B5 Audi S4 - Views
Discussion
What are peoples opinions of the B5 S4 in terms of how they drive, reliability, parts etc etc...
I currently have an EP3 Civic Type R and fancy a bit more of a cruiser but don't want to drop down on performance particularly and like the idea of 4wd twin turbo!
I'm also looking at S3's but to me they still seem expensive for what you are getting in terms of age and mileage and of course you have the dull 20VT engine. I had a mk4 gti before the civic that was remapped (AUM) so pretty quick but the engine was just so dull.
The one thing that puts me off S4's though is obviously that it is an expensive car new so if anything goes wrong seriously then it could be £££'s. I'm not bothered about paying sensible costs to run a car but not something that will cripple me everytime it goes wrong.
My mate has a 1.8T A4 that has been faultless but it isn't a quattro or a bi-turbo V6!!
I want to spend approx £7k ish, any other suggestions around that price for a subtle performance car?
Cheers
I currently have an EP3 Civic Type R and fancy a bit more of a cruiser but don't want to drop down on performance particularly and like the idea of 4wd twin turbo!
I'm also looking at S3's but to me they still seem expensive for what you are getting in terms of age and mileage and of course you have the dull 20VT engine. I had a mk4 gti before the civic that was remapped (AUM) so pretty quick but the engine was just so dull.
The one thing that puts me off S4's though is obviously that it is an expensive car new so if anything goes wrong seriously then it could be £££'s. I'm not bothered about paying sensible costs to run a car but not something that will cripple me everytime it goes wrong.
My mate has a 1.8T A4 that has been faultless but it isn't a quattro or a bi-turbo V6!!
I want to spend approx £7k ish, any other suggestions around that price for a subtle performance car?
Cheers
bales said:
What are peoples opinions of the B5 S4 in terms of how they drive, reliability, parts etc etc...
I currently have an EP3 Civic Type R and fancy a bit more of a cruiser but don't want to drop down on performance particularly and like the idea of 4wd twin turbo!
I'm also looking at S3's but to me they still seem expensive for what you are getting in terms of age and mileage and of course you have the dull 20VT engine. I had a mk4 gti before the civic that was remapped (AUM) so pretty quick but the engine was just so dull.
The one thing that puts me off S4's though is obviously that it is an expensive car new so if anything goes wrong seriously then it could be £££'s. I'm not bothered about paying sensible costs to run a car but not something that will cripple me everytime it goes wrong.
My mate has a 1.8T A4 that has been faultless but it isn't a quattro or a bi-turbo V6!!
I want to spend approx £7k ish, any other suggestions around that price for a subtle performance car?
Cheers
similar discussion the other weekI currently have an EP3 Civic Type R and fancy a bit more of a cruiser but don't want to drop down on performance particularly and like the idea of 4wd twin turbo!
I'm also looking at S3's but to me they still seem expensive for what you are getting in terms of age and mileage and of course you have the dull 20VT engine. I had a mk4 gti before the civic that was remapped (AUM) so pretty quick but the engine was just so dull.
The one thing that puts me off S4's though is obviously that it is an expensive car new so if anything goes wrong seriously then it could be £££'s. I'm not bothered about paying sensible costs to run a car but not something that will cripple me everytime it goes wrong.
My mate has a 1.8T A4 that has been faultless but it isn't a quattro or a bi-turbo V6!!
I want to spend approx £7k ish, any other suggestions around that price for a subtle performance car?
Cheers
http://www.pistonheads.co.uk/gassing/topic.asp?h=0...
I would imagine the S4 is a step up in speed, the 2.7TT is quick and with some tweaking can be insanely quick. But any turbocharged car will ultimately have bigger bills. I have heard of scary bills on these, but as with all cars there are good examples out there. The original 20vt (i5) is anything but dull and also capable of silly performance.
istoo said:
similar discussion the other week
http://www.pistonheads.co.uk/gassing/topic.asp?h=0...
I would imagine the S4 is a step up in speed, the 2.7TT is quick and with some tweaking can be insanely quick. But any turbocharged car will ultimately have bigger bills. I have heard of scary bills on these, but as with all cars there are good examples out there. The original 20vt (i5) is anything but dull and also capable of silly performance.
Yeah I know they are quick but I should have added I have (well just sold actually) a 220bhp 800kg Pug 205 gti so most things tend to feel a little pedestrian after that!! At least upto 100mph anyway! http://www.pistonheads.co.uk/gassing/topic.asp?h=0...
I would imagine the S4 is a step up in speed, the 2.7TT is quick and with some tweaking can be insanely quick. But any turbocharged car will ultimately have bigger bills. I have heard of scary bills on these, but as with all cars there are good examples out there. The original 20vt (i5) is anything but dull and also capable of silly performance.
Hmm have read a bit about turbo's being replaced being common on 80k+ cars which is about £3k thats the sort of bill that is scary when it is probably half the value of the car!
Seen standard, well maintained cars go well over 100k on the original turbos running fine. Cranking the boost up and driving like a loonybin from cold is probably a really good way to accelerate wear in them (not that I'm implying you'd do that yourself of course 
).
With age and miles comes maintenance stuff so if you've got 7k spend 5 on a nice, properly historied standard car and a lump of the change getting someone that knows them to go over brakes, bearings, suspension bushes, induction (MAF, diverter etc.)...
I'd bet that will give you a nicer to drive car than one that's just had 'stuff' bolted on to it.
).With age and miles comes maintenance stuff so if you've got 7k spend 5 on a nice, properly historied standard car and a lump of the change getting someone that knows them to go over brakes, bearings, suspension bushes, induction (MAF, diverter etc.)...
I'd bet that will give you a nicer to drive car than one that's just had 'stuff' bolted on to it.
Dr G said:
Seen standard, well maintained cars go well over 100k on the original turbos running fine. Cranking the boost up and driving like a loonybin from cold is probably a really good way to accelerate wear in them (not that I'm implying you'd do that yourself of course ).
With age and miles comes maintenance stuff so if you've got 7k spend 5 on a nice, properly historied standard car and a lump of the change getting someone that knows them to go over brakes, bearings, suspension bushes, induction (MAF, diverter etc.)...
I'd bet that will give you a nicer to drive car than one that's just had 'stuff' bolted on to it.
When you say 'stuff bolted on' what do you mean? Modified? ).With age and miles comes maintenance stuff so if you've got 7k spend 5 on a nice, properly historied standard car and a lump of the change getting someone that knows them to go over brakes, bearings, suspension bushes, induction (MAF, diverter etc.)...
I'd bet that will give you a nicer to drive car than one that's just had 'stuff' bolted on to it.
I wasn't looking for a modified one...
Am I being typecast due to owning a Type R...
Edited by bales on Tuesday 16th February 10:33
istoo said:
I would say DrG is referring to the cars actually, nothing wrong with the type R. You'll know this if you have one, try finding a clean standard one! S4's are the same.
Just making sure the OP knows there are two audi 20VT's!
There are a good few B5 S4 owners who post here
Yeah there are a lot of scallys driving EP3's now which is part of the reason I want to change it to something a bit more subtle! Just making sure the OP knows there are two audi 20VT's!
There are a good few B5 S4 owners who post here
The original S4 had the 5cyl didn't it, quite rare though as I haven't seen many of them about. I was talking about the VAG 4cyl 20VT, great engