt]

Sorry to hear your woes...hang on in their buddy as it may smooth out...use your warranty to the max and get things sorted....it may be down to bad luck on this one but once everything gets sorted you will hopefully have a peace of mind.

Good luck

 

[V6 Quatt]

You could trade in and get a B8....much more refined go for the 3.0 TDI....

 

[Craig Cull]

You could buy another car and have a different array of problems. All cars have their issues, think yourself lucky you've had it done under warranty, could have been worse. Think you got lucky with the Subaru as well. I had one for 2 years and had it rebuilt 3 times. Out of 2 years it spent 2 months on the road.
Recently had 2 impreza STI version 8's..... No matter haw quick they are, Nothing feels like an Audi.

 

[Gazwould]

I don't see how the high oil consumption is going to cure itself.

Time to get out of a bad egg.

 

[Molnboman]

Sorry to hear your continued ballaches with your car. It must be doing your head in. Not sure if I am aware of an engine which has such an inconsistent reliability record. The oil consumption issue is a major head scratcher. I wonder if VAG actually do know what is causing it, but they are not admitting it. Must say, I would have lost my patience by now too. Like some of the other comments, sometimes it's the luck of the draw when buying a new of used car.

Better luck soon,
A

 

[Craig Cull]

Nobody said it was going to cure it's self...
The fact is it's the nature of the engine. Seens he has a warranty, let someone else pay for it. Or just accept that it ain't going to change and start enjoying the car rather than pulling it to pieces. To say it's so low mileage it's had a lot of problems. I've not had half them problems in 4 years.

 

[Charlie Farley]

To be honest i do love the car and i'm not really sure what else i would want that ticks all the boxes for me, but i wasnt expecting to get so many issues though at this point in the cars lifespan, yes i agree all cars have their own issues etc but i do feel like i've been sold a can of worms with this one , just one thing after another, i normally put up with issues or fix them myself but as its under audi warranty i must really avoid touching it or they will just void the warranty. i get the feeling that the audi dealers are getting sick of the sight off it too, body language says a lot and i get the impression they would rather i took it elsewhere for the issues to be addressed.
I normally do a fair bit of ground work on a potentialm car purchase , this one must have slipped by, maybe i was blinded by the salesmans chat (west london audi) and the decent spec of it.
Anyway , its going back in next monday for part 3 of the oil consumption test, so that will interesting, also looking at a clonking from the front offside suspension, probably get them to sort the steering out aswell as its being wierd.
A good friend has an B7 rs4 avant for sale which has been a real peach of a car, no probs at all and 40k miles only, i may be taking a look at it this week depending on my state of mind later.

anyway thanks for the feedback guys.
rob

 

[Craig Cull]

I feel for you rob, I really do. Stay positive, hopefully you will get it sorted in the end. Don't be nice enough to care about the stealer as they wouldn't be nice enough not to bill you for something. Take advantage of them and let them do their thing and get you back in the road like they're suppose to do and hopefully you will win in the end.
Ateast it's not coming out of your pocket, although the inconvenience is probably the worse part.
I'll hope for a positive update in the not so distant future

 

[Charlie Farley]

Thanks craig, will do.
What this does bring home is that you shouldnt allways asume that a low milage, one owner car from new with full dealer service history, is infact, any better than something else with more owners and higher miles....as i get older i am getting much wiser and wont make the same mistake twice, but then again until it happens one never really knows.
cheers
rob

 

[Craig Cull]

That's very true rob. Downside to a 10 year old car with 30k on it is the fact it's been stood. That's not good for a car that's mostly made out of steel.
I find the cars that have been up and down the country everyday from new, are the most maintained and suffer the least from surface rust, panel corrosion and engine issues. Short journeys are a killer on the TFSI.

But hopefully you will get it sorted best of luck

 

[joinerman]

Sorry you may be selling the Audi but a warning on going for a Bimmer, they are NOTORIOUS for having flat batteries, right across the range, they have to go into a " sleep mode " when you lock the car, this takes around sixteen minuets, but a hell of a lot don't go into sleep mode properly & drain the battery, & know one knows why, do your research on Bimmerforums before you decide to jump ship.
Oh ask me how i know.

 

[Charlie Farley]

I'm on the fence at the moment , one side of me is saying loose the audi it's more trouble than it's worth, the other side saying give it a second chance and get the probs sorted out, i just dont know at the moment.
I think due to the limited amount of nice looking estates with performance to match the choice is limited from my view, i think if i do change i may still go with an B7 avant based on the fact i really like its styling etc and it ticks all my requirment boxes, BMW 5 estates are ok and i'd go that way for the right spec but only if i had exhausted the B7 avant route if you get my drift, dont like the B8's etc nor the A6's.
I have no problem staying with the B7 variant as long as i dont have a repeat of the problem i have now, which may or maynot be the case depending on what variant i went with.
that probably narrows the choices right down to be honest, B7 s4 or rs4 would be possible as the 2.0 TFSI factor is eliminated to start with, more pound notes but i feel like i've just wasted £12,500 to start with so it's all relavant i supose.

its doing my head in to be honest, maybe things will become clearer in the hard light of day tommorow etc.

cheers
rob

 

[SDHA4SLine]

I totally agree with you rob, b7 avants are the best looking estates out there imho ( obviously rs4's aside!! ) I could have gone for a low mileage b8 Avant or 320 bmw but just didn't like them so I got my b7 with the knowledge I would need to spend to bring it back to life. My boss just picked up a brand new 3 series bmw estate, yuk, ugly as sin and slow to boot. Although they do have a much smoother engine and are quieter inside, I was surprised at all that plastic and false (or cheap) leather interior, clunky controls etc. it just didn't seem as nicer place to sit which surprised me a lot.

