[quote=“carl5463729"”]
I really wanted to look into these cars as my next purchase. I have a 92 talon awd right now with some mods, so this car would be a huge upgrade for me. I have been looking at the early s4’s like 2000 and 2001 which arent badly priced. I was just curious if these are reliable cars, any useful input is appreciated. thanks, and yes i see emery is selling one but im looking for a car around spring time
[/quote]
Geez, where do I start?
First off, I currently work on about 9-10 B5S4’s, and another handful of other 2.7T cars (A6/Allroad). I’ve seen just about everything that can go wrong with them.
First thing you need to know is history. These cars can take a fair amount of abuse, but every car has their limits (other than old Volvo 240s. I’d drive mine throgh Kosovo with a big target painted on the door and not worry).
If you’re looking at an 00-01, then it’s likely going to have 60k+ miles on it. With this assumption, find out if the belt/pump/tensioners have been done. If not, expect to pay a grand at my shop to do it all (including all seals, rollers, belt, stat, and everything else from the front of the block forward).
If it has oil leaks showing up on top of the exhaust manifolds, expect to pay $550 to do valve cover and chain tensioner gaskets. (the dealer will charge about $1200)
If there’s a lot of play in the drivetrain, you’re needing motor/trans/snub mount. This will run about $900 to replace all mounts with upgraded RS4 stuff, including a poly snub mount
A clutch job using RS4 parts will run $1250. Add another $150 for rear main seal. Add another $200 for a resurfaced and balanced flywheel.
A chip will cost $585 + any switching options
Oxygen sensors are abut $190 each, and are a pain to replace
Instrument cluster will run somewhere in the $800 range. Check for dead pixels in the driver’s info. display in the center of the cluster. Only way to fix those is to replace the cluster (and it needs to be coded and adapted to the car using factory-level diagnostic software)
That’s all just off the top of my head. However, they’re still damn nice cars if treated properly, and you can drive them all year 'round with proper tires.
You should be able to find on between 10-12k, but expect do spend another 2k right off the bat, since something in the above list will be needed.