Audi

Look, all these German brands have very high-tech toys on-board, so over time as the car gets older you will have more problems than -- say -- a typical Honda Civic driver. Mechanically, those cars should keep going just fine if you maintain them and treat them with care, but that WILL cost a lot more money than a -- say -- bare to the bone Honda Civic.

Rule of thumb: the more gadgets on-board, the less 'reliable' your ride will be if you plan on keeping your vehicle beyond the U.S. average of 5 years. But if you're not a long-termer, get any car you like because almost any brand will last you for at least 5 years/100k; the perceived 'reliability gap' won't even kick in until after you've crossed that threshold. In my personal experience and regardless of brand, every car has survived its first 100k miles without any major issues, and I simply don't keep my cars around beyond that point...unless it's a classic, of course

As for Audi, they're -- IMO -- the most elegant German brand; they're the equivalent of Lexus in Germany. They have the best combination of interior and exterior design/styling. I think they have a terrific lineup and the A4 is a pretty good value in that class (compared to the 3-series or the C-class).

 

Go for it. I own a 2005 3.2 A6. 42,000 miles on it and the only problem I have had so far is a minor recall that was taken care of in a day. If you take care of the car, you should not have any problems.

 

Bought my A4 brand new in 2003, and it's served me pretty well for the most part. Females tend to like the car, which is a huge plus, and gas mileage is pretty good. It's priced well, as I got mine for $27.8k + TTL, which included the 17" wheels, leather, 6 CD changer, and sunroof. They do depreciate fast, so I'd recommend buying it used with low mileage.

My biggest problem has been with the power seat, as the front part of the drivers seat won't go up and down, and its like a $290 part + labor.

 

Not just Audi, you need to know that basically all luxury car has loaded up of techoology in them, and many will have problem if you don't take care of them the right way.

With Audi, if you take care of them, such as follow the owner manual, change oil using the right type and right filter, you will not have any problem.

As for the car, it's even better than BMW.

 

I dont have a problem with Audi's but i think a bmw 3 series would be better but maybe its not in your budget...i dont agree with audi's being better then BMW but just my opinion.

 

When shopping for a luxury sport sedan, I was looking at the Volvo S60, Audi A4, Saab x3 and BMW 3 series. My last choice was down to the Audi and the Volvo. I went with the Volvo, but it was a tough decision.

The Audi A4 is a nice car with great performance. I thought it was comparable to the 3 series, but was about 5,000 dollars less. It has style, performance and a nice interior. One of the reasons I didn't go with it was because I believe a re-design will be rolled onto the lots in the next year or so. I didn't want to buy a car that could be so dated. Of course, the S60 is scheduled for a redesign soon too, but an aged Volvo has a certain desirous quirk about it, so that was the deal maker.

 

i would trust a brand made by one of the most mechanically and technologically advanced nations. good luck with your purchase.

 

He isn't looking to buy a Lexus... duh.

 

As for a new Audi... I wouldn't buy one, but that's just based upon past reviews of the brand's reliability (or lack of it). You should research your model on Audi forums. To simply ask "is Audi reliable" is too general. Which Audi? Which year? Which options? etc etc.

 

a4s have historically been not so reliable. and the downside of the historical image is that it kills resale value. so resale value matters...keep that in mind.

 

Yikes. A first-year Audi? You may get lucky and have a problem-free experience. I'd rather play Russian roulette with a revolver. lol. The fact it's closely related to the A4 just means it's a gamble. I've heard people have all kinds of problems with A4's and others have good experiences.

 

right because one of the most means only one nation

 

I got an S5 on order. hopefully it doesn't break all the time.

Are you getting a 2009 S4, the redesigned one?

 

Are you single?

 

See? I would've taken you more seriously had you used THREE of those emoticons, but as you only used 2, I'm afraid I'll have to not take you so seriously after all.


For the OP, (from Business Week), this is what Audi is trying to recover from (FYI, I still hear mostly about electronic glitches in more modern models of their cars):

http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/05_11/b3924003.htm

Like its German rivals, Audi's cars have been plagued since the late 1990s with electronic glitches as auto makers stuffed more and more microchips into their vehicles. Now, Audi and its rivals are staffing up with electronics experts and redoubling efforts to eradicate software snafus before cars arrive in showrooms. Reliability "has been our Achilles' heel," says Marc Trahan, Audi of America's quality director.

Improving quality is harder than building a global distribution network. But years of hard work are starting to pay off. In J.D. Power's 2004 ranking of initial quality, Audi moved up three places to rank 11th out of 37 auto brands, one place above BMW and one notch below Mercedes. Chance Parker, Power's quality guru, says Audi still needs to improve its reliability over the long haul -- an area where Winterkorn hopes Audi will excel this year. "Some of Audi's [last-generation] launches have been very buggy," Parker says. That's why Audi is 22nd in Power's 2004 ranking of long-term dependability. The good news for Audi is that Mercedes sank to 28th in the same year. Audi's dependability ratings should trend upward thanks to the quality of the new models hitting the market.


You know it's bad when your quality director says reliability is your Achilles' heel... lol. Dude, just buy a Passat... jk.

 

Audi and Volkswagen are the same car -- why not buy a Jetta/ Passat and save some cash?



Passat/ A6



A4/ Jetta