B6 A4 Reliability vs other cars you've owned

[11Past9]

I am looking for a new car to me. I've always been intimidated by Audi because of all that I have heard about expensive parts, servicing and reliability. I am in college and I need something that won't let me down and be fun at the same time. I just can't have the oh no what's this check engine light, oh no what's that noise and oh crap how much is this gonna be deal. Can someone fill me in on what to expect for reliability out of a b6 quattro? Minus the if you maintain it, it will run forever crap... Any car will run forever if you keep throwing money at it.

[imnuts]

I am looking for a new car to me. I've always been intimidated by Audi because of all that I have heard about expensive parts, servicing and reliability. I am in college and I need something that won't let me down and be fun at the same time. I just can't have the oh no what's this check engine light, oh no what's that noise and oh crap how much is this gonna be deal. Can someone fill me in on what to expect for reliability out of a b6 quattro? Minus the if you maintain it, it will run forever crap... Any car will run forever if you keep throwing money at it.

If the car was properly maintained prior to you getting it, and you also keep up with the regular maintenance, they are reliable vehicles. I'm not saying just constantly spending money on it to fix things as a maintenance item either. With any car though, regular maintenance will not prevent issues from occurring, and if a car is going to have problems, it's going to have issues regardless of manufacturer or preventative maintenance. If you're really worried about costs, it may not be the car for you though as things can get costly quick if/when things do go wrong.

[hercfe]

Dont buy an audi if you dont have the time to fix it or the money to spend on getting it fixed. it is no more or less reliable than any other car on the road, but when things do go wrong, it isn't cheap. you want a fun college kid car get a 90's civic or integra for less than 2000 and never have to worry about reliability issues. or, do what us old timers did and ride a bike or walk.

[onlyaudis]

the cars are getting old now, and it will be hard to find one that isn't going to have issues that require spending a decent amount of money to fix. If you can find documented lower miles one owner well maintained car at a good price, and budget a few thousand on top for repairs and maintainance, you could be OK.

these cars have their fair share of weak spots--things that seem to eventually fail on most of the cars. That is why they were never highly ranked by Consumer reports. I had to do a bunch of stuff on mine when i got it about a year ago, but it has been very reliable since then. we also have a TT with the same engine, and have it for 5 years with nearly no issues at all. i do have the cars maintained by very good mechanics, and don't skimp on the upkeep (oil and other fluid changes with best possible stuff, 02 sensors and fuel filters replaced, newest coil packs, etc)

[b6onboost]

I'm only at 60k miles on my B6. So far it has been extremely reliable. I haven't put more than $500 in repairs into it yet. Coilpacks, window regulators, cootant sensor...all minor and not expensive to DIY. (If that was all dealer repaired it'd likely have cost well over $1000). We've owned Jeeps (3) which have been perfectly reliable...for a combined 460k miles without much more than hose/cv boot/gasket replacements. My family has owned euros...Audi, Bimmer, VW, Volvo...and all of them developed issues as they got older and piled up miles, even though they were meticulously maintained and gently driven.

If you can find a lower mileage, well documented, meticulously maintained car that was someone's 'baby' then you will be fine. However if you are just buying an average used B6 that had multiple owners and does not have full documentation...it'll be hit or miss.

[drjonez]

The only way to make any repair on an Audi fiscally viable is to do the work yourself. That said, I'm not too impressed by the B6- in the 4 months I've owned it I've replaced the center diff output seal, the driver side rear diff seal and the radiator.....in addition to all the "normal" maintenance. My '01 S60 has nearly double the miles on it and I've had 0 repairs (aside from normal maintenance) in the two years I've owned it.

[lookaught]

The only major issue Ive had is a fuel pump failure that required a tow. Other than that the car has been pretty good to me, now at 105k miles.

I agree with everyone though, if you DIY, it's reasonable. If you don't, it's expensive.

[iwasinthepool]

it's more reliable than my B5 was! i have had a million problems with my B5 with the suspensions but as far as "reliability" goes... it never didn't start and it always got me where i needed to be. whether it mad loud clunking sounds or not, thats a different story.

[trueno429]

OP, if your in college (like me) and you dont have money to be spending on your car and can't do labor yourself ( I do), don't buy an Audi period. Buy something thats cheaper to maintain but yet nice, like a 350z, s2k. Japanese sportscars quick and also reliable..if your looking for a reliable sedan get yourself a Maxima.

[Papachristou]

I am looking for a new car to me. I've always been intimidated by Audi because of all that I have heard about expensive parts, servicing and reliability. I am in college and I need something that won't let me down and be fun at the same time. I just can't have the oh no what's this check engine light, oh no what's that noise and oh crap how much is this gonna be deal. Can someone fill me in on what to expect for reliability out of a b6 quattro? Minus the if you maintain it, it will run forever crap... Any car will run forever if you keep throwing money at it.

luck of the draw like anytthing else. 90k on my car with zero part failures that can be attributed to audi.

[italian a4 1032]

buy mine :)

[Lusticles]

i had a lexus rx for a few years and the only thing it needed to be in the shop for was an HID headlight malfunction. The Audi has been in the shop a few times, perhaps do to poor maintenance by the previous owner. As long as you keep up with it you shouldnt have too many problems.

Although if you're looking for superior mechanical reliability i'd cast my vote on a Lexus

[Valve_Cover]

So far the only things that have broken on my car are the aftermarket bits i've added on lol...I'd say so far my car has been very reliable. I do ALOT of preventative maintenance so that probably helps alot, but compared to my last cars its been great so far!

*knocks on wood

[diplomat128]

REALLY strong car. I hit a curb at about 50km/h and NOTHING needed to be changed. My wheel was bent like a mofo though...

The only thing that had to be replaced was the fuel filter (60$.. meh) valve cover gasket (60$.. meh) and it's been to the shop a few times for a mystery CEL they can't seem to solve.. (160$ the first time, the other time I didn't have to pay... next time either I guess)

I used to have a Volvo and my throttle body f*cked up, guess how much I had to pay? 1500$. And my steering rack was f*cked as well, another 1200$. On my Mazda Millenia my handbrake cables snapped... only the cables were like over 3-400$.

In the end I think the Audi isn't expensive to fix compared to other cars I've owned, and the AWD is priceless.