Talk me out of it...

[Fluoxetine]

Okay - New user, and first post...

I've got a hankering for a B5 S4, that I can't seem to shake - I've owned lots of 'performance' cars in the past, but they've been mainly track orientated (Elise's / Caterham etc).

I'm too old / fat and skint for that sort of thing at this precise moment - Not to mention the fact that I'm hardly doing any 'fun' (i.e. track / 'B' road) mileage at the moment.

A fast saloon, suited to the odd back road blat would be nice - The Rover 200 sh*tter I'm running at the moment is good A -> B transport, but doesn't really quicken the pulse.

I once owned a B5 2.8V6 Quattro for a couple of years, which I really liked - Solid, sensible (thirsty) motoring...Hewn from solid stuff etc...Unfortunately it felt...Well, pretty slow for supposedly having 197 bhp (And it was a 30k miler, not at all tired).

I'm hoping a B5 S4 might have a bit more shove - I'm guessing they're fairly similar to the B5 2.8V6 Quattro under the skin, with the obvious exception of the egine & gearbox?

I had been looking at C43 AMG Merc's (would love a V8 at some point in life), but understand Mercedes made their gearboxes from chocolate - It'd therefore be something of a risk buying one within my price range.

Any tips for S4 buying? What would a £4.5k budget bag me? A pup, or something usable?

(My bro in law is a superb mechanic, so I'd have the added safety net of 'labour for beer' ).

[tom_s4]

I had a look at a lot before buying mine, and £4.5k is going to buy a high miler. The engine is pretty bullet proof if properly looked after, but if the turbos go it's several thousand to replace, so try and make sure that whatever you buy has had the turbos replaced at some point. I would also try and get a facelift car if you can, as some of the niggles had been ironed out. If you can stretch another £2k I have a very nice example for sale.

[Fluoxetine]

Cheers Tom - I wish I could stretch an extra £2k, but really can't justify it at the moment.

(Hoping to spend a bit less than £4.5k, if truth be told).

I believe the turbos can be changed for around £1.2k, if you shop around - And it'd probably be worth going to K04's then, anyway?

I've got an AA P&L warranty policy, which will cover the first £500 of any job, so new turbos wouldn't be the end of the world...Especially if it were an excuse to upgrade!

[s4-99]

Welcome to the forum mate.....If you are looking to pay less than 4.5k then IMO you're not going to get a top notch motor. You get what you pay for as the saying goes.....If you can afford to spend 1.2k to change the turbo's if need be, then maybe it would be better to put that money to your original budget and try to buy something thats already been sorted.

Spend more now to save more later, or spend less now to spend more later.....

Good luck with your search, keep us informed on whatever beast you buy

[scoobydood]

I would advise you take your time and look for an upgraded K04 S4. Saves you bundles in the long run. Usual story is you buy an S4. Later you remap. Then you do downpipes/exhaust and tweak the map. At some point you also want to sort out the suspension and brakes. You are running into a lot of money at this point. Then you get used to the pace and it feels a bit slow and you want k04s and suddenly it all gets very expensive and time consuming.

(R)S4's are not cheap to look after, so it's essential you get a good one up front. Buy from a forum member where you can find a lot of history on the car and it's known by others. Then get it checked out by a known specialist. Then hand over your cash.

If you don't think you will ever need more power then you can stick with a K03 but remember to get one with brakes, suspension and possibly exhaust upgraded.

Come to a club meet and see some cars, take a ride in some and chat to the people who own them.
GTI Int'l is next weekend, that's a good start.

[Fluoxetine]

Cheers for the input guys - I've been in discussions regarding a 1999.5 noggy blue Avant within my price range, but a work colleague has popped up with a pre-facelift (just) saloon, fitted with coilovers / B6 S4 wheels / RS4 bits / various other goodies under the bonnet, including a remap - Probably a better base for K04's, if the K03's packed in at some point in the future.

Not all that bothered about chasing big BHP figures - Had a 330bhp STi Type R 10 years ago (when they weren't quite so chavtastic), and it was more than adequate for road driving. I still get the chance to do the odd track day or two in a borrowed Elise, so tend to save proper hooning / turbo saloon scalping for that...

Will see how it goes - Hoping to view either the Avant or Saloon a week on Thursday / Friday...Fingers crossed!

[Hozz]

Hi, newbie here myself and I finally have my first RS4 so I will have to sell my beloved S4 Avant. I was offered £2750 as part exchange which I baulked at so said I would go the private selling route. Although it was recently MOT'd and had a service I am taking her into my local Audi dealer on Thursday for it to get a quick health check prior to selling it. It may or may not be what you are after but as it is a highish, mainly motorway mileage S4 at 126,000 miles, serviced all bar one at Audi main dealer (the one none Audi service at Kim Collins) and completely unmodified.

I should have let it go earlier but have just loved it and vowed to never let it go until I had something far better parked on the drive.

Sorry if this sounds like a sales pitch but I love these cars and would rather prefer it go to someone who will enjoy it as much as I have all these years.

2000 (W) so it's a facelifted, Silver Avant, full cream/silver Recaro leather interior, RS Aluminium wing mirrors, standard Avus 17" Alloys and with a full Audi service history (apart from the Kim Collins) and no other mod's, sorry if that sounds a bit dull but it did me just fine but we're onto something new now with an '07 RS4 Cabriolet.