What ever way you go I hope it works out for you mate

 

[DieselJake]

Definitely don't think your going to escape problems by buying a BMW, parts are generally more expensive too.

I research general issues experienced by owners before purchasing a car, 2.0T's can be troublesome and their's a few things I would change straight away if I owned one but on the whole B7's are fairly solid.

 

[Charlie Farley]

yep, i know what you mean about tacky cheap plastic interiors etc, one of the many reason that i went with my B7 Avant was because the interior was great and the whole car has a quality feel to it, the doors have a nice secure clunk when shutting , none of this tinny clancking noise.

It may sound bonkers but in my tick box list of things i look for up at the top of the list in a car are front seats, not fussed about rears to be honest as i dont sit there...... but fronts are a crucial factor when looking for a car.
In my avant i have the full leather valcona s-line sport seat all electic etc, lumbar/height ete etc and heated (nice when its cold with leather) and they are probably the most comftable seats i have had in car for years, i can sit in them allday without issues ,really comfy but suppotive too.

For me this is crucial, there is no point having a nice car for doing long journeys etc if the seats are rubbish, well any driving for that matter if the seats are nasty, for me driving is a total experience ,short distance or long , slow or sporty all parts should work together including the seats and interior.
So, there is box 1 ticked for me with my avant.

rob

 

[Charlie Farley]

Well i'm going to keep with the avant for now and see how things pan out with it, had what could be best described as an "Exchange of constuctive dialog "with the dealer and the outcome is satifactory to me , well as best it could be.
other than the ongoing oil issue which is being investigated allready, all other issues past and present will be resolved to my satifaction and anything else will be delt with under the warranty until it expires next year , so caant really ask much more for now.

so i'll see how things go before i start buying goodies for it just in case......i do have a nice long list of items but makes sense to just hangfire before parting with the cash.

cheers guys for your input, very welcomed.
rob

 

[Charlie Farley]

well guys its looking even closer now that the A4 may be going after my latest session with the stealers, warranty appears to be worth less than the paper its printed on so pretty well US.
Any sensible offers for a nice knackered B7 avant.

 

[spartacus 68]

B7 avants are the best looking estates out there imho ( obviously rs4's aside!!

Second only to a B5 RS4... now that is the dog's danglies.

Back to the OP. There is a tendancy for misplaced loyalty, especially if the car has absorbed your time and your money. Better the devil you know, and all that.

It would irritate the hell out of me taking a car back to a garage to diagnose niggles and mechanical faults, and quite honestly at 33k it's hardly even run in. Audi or not, I'd seriously be looking to sell. Life's too short to be sitting at a VAG dealership drinking crap coffee.

 

[Charlie Farley]

To be honest i really was expected more than this from an audi, especially a newish model , sadly i must have been thinking of another brand, my old renault 4 estate with 120k miles on the clock back in 1985 had less issues than my A4 and it only cost me £100 inc road tax, just went on forever without a peep, not as technical as an A4 i know but then new cars are suposed to be more relaible and of a better quality now, not sure i'd go along with that at this point in time

 

[Gazwould]

How can something so complex ever be reliable.

Renault 4 goes on , old back boiler 30+ years , new combi's 7 years .

 

[Molnboman]

To be honest i really was expected more than this from an audi, especially a newish model , sadly i must have been thinking of another brand, my old renault 4 estate with 120k miles on the clock back in 1985 had less issues than my A4 and it only cost me £100 inc road tax, just went on forever without a peep, not as technical as an A4 i know but then new cars are suposed to be more relaible and of a better quality now, not sure i'd go along with that at this point in time

I totally agree....and modern diesels are even worse!....Although, I am not sure whether the 2.0t's engine faults are entirely down to an overly complicated engine. I think there is a lot more complicated out there. These long service intervals clearly haven't helped but wold that explain the continued excessive oil use with some of the engine model types? Before I bought my old rusty bus, I never heard of reliability issues with Audi, and understood their reputation was built on solid built, reliable engines and rust free bodies.
Must be frustrating as f@ck for you and I think we all share your pain.

BR
A

 

[TOM.S]

Of course modern cars are less reliable. the manufacturer wants to make money, they can only make serious money if they sell... as their services aren't so desired.So they design the car to last 5 to 7 years, then various components start to fail.. be it a complete car, or parts (in our case oil pumps, complete engines/vital engine parts )
this way forcing you to either buy replacement parts or go for a new car.
Still I think the B7's are very good cars, you may just got unlucky and bought that 1 of 10 which is complete nightmare to own/keep roadworthy.

 

[Craig Cull]

I'd be tempted to try some thicker oil like nano drive 5/40 (which we tend to use in the tuned TFSI's that runs at higher temperatures) and possibly a catch can. Got to be worth a shot. If that doesn't improve your oil consumption then it's either a set of piston rings or you sell unfortunately. Dealer warranty's are just a scam.

 

[Charlie Farley]

I may give that a try craig , dont really want to sell to be honest as i do like the whole car, just a pity it didnt have a different make of engine, and that is a major part of the car.
The mad thing about all this is that the engine does run really well, pulls like a train from low down and really motors when given some extra right foot, if it wasnt for the oil consumption being poor i would say that there was anything wrong with it, certainly feels like a rocket.
A friend of mine has a 05 golf gti with a tfsi in it thats been mapped to 250bhp and to be honest it doesnt feel any faster than the standard spec BUL and my A4 can keep up just doesnt have the corner agility of the golf , but otherwise prettywell evenly matched.

cheers
rob