RS4 Advice

[pauly-b]

Evening everyone and apologies both for the length of this post and the cheekiness asking for loads of advice!

After looking for a while, in June I'll finally be in the position to buy an RS4 Saloon - Most probably from an Audi dealer and a 2007 car.

I wonder if I can pick people's brains and experience with a few queries?

1. Colour - I've heard some stories about RS4's being very colour specific i.e. Misano Red may well be worth less than Black etc. What about Sprint Blue - is that likely to lose value in comparison as well?

2. Equipment - I'll be buying a Sat nav car but are there any other items perceived as essential - Adaptive lights etc.

3. Advice on any problem areas to look out for - Are there any things in particular I should look for? Software updates etc, certainly just looking through the Forum Shocks seems to be a major concern.

Also, at the risk of really taking the Michael if anyone has access to a Black Book I'd be grateful if you could give me a ball-park figure for my trade-in. It's a May 2006 Audi A3 3.2 S-Line, 26K, Phantom Black, Full leather, Heated Seats, I-pod and the optional 18' 20 spoke two piece alloys. Car's in great condition but two alloys need refurbing (But the less we say about what's come to be known as 'Parking-Gate' in our house the better! )

Finally, thanks for everyone's help in advance, it's much appreciated.

Cheers Paul

[4wheeldrift]

Hi Paul and welcome to the forum. The Audi dealer I brought my car from suggested Black, Silver and Grey are the best colours from a re sales point of view followed by Sprint Blue and Dark Blue. He suggest I avoid Red and Yellow unless I had a burning desire to own one in either of these colours. In my personal view, I would go for the colour you like best.

Sat/Nav, RS Steering wheel and Blue tooth Phone seem to be a must have. Some also look for adaptive lights, Ipod/CD changer, heated seats, Auto wipers, Sunroof etc

SS+ is down to individual taste as are the front seat options.

You have already listed the main problems to look for.

[rAudiguy]

Hi Paul,

as said above, go for a colour you like, black and dark grey etc will always be good colours for residuals but if you really like Red go for it!!

Sat/Nav, RS Steering wheel and Blue tooth Phone seem to be a must have. Some also look for adaptive lights, Ipod/CD changer, heated seats, Auto wipers, Sunroof etc

Blue tooth is something you want but unless you want a big cradle on the dash don't let this be a deal breaker you can get OEM blue tooth retro fitted as I did and many others on here. Heated seats are standard so don't worry about that. RS flat bottom wheel is a must have for resale time as well as Nav. If you can get auto wipers and adaptive lights personally I would! Other than that anything else is a bonus... Also look at cars with and without Black optics pack, this gives the car a different look especially in certain colours. Basically you lose the silver trim from the front, side windows and boot lid. Plus black exhausts tips. Not everyone’s cup of tea but you be the judge of that.

Only real problem with the RS4 is the DRC (suspension) get this checked by the dealer for leaking shocks, very common..... see other threads.

It's a great car and I'm sure you will love every second of owning it!!

Oh and welcome mate!!!!

cheers

Jim

[victor2vt]

Welcome Paul,

You can just about buy any car, Ford, Honda, Volvo, Saab, Vauxhall etc. etc. in black, silver, grey, but Sprint blue is exclusive to Audi RS cars and IMHO will be the one, if not THE colour, wanted, in the future.

I suggest you see the different colours "in the flesh" before making up your mind, there won't be a massive choice.

Other desirable options are all covered in previous posts.

All 07 RS4 s in mint condition with all the desirable options, low mileage, good colours, 1 owner etc are snapped up very quickly,( speaking from personal experience, they are VERY good sellers) so don't think you can get a massive discount.

But believe me, they are worth every penny when you get the right car and get to drive it every day !!! [quote]

Audi dealership cars at

www.audi.co.uk

Also

www.pistonheads.co.uk

usually have a good selection but do invest in all the usual finance and previous accident/damage checks before committing.

Good luck, hope to see you as a proud owner on here soon !

[Love_iTT]

I think everyone above has mentioned all the options there is to decide upon with an RS. Colour is a very personal choice but to be honest, the standard colours available for the RS4 are all OK as far as I'm concerned, OK the Yellow is a bit different and will probably lower the target audience come resale time but the rest should be OK.

Sport and bucket seats are a great debate on here too - again, personal choice though really. I went for sports seats rather than buckets as I haven't got four doors and it would be an ar$e getting folk in the back with buckets fitted, you won't have that problem with a saloon though so it's down to what you like.

Hope that helps and welcome Paul

Graham

[Marcus-RS4]

I have a Misano Red saloon, and I love it - I knew it was the colour for me as soon as I saw it - its a Pearlescent paint and the flake looks stunning in the sun..

Plus it makes me a little more unique than the blues and blacks that are 'everywhere' lol

[Thorny]

Sprint blue is a fab colour no doubt but it depends what you want, for me one of the reasons for getting the RS was the q-car appeal and so i wanted a subtle hue...

[victor2vt]

Paul,

Just had a quick look on Audi's site.

Dundee dealer has still got a yellow RS4 in yellow that he's had for 3 months that I know of. Sept 07 all must have options, only 3000 mls £43,995.

I think you could bid him (low) on that if you fancy that colour.

No 07 Sprint blue saloons with a/con/ sat/nav/ cd player, and flat bottomed steering wheel available. Only 06 models. Good selection of black though.

45 cars available in total.

[pauly-b]

Thanks everyone for he welcome!

I seem to be torn between Black and Sprint Blue to be honest - I actually think Sprint Blue looks better in the flesh than in photo's and I have a black car at the moment so maybe time for a change..

Graham - I take your point about Buckets v Sports seats, I dp prefer the look and feel of the Buckets but I'm more than a little concerned about the wear problems some people have / are having.

I wonder if trim will end up being a factor in the future as well - I like the look of the Carbon trim, but quite a few cars have the Aluminium inserts - fortunately I've never seen a car yet with the wood inserts

Loads of useful info here -Thanks again.

Paul

[pauly-b]

Victor - Thanks, I suspect whoever buys that Yellow car would have the same problems Dundee are having..

Warrington Audi - fairly close to myself - have a low mile, Sprint Blue 07 car with Sat Nav but I-pod instead of CD Changer, which I'd probably prefer knowing how much stuff is on my I-Pod at the moment...

Doesn't seem to have any other options though except that all important 'Auto Boot lid'

Cheers Paul

[victor2vt]

Paul,

Go and have a look, take a test drive but try and keep the grin off your face when you press the "S" button and accelerate in 2nd !!!

DON'T tell the salesman you are looking for a car in Sprint blue, if he knows that you won't get a penny off.

It's one of the first questions he will ask you

Always tell them you are looking for a car in a colour they have not got in stock, but, given a decent discount could be persuaded to take their physical car.

Forgive me if i'm telling you everything you already know !!

Let us know how you get on

[ARSEY4]

Agree with everything above. One thing I would say about the the bluetooth thing is dont be put off by the phone cradle on the dash set up. When I first had mine I didnt really want it but I have to say its the best hands free kit i have used, just tap the button say "Dial name" say the name and then say "dial" and your ringing. Its not the most attractive bit of kit but it works really well. I would try and get a drive in a sports suspended one and normal and the same with buckets and recarros as I would say these are the biggest personal choice items there are on the car. Good luck.
PS if you fancy a April 2007 car in Phantom black, sunroof, nav, bluetooth, heated reccaro seats (rears too), adaptive lights, sports suspension just had first service with new front shocks, Rs4 mats (autostyle and OEM) and a spare wheel (purchased incase of puncture). Always garaged and regularly zymoled. 10k miles and I have owned from new, then let me know as I may have to sell within 9 months

[PetrolDave]

One thing I would say about the the bluetooth thing is don't be put off by the phone cradle on the dash set up.

If you use Bluetooth (as you have to with most phones because the range of adapters available for the cradle is pathetically small), then you can have the cradle removed - but you do need to fit a new centre console because it leaves several big holes.

[drcarrera]

One thing I would say about the the bluetooth thing is don't be put off by the phone cradle on the dash set up.

If you use Bluetooth (as you have to with most phones because the range of adapters available for the cradle is pathetically small), then you can have the cradle removed - but you do need to fit a new centre console because it leaves several big holes.

I negotiated the removal of the cradle as part of the deal when I bought mine from an Audi dealer. You could try the same.

Nothing further to add to the above comments otherwise. I had a red RS4 for a day-long demo before I bought mine and I thought it looked really nice. Sprint blue is the "classic" RS4 colour and was top of my list, but I settled for grey in the end, which was my second preference.

You should go for the avant, though - they're faster

[ARSEY4]

One thing I would say about the the bluetooth thing is don't be put off by the phone cradle on the dash set up.

If you use Bluetooth (as you have to with most phones because the range of adapters available for the cradle is pathetically small), then you can have the cradle removed - but you do need to fit a new centre console because it leaves several big holes.

Yes but you loose the use of the button on the bottom of the adapter that enables you to use voice recognition, unless you have the god awful multi function steering wheel.