[ba] Reliability of B5 vs. B6 A4s? or???

[Brian Devlin]

My preference is the older 12V A6 models, I just bought one for my wife. Sure 
it's slow, but they're cheap and reliable. Once you get into a 30V A6 or any A4, 
you'll be pulling the front bumper and "lock carrier" off for things like timing 
belts, radiators, sometimes just for the accessory belt. 


The 1.8turbo isn't a great engine- they need timing belts every 60k, too much 
work for just 200hp in my opinion. Maybe if you get a good price.

I've heard of A6 4.2s selling in your price range, but watch out for stuck 
variable intake manfolds (they still drive nice that way). 

Allroads are getting affordable too, might be worth the maintainence hassles.

As far as I know, the Mercedes transmission problems are mainly from Mercedes 
claiming the fluid will never have to be changed, but they changed their minds 
later. So if you find one with low mileage, or that had been serviced, go for 
it.

and finally....DO NOT BUY A W8.
-Brian
91 200 20V
owner of Tahoe City Auto Repair
 
i guess all cars need maintenance - i am astonished though that my wife's 1997 
A4 12V V6 quattro has 215k on the clock - the auto tranny has synthetic - hasn't 

missed a beat.

i'd love to just clone her car for myself. the question is are the 12V V6 autos 
known for being brick shithouses - or's is her's an anomaly? from what i've 
heard, the 2.8L 30V V6 is just as reliable - but the 3.0 sucks.

Robby




________________________________
From: Johnny B <pre95 at live.com>
To: ckm at crust.net; centaurus3200 at yahoo.com
Cc: ba-group at audifans.com
Sent: Tue, November 23, 2010 2:17:13 PM
Subject: RE: [ba] Reliability of B5 vs. B6 A4s? or???

Dont forget the hugely popular automatic transmission failure, especially on 
the V8 models. C43 would be an AWESOME car to drive, if you didnt have to worry 
about the trans popping every 50-80k... 


> Jurgen Shremp, CEO of Mercedes, once said that 70% of warranty issues 
> during 1998-2005 were due to electronics integration and Mercedes 
> quality rankings fell dramatically during that time.  I think the 
> E-series was the only one without any issues (W210 chassis).


      
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________________________________

From: robert weinberg <centaurus3200 at yahoo.com>
To: Johnny B <pre95 at live.com>; ckm at crust.net
Cc: ba-group at audifans.com
Sent: Tue, November 23, 2010 2:24:04 PM
Subject: Re: [ba] Reliability of B5 vs. B6 A4s? or???