How reliable are Audi's above the 100,000 mile mark

[Cronic]

I'm just wondering how often audi's last over the 100,000 mark. Is there an average time that you start seeing heavy problems? I just ask because I see lot's of new on here, but I don't see any high milage audi's

[haus4]

It all depends on how the car is driven and taken care of. Maintenance is a big thing and if not done, you will pay for it. I just hit 104k on my car and shes running strong. I did a stage 3 install at 99k and no problems before or after. Check the b5 forums, we have some higher mileage cars.

[CARTEL]

Agreed... all about prior maintenance - as with any car really. If you're thinking about a 100k + mile Audi, go into the appropriate forum section and search for common problems with that type of mileage, then compare the service records to common problems found.

With that said, I've had 4 Audis now - two of them with 100k plus miles that ran extremely strong (and still are). I think both owners have them to 160k + miles.

[Dynamite]

yea there are cars in the b5 forum that have done over 200 miles. if they have been looked after then they are fine, if they havent then stay away. euros are just like any other car, they are no more or less reliable than japs, if they are treated right then they are good for a long time, if they are abused then they die early.

[Cronic]

Thanks for the info guys I've searched for about a month now and its really hard to find a definite answer on this. We all know a honda gets 200k easy but finding out an audi has been a bit more challenging. I'm also slightly nervious about my purchase with all the little things everyone says go wrong. Either way this helps

[audia]

My doors have been squeaking lately. I think it's time for a new car. I'm at about 105K with my b6.

[anthony911]

take care of the car the car will be good to you
c5 a5 1999
174000k on it (108118 miles)
never any problems since i got it.
(had a squeaky door threw some wd40 on it its like nothing ever happened)

[blacka4]

i have 131K on my A4...no issues other then the routine maintenance.

[SpooldYou]

i had 176k verryyy hard driven miles on my b5 s4. nothing out the ordinary just regular stuff.

[Dynamite]

have a look at this tread we had in the b5 section a while ago, there are plenty of people with over 100 in that http://www.audizine.com/forum/showth...ighlight=miles

[Jersey2.7t]

Just look at my sig.....explains a lot and how if you take care of your car, and do regular maintenance, your car will last.

[imnuts]

The way it seems to me, euro cars require regular maintenance to run well and continue running well for a long time. Domestics still require maintenance, but tend to be less costly and more forgiving if you skip it compared to euro cars. Asian vehicles seem to last a long time regardless of maintenance or how much care is given to the vehicle.

Not sure why people would ever want to treat their car like crap and not doing regular oil changes and the like, but if one actually takes care of their vehicle, you should have no problems taking anything to 150-200k miles.

[calvin1.8t]

An Audi is like your child in a way. If you neglect it, it will break, run shitty, and your wallet will be dry. If you nourish it, it will run great and look good for years.

[Kevin2772]

Depends how deep your pockets are.

[cab509]

My AUDI Drove like a champ at 205K and the engine was still very strong along with the rest of the car when I totaled her.



so YES, if taken care of Audi's can last well into 300K.

[Ultra B6]

i ask the same question to a person in my local audi dealer ( Bell Audi) and he said that other than routine maintenance after 100k you will start to see wear and tear items start to go, obviously these items will go faster based on how the car is driven but things like rubber bushings will start to go.
My 04 A4 3.0 has 130 on the clock and the engine runs as strong as the day i got it with 45k on the clock. over all the car is in great shape with some rattles here and that but i drive alot (avg 20k+ a year) and on some brutal new jersey roads, which is probably why my control arm bushings are starting to go.

[Audi Skate Snow]

150k miles on my car.... all original engine parts (internal). I have a 71R big turbo with meth injection and boost over 20lbs daily on it. Compression checks out perfect and no issues.

you take care of your car and it will take care of you.

[TheJerk]

161K here with my B5. Previous owners did not take care of it so I am playing catch up. Still a good car though.

[wednesday]

For myself, I would buy one and have been keeping eye on the RS's for a while. However, for my family, I would not recommend one without a warranty of some kind.

I am not bashing Audi's. However, I see more higher mileage Honda, Nissan or Toyota that can very well be recommended to families versus an Audi with more than 100k miles. I went to consumer reports and people will give higher rating (because they love their Audi's including me), however they will also state about how they had to fix items after certain mileage (and to budget something every year) and were always knee deep in simply maintenance costs. Keep in mind, cars depreciate in price. Ofcourse hobbies should not be counted in so. I bet if I search reliability and maintenance costs, then I will find my similar research to echo throughout these forums. Sorry if I went off-topic a bit.

My .02c

[imnuts]

I was wondering this the other day about vehicle reliability ratings and about the longevity of cars. Consumer Reports, and other places always say Toyota and Honda are the most reliable and have relatively few issues, where the German manufacturers (MB/VW/BMW/Audi) tend to be on the bottom half of the reliability charts. Could this just be due to the owners of said vehicles? I rarely see German cars driving around with something wrong (light out, scratches, dents, etc.) but will quite frequently see these and other things with domestics and Asian cars. Could the reliability be skewed in that other owners just put up with small issues rather than reporting them or getting them fixed, where people with European cars try to keep them in pristine condition?

[Dynamite]

I wonder that its not just that people expect more out of a euro when they buy one, they dont expect a rattle or a knock when ever they go over a bump wheres in a jap car then you do, so better quality to start with means that people think they brake more. also better quality to start with means more maintenance to keep it that way which a lot of people skip over so the cars become less reliable than a car that requires little maintenance to keep it at the sub standard level of quality it came out of the factory with.

[a420]

I bought an 02 A4 1.8T 5pd with 40k miles and put 75k. And within those mileage, I have been fortunate enough to not have any major problems with it, not even a coil pack issue--can you believe I've never experienced blown coil packs? However, the only problem that I had was a split check valve and vacuum/hose leak--those were easy fixes. So in other words, they are reliable when treated right.

[Recone]

1998 A4 approaching 160k. The trick is, it leaks oil like a sieve so it's always got fresh lubricant in the crank case :-)

[doubleu8]

I'm just wondering how often audi's last over the 100,000 mark. Is there an average time that you start seeing heavy problems? I just ask because I see lot's of new on here, but I don't see any high milage audi's

seriously....seriously??

[vjmc]

I bought my 2004A4 1.8 6-sp. new in Oct. 2003. All maintenance at specified intervals by Audi dealerships. Now at 125,000miles. Have never had to add oil between 10,000 services. One coil quit at 80,000--Audi replaced all for free--Leaking thermostat at 110,000 cost total $400. Glove Box hinge broke at 120,000 and Front Window regulators went out together at 122,000--both fixed with help from the Forum for about $300 compared with the dealerships $1700. The best thing I ever did was have the APR Stage 1 flash at 75000 for $500--Hp from 170 to 210, Torque from 166 to 235-- A HUGE improvement with less than 1mpg loss in fuel economy which for me is 30 mpg at 75mph On my I95 commute. I drove a new WRX today thinking of trading the A4 but decided I like the A4 better and will truck on for 200,000.

[BASARAB]

Yes, German cars need maintenance. However mostly people think of it as repairs. Even timing belt job seems like a big repair, while its just a maintenance. So, more money and more hours spent at a repair shop =less reliability.
While u can drive Corolla without worrying about suspension and blown hoses for 150000,changing oil every 15k

[woofster]

250,000+ km (~160,000 miles) and still going strong. No worries.

[Hassmeister]

I had my '98.5 B5 A4 1.8t Sport Quattro 5-speed for 9 years and 144 miles.... sold it over Blue Book to a guy who drove up in a new Saab Aero and said he liked my Audi better than his Saab and said my car drove like new. The only problem I had was the control arm bushings up front. The car was flawless and problem free when I sold it with all my mods. One of the nicest cars I've owned! BTW, miss my QUATTRO!

[Tomm]

I'm at 243,000 miles and I hope to reach 300k. It's a 96 A4 and no mods were done to it.

I get 24-25 mpg mixed driving and the original papers say 19 mpg city and 26 mpg highway. Even if you dont care foremost about fuel economy this has to be a good sign about the running condition of the engine. btw the reason I know my gas mileage so well is that my fuel level gauge is not functioning - so yes there are some things like that to the car.

It's not a speedy car. But i still enjoy driving it.

[TonyP187]

What the hell!!!? I just got my drivers license after a long suspension, So i bought a cheap Nissan Max, high miles like 160, nothing worked that thing drove like sh*t. Finally it blew the trans 6 months later. Next I bought a Nissan Altima 160 K. Everyone was like yo those things run forever lmao, What a piece, and then not to mention the the radiator cracked the engine overheated I pulled right over right away, after It cooled down and I put new fluid it wouldn't start no compression, a week after a had it. LOL. Now I got the 04 audi a6 with 112 K, The audi is like a brand NEW CAR, not a piece of sh*t nissan where the paint is falling off the interior is worn out the suspension is ruined check engine light on and the car basically is ass.

[Kendub631]

Thats soo awesome!

I'm at 243,000 miles and I hope to reach 300k. It's a 96 A4 and no mods were done to it.

I get 24-25 mpg mixed driving and the original papers say 19 mpg city and 26 mpg highway. Even if you dont care foremost about fuel economy this has to be a good sign about the running condition of the engine. btw the reason I know my gas mileage so well is that my fuel level gauge is not functioning - so yes there are some things like that to the car.

It's not a speedy car. But i still enjoy driving it.

[JPJ2007]

My 2006 has 143k miles! lol And she still looks new! And runs good too. Only mods are mufflers removed... I am switching from 0w-40 to 10w-40 soon though... Always ran Mobile 1 since I got it and will continue. And OEM oil cartridges



Also tracked it. (Before tint and LED's)


Had it since 90k miles in 2009 and Havnt done anything aside from Oil changes... Was in dealer for some recalls but they took care of everything. (Fuel Pressure Sensor and coils for the spark plugs)

[mylittlemonster]

Owned a couple b5 a4s. One (1997) at 152k when someone totaled me, but ran fine. Current one at 182k (2001) all on original components. Smaller wear and tear items are starting to go, but it runs just fine (better than the 97). Couldn't be happier with how far these cars go.

[moyenecorniche]

[QUOTE=wednesday;5130804]For myself, I would buy one and have been keeping eye on the RS's for a while. However, for my family, I would not recommend one without a warranty of some kind.

I am not bashing Audi's. However, I see more higher mileage Honda, Nissan or Toyota that can very well be recommended to families versus an Audi with more than 100k miles. I went to consumer reports and people will give higher rating (because they love their Audi's including me), however they will also state about how they had to fix items after certain mileage (and to budget something every year) and were always knee deep in simply maintenance costs. Keep in mind, cars depreciate in price. Ofcourse hobbies should not be counted in so. I bet if I search reliability and maintenance costs, then I will find my similar research to echo throughout these forums. Sorry if I went off-topic a bit.

I disagree with you, one of the main reasons there are more japanese cars out there with high mileage is due to the fact that maintenance and/or servicing on an Acura/Honda or Toyota or Nissan will be much less expensive than on an Audi, Saab, Volvo, BMW.
That fact tends to let people drive japanese cars into the ground since you can drive the japanese cars and dismiss quite a bit of the required servicing. But then you have a piece of junk with no resale value, questionable reliability and forget about safety, that said, hopefully it will last for another 30,000 miles. ( No Thank You ).

One cannot be so dismissive with Euro's, an exception to the rule would have to be (have been, sold 6 years ago with 180,000 miles and still on the road ) my old Volvo 240 Wagon. only real issue was electrical and once I figured it out, ( 25amp fuse on driver side firewall, would short out due to moisture induced corrosion. Simple remedy was to go to NAPA, buy an enclosed fuse box, spliced it in replacing the OEM and never got stranded by the side of the road again trying to figure out what happened .. the first time..)

I bought my 04 1.8T sport Avant Quattro from an Audi dealership. It was certified with a full coverage 2 year warranty or 100,000 miles. It had 51,000, it just turned 176,000 miles. Yes parts have been replaced along the way, fuel pump @ 100,000 brakes were redone while still under warranty, radiator had a pin leak also warrantied. Basically it has been serviced at scheduled intervals, is going in in two weeks for timing belt change, and may get a couple upgrades at the same time. Exhaust system is going to need replacement soon as it is showing it's age. Overall it has been a great car, have had to be towed in twice in the 3.5 years Iv'e owned it. Fuel pump and coil pack issue ( my fault as I had been running 89 or less octane ) was covered by Audi nevertheless. It has no squeaks, suspension is tight, interior is flawless other than the floor matts which need replacement again, starts right up, no alarming noises from the engine/ drivetrain dept.
I would recommend a Quattro Avant to anyone but there is a Caveat.

You have to service an Audi regularly on schedule and if something does need attention, you don't keep driving it until you get around to it. Because of the complexities, when something is amiss it will affect other components and sometimes badly or expensively if neglected.
The answer is for you can I actually afford to keep this car in tip top shape all the time. If you do so you won't have any problems but mechanicals do wear out and if you drive the car abusively, which is not the same as driving it spiritively or sporting it will fail.
Last very important Caveat...If buying preowned, must have a full service record/log from day one to the present, otherwise walk away as these cars poorly maintained are exceedingly expensive to bring back to form, unless you are a capable VAG mechanic.
Good Luck

PS One other item mentioned on other posts, adhere to Audi's recommendation for Castrol Synth oil specific for VAG's 05-40 (all lubricants and coolants)

[naiku]

I will be finding out soon enough, my 2006 A4 is at just over 99,000 miles now, about another 2-3 weeks and I will be over the 100,000 mile mark and no more CPO warranty.

[moyenecorniche]

I was wondering this the other day about vehicle reliability ratings and about the longevity of cars. Consumer Reports, and other places always say Toyota and Honda are the most reliable and have relatively few issues, where the German manufacturers (MB/VW/BMW/Audi) tend to be on the bottom half of the reliability charts. Could this just be due to the owners of said vehicles? I rarely see German cars driving around with something wrong (light out, scratches, dents, etc.) but will quite frequently see these and other things with domestics and Asian cars. Could the reliability be skewed in that other owners just put up with small issues rather than reporting them or getting them fixed, where people with European cars try to keep them in pristine condition?

I take Consumer Reports with a grain of salt and a healthy dose of skepticism, does anyone remember the idiotic Unintended Acceleration segment 60 minutes did on Audi's a few years ago. In where they conveniently failed to mention that Audi was actually somewhere around tenth on that list and top of the list were all of the Big Three ( Ford GM Chrysler ). All outside reports state that they could not find a mechanical issue to cause ( I stepped on the brakes and the car speeded up thru the fence and into the pool (LOL) ) the issue but rather everything pointed to driver error and very much connected to improper footwear for driving, like High heels, huge work boots and other docking sized footwear.

Reliability is affected by neglect or abuse, pure and simple, My 2nd Car at 18, a Saab 99E was reliable until I tried to drag race and race Camaro's and Mustangs thru the twisty's. I had no one to blame but myself, even though the car performed for two cross country trips. But abusing it the way I did was far and above it's capabilities and after replacing the tranny twice what can I say....

[moyenecorniche]

I will be finding out soon enough, my 2006 A4 is at just over 99,000 miles now, about another 2-3 weeks and I will be over the 100,000 mile mark and no more CPO warranty.

Chill....It's not as if Audi's are programmed to self destruct and detonate at 100,000..LOL

[Saracen]

I have owned my A4 since it was brand new, and it just ticked over 130,000 miles this week. There have of course been the occasional and typical A4 quibbles (brake switch going bad killing the battery, replaced the window regulators, blew a coilpack after Stage 1, etc..), however it has never ever broken down on me or suffered any kind of failure, mechanical or otherwise. It's been pretty damn reliable. I DD it, I take it on road trips, I've put that quattro system to full use, and it has never had an issue.

I keep it religiously maintained. Take care of your Audi and it will take care of you.

[SilverBullets]

my B7 has been a general pain the ass... i maintain the car, i really don't drive the car hard at all (occasional sprited acceleration but i purposely shift slow and never really more that that) but for some reason the one I got has been a repair whore. Its an 08, has 55k on it. It's been back to the dealer to have service on 7 different issues. I can't imagine my particular B7 being reliable post 100k miles.