Dreaming of RS4.....how much to spend?

[givemeRS4]

Been dreaming about this car ever since I was a young boy. Growing up my dad had a heavily tuned Audi Quattro. I remember being about 8 years old and feeling like I was on the end of a intercontinental rocket as he blasted away from the lights destroying some yuppy in a Lambo Diablo. The look on the guys face at the next set of lights was priceless and I still remember it to this day. At that point I think I became an Audi supporter for life.

Finally I'm in the position of being able to own one of these beauty's. Last year I got the Groupon deal on an R8 for the weekend and that engine seduced me. The engine is just so damn sublime.. I cannot feel any love for any other car and I've tried. I've test driven almost everything. I've got a substantial company car allowance which has gone into a 62 place 3.0 TDI A6 Quattro but I don't even like driving it. I take the wifes 130i out instead.

Anyway I just thought I'd say hello, gonna stalk these forums for the next 3 months, I'll be on the prowl from Feb onwards, soaking up all I need to know before I take the plunge. I cannot bloody wait.. I'm jealous of you all

Finally I want to ask you all about the sort of money I should be looking at for a second hander. I suppose my max budget is £20-25 and I want to get something that isn't too fucked up and will be able to resale on after 12-24 months, though I suspect this is a future classic and that well looked after examples will continue to fetch decent prices. I have seen some going for cheap as £16k but that seems like false economy to me?

[pDkALO]

FON and welcome!

There's a good deal of discussion on here from people in your position, so search and enjoy.

It really is a case of getting what you pay for, but I certainly wouldn't venture as low as £16k. Anywhere north of £20k should see in something decent. And I think you'll find the general view is to focus on condition rather than mileage alone.

Speaking personally I always prefer the comfort of main dealer car, purely because of the backup that comes with it (don't necessarily expect the cars to be any better though - they're all part-ex's or auction buys anyway).

Oh and if you wait until the spring I'm convinced there will be a good number of B7s coming up for grabs, as deliveries of B8s roll out.

Good luck!

[MartayMcFly]

I set myself a max of £25k, but then had to buy a new boiler so was looking at £23k with the idea of haggling.

[P_G]

There are lots of factors to consider on these cars, biggest one is how it has been looked after and maintained. I have seen and read the comments on people buying these cars but in reality you don't always have to pay northward of £20k to get aa decent one. I should know, I sold mine for near the £16k mark (so does that mean it was a dog?) and it had nearly new tyres on is, discs that had been changed in the last 5k miles, FASH, DRC done and subsequently tested,pristine paintwork and refurbed driver seat plus non-res valved exhaust, GruppeM, CAI and a book full of receipts and power plots for everything done. For the uninitiated the down side would have been 99k miles but then it made rated power as the new owner is finding out. In fact Simon; I should have charged you more!

Anyway, you just need to so your research. I am sure there are some rough cars out there at all price ranges, don't be fooled into thinking a low mile high price car is the best option. A one that the owner enthuses about is a better bet. As for dealer warranty, it's a nice to have but and occasionally not wortht he paper it is written on so with as many specialist indpendents out there the price you pay for taking one off a forecourt vs. a private sell would pay for a large number of things to go wrong and for the independent to fix it.

[54Kab]

^^^^^

- when I was searching, I viewed about 15 cars, and initially these were mostly at Audi Stealers.. but the best cars were ones via this site... Quality-wise they were head and shoulders above the dealer cars. I know how the dealers source & operate, and the only reason for going there is the 'warranty'... BUT, the additional cost of buying there equates to a few years of maintenance of a private purchase.

My advice? -do your homework (everything you need to know is on this site)... decide on YOUR 'must haves' (colour, seats, steering wheel..), then check-out a couple of dealer cars (test drives) .. then source the car yourself -and be prepared to travel...

[givemeRS4]

Thanks for all the excellent replies.

P_G i'd have probably taken your arm off if I had seen yours it sounds like a bargain

I've revised my price down towards the £20k mark, from what I see the £25k cars just look marked up rather than being specifically younger/much less miles. The stealers from what I see are trying to get £27k+,

How cheeky is it to get a test drive out of a stealers if I'm not intending to buy from them? I've never driven one and I'm unsure about the bucket seats or not, I'm a big feller, 6'2 and a few more pounds round the waist than I would like. That being said I had recaro buckets in my Civic and I drove 6000 miles over 2 weeks and my back/arse were loving it.

[BillTheButcher]

It's not cheeky at all. Of course you won't tell them that you're not going to buy their car, will you?

[54Kab]

-easy, once you've taken one for a test drive with an Audi dealer, point out the one (or two) items /options that are/are not on the car and that you really want to hold out for your preferred spec... ..invariably, that will be true ayway...

[MartayMcFly]

The first RS4 I drove was from a VW dealer (they'd just had it traded in) and I was genuinely considering it but, without buckets and in black, I just didn't want to spend what they were asking for it. If you're just wanting to drive the dealer's one for comparison, DON'T tell them upfront that you have no intention of buying the car.

[vestax32]

I started looking at the 17k mark thinking I could get one that cheap, but soon realised that upwards of 20k had to be spent to get one worth having. These are complicated cars with lots of possible costly problems if not maintained to the highest standard. Get a good one in the first place so your not left in the sh*t!

MRC & Unit 20 do a health check for around £120 which would be well worth it if you can get the car there...........

[rs4lee]

i definatley wouldnt be put off by mileage as long as the car has been well maintaned ....my car is on 140k and still making 390hp with no mods other than a de-flapped inlet manifold.Ive worked on cars that people have payed 19k for with 60k mileage and to be honest they were not any better than mine in terms of condition and drive.

my pet hates are some of the descriptions and info in the listings by the sellers , for instance the S button gives an extra 30hp !! or painted black wheels and black grille means its a black optics pack lol

Happy hunting

[HYFR]

^wow 140k!!!

How much did you buy it for?

[rs4lee]

^wow 140k!!!

How much did you buy it for?

i gave 16k for the car ...it was on 128k when i got it ..2 owners with full history ...last owner being a company who put the majority of the mileage on it.....really dont know why some people are so hung up on mileage.But then i know there are some really nice low mileage example out there that are worth 20k .... i think some people just play on it when selling ,mainly used car dealers lol

as said before better to buy from an enthusiast that way you know most of the common issues will have been resolved , plus you wouldnt beleive how many people dont take into account the oil consumption , seen a few rs4's come in dangerously low on oil !!

[victor2vt]

Attend a local meet, you'll be able to get all your questions answered, take your time looking and test driving a few cars, you'll get a decent example for around 20K

I had the AA do their fully comprehensive check on mine from a private seller, it ticked 95% of all the boxes, and i'm 'delighted' with it

As has been said, you have to appreciate these cars are not cheap to run, but as everyone on here will tell you, they're worth every penny !!

[givemeRS4]

I saw 3 cars on saturday, all advertised north of £24k and all pretty <beep> condition. One guy had a 2006 saloon for £27k and every alloy was kerbed all the way round.

I actually picked up a nice S3 on Sunday so I'm not in a rush, I'm gonna keep my eyes out until the right car comes up. At least I won't get desperate and pick up something I don't 100% want now.