team doorhandle

[Grant Lenahan]

My experience, driving a 4kq to >250k; a 90q20v to >200k and now  
having owned, directly and indirectly, a '95 a6q, a '00 S4 and a '02  
S6 is that many opinions expressed in this thread are true, but they  
conflict.

1. The newer cars actually have a much lower incidence of repair
2. But those repairs are costly and expensive (TBs - or complete  
"nose jobs" - do in fact come immediately to mind)
3. and the new cars have lost some German road feel
4. but the B5/C5 "S" cars have much more of the direct feel than even  
the older cars ( never having owned an Ur S4 to compare....)

So its very much a mixed bag. Overall, the lowest cost to keep, in my  
book, is the C4.  But the most rewarding are the B5/C5.

I dont understand this OBD2 thing from Cody. Here in NJ anyway, each  
year has its own specific emissions limits, and they slowly tighten  
as cars get newer. I've never had a properly operating car come even  
close to the legal limit.

Maybe elsewhere there's a magic cliff they fall off of. Not here.

G
On Dec 28, 2007, at 7:10 PM, Tony Hoffman wrote:

> I'll jump on that bandwagen. From a daily driver perspective, the A4's
> are far nicer cars, especially the interior. However, they are also
> very americanized, and therefor have lost much of that "german car
> character" that makes them special, adn therefore worth all the
> headaches.
>
> Also, I, along with Cody and probably several others on this list,
> work on these cars (professionally) every day. I'll second the "No
> thank you". Ever done a TB on a 30V? How about the cam chain tensioner
> seals? I could damn near rebuild a 4000Q in the time it takes to
> replace an automatic trans in an A4 Quattro. OK, not quite, but you
> get the point. And the $$ to maintain one is rediculous also!
>
> But, to each their own,
> Tony Hoffman
>
> On Dec 28, 2007 5:48 PM, Michael McLaughlin <mcloffs at mac.com> wrote:
>> I own an A4, and am not so quick to agree. While having the more  
>> modern car is nice in a lot of ways, it certainly doesn't have the  
>> same feel as the older cars -- my 1990 100 and 1995 90 Quattro had  
>> their issues, but they had that old German indestructible feel. My  
>> wife often suggests we sell the A4 and find another 90; it's  
>> tempting.
>>
>> -Mike in Snoqualmie, Wash.
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