Used S4 Avants - auto or manual?

[piperdelux]

Guys,

I have been flip flopping and dilly dallying for MONTHS now in regards to what to do for next motor. Currently in S5 coupe lease, goes back end of March. Wouldve extended in the absence of anything anywhere near as good on the lease market at the mo, but now have a 1 year old and all that goes with him to consider.

I have previously asked advice on CLS Shooting Brake's, and cheers for the advice on those.

Due to a change in work circumstances, my commute is now MUCH shorter, 3 miles each way, so will likely cycle anyway - this means that the new motor will be weekend use only really. As a result I've reined in my budget a bit, whether its lease or to buy used.

So, in the absence of anything I'm interested in lease wise, looking more and more likely I will be something used - lease I can get something I want to be in!

Requirements are;

4 door
Big enough boot for 'stuff'
Auto
Petrol (I think)
Can shift when required
Reliable, no major 'known' issues
Budget circa £15k - but that can be slightly flexible if its the right thing


Having been browsing for what seems like days, what I keep going back to is S4 Avants. For my money, I think it will be higher mileage newer, or lower mileage slightly older. This is one I really like the look of;

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2012-Audi-S4-Avant-3-0-...f:0

Not being a car expert in ANY way, can any of you tell me if the auto S4 Avant should be avoided - one ebay listing (for 6 speed manual), cited the 'known nightmare STronic issues' - course, he's biased :-)

Anything else I need to know?

And of course, any other recommendations? Apologies for yet another 'family wagon' request :-)

[James76G]

RFL on the manuals much higher as I recall.

I've driven a few, S-Tronic suits them well. Wouldn't want to run one without warranty though. S-Tronic went on my wife's Q5 at 4 years and 40k miles and replacement was over £7k, thankfully picked up by Audi Extended Warranty.

That one you've linked to doesn't have sat nav as the rotary controller is on the dash, normally behind the shifter for those with nav. Personally that would put me off, but you might be fine with it. Nav became standard late 2014 I think. Amazing it wasn't before really.

Edited by James76G on Wednesday 6th February 13:32

[piperdelux]

£7k?! Holy balls. Yes, that is certainly off putting.... for the last 11 years I have been in company cars and latterly a lease so not had to worry about that kind of thing....

Good tip about the nav too, I would definitely miss that - many thanks for the advice. Back to drawing board.

[S54Love]

A 535i comes into budget:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

Quite a rare car too, howmanyleft suggests there are only a few hundred or so on the road: https://www.howmanyleft.co.uk/vehicle/bmw_535i_m_s...

[CaptainSensib1e]

If you're looking for a weekend toy I wouldn't get an S4, I used to have one and it was very dull to drive.

My money would be going on the last gen of M3 in a saloon bodystyle or a Vauxhall VXR8.

[piperdelux]

I like that 535, anyone know if they tend to be reliable or any known expensive failings? I know no car is guaranteed to give low £ maintenance and repairs, but ideally want to avoid any known 'bad' years or models....

Excuse my ignorance, but what sort of plate would I be looking for for the suggested M3?

Thanks again for taking time to reply....

[nunpuncher]

In my opinion the engine in that vintage of 535i is less reliable and more expensive to run than the 3l V6 in the S4. Which by all accounts seems to be a pretty solid engine. This thread is 335i related which is the same engine but gives a good idea of potential issues.
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

I'd be amazed if you got an e90 shape m3 for £15k. They are rarer than the e92 (coupe) shape and those start at around £15k for one that has been driven to the moon and back. Also, if you're worried about potential issues and repair costs I would recommend a large tub of vaseline to go along with any M car purchase.

[nunpuncher]

4 door
Big enough boot for stuff
Petrol
Auto
Goes like st off a polished shovel
Reliable
and will sound fking immense

Little bit over budget but worth it.

https://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/...

[James76G]

Lexus is a great suggestion and unlike a 535i (and to a lesser extent an S4) would feel suitably special.

Word of warning, they are quite small in the back so rear facing car seats might be a problem if you are average height or over. Although I considered one (albeit an IS250) both the C Class and the S4 had more boot and cabin space.

[amstrange1]

piperdelux said:

£7k?! Holy balls. Yes, that is certainly off putting.... for the last 11 years I have been in company cars and latterly a lease so not had to worry about that kind of thing....

It's only £7k if you ignore the tell-tale signs of mechatronic unit failure, which later manifests itself in transmission failure - hence the £7k bill. Read up on what to look for, and you can make sure you buy a good one and keep an ear out for things starting to go awry. It's circa £1.5k to sort things if you catch it early - some cars will already be fixed.

[James76G]

I can't speak about the S4 but there were no tell tale signs on the Q5. Up to the point where it had its 39k miles gearbox service every shift had been clean, there was no hesitancy, no stalling and no noises.

About 500 miles after the service it started making a scuffing noise on trailing throttle (I.e cruising on motorway, somebody pulls in to your lane, you let off to re-establish a safe gap). It needed to be hot to do this and even then it was intermittent. Posted about it here in the VAG forum but nobody commented

500 miles later the gearbox error warning came on and since that was on the M23 in the roadworks they only option was to carry on, albeit at 40mph not 50mph. 10 miles later at Crawley it went in to limp home mode, so 20mph max and was nursed in to the office car park and subsequently recovered by Audi.

So yes, there were some warning signs but something going from being fine to outright failure in 500miles doesn't give you a lot of time. Daily commute is 75 miles so with some weekend use that was only a week of driving.

I suspect it could have been fixed but Audi were paying and they chose wholesale replacement. One of the actuators had gone out of range apparently. Whether that was the fault or it caused the fault I can't say as that was all I was told. But for every failure there's probably 49 cars that are fine. Still wouldn't want to run without a warranty though.

[CaptainSensib1e]

nunpuncher said:

I'd be amazed if you got an e90 shape m3 for £15k.

Here's one:
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
Mileage is quite high but if you could push the budget up a bit I'm sure you could get one with a more sensible mileage.

[piperdelux]

Thanks for all the advice, its much appreciated. I love the look of that Lexus, it wasn't on my radar before now. Would like to see one to get a look at boot space etc - Christ how things have changed for me when scoping out new motors....

The no nav issue on the S4 has put me off, even more than the potential gearbox issues!

[nunpuncher]

I don't think DSG is as problematic as you think. There are millions of Audi, VW, Seat and Skodas driving around with DSG boxes. Some of which are 15 years old yet despite this, reports of total failure aren't that common (probably why the unfortunate poster above with the Q5 couldn't find anyone on PH who'd suffered a similar issue). In the early days there were reports of mechatronic failure which often carried a hefty bill but I believe that's less common these days and repair been perfected to a 3 figure fix now by reputable Indies.

[piperdelux]

Thanks again for all advice so far. Having looked at the Lexus, admittedly online only and dimensions etc, ruled out as not quite roomy enough.

Any other suggestions for the criteria specified would be MOST welcome, 6 weeks until end of lease, anxiety building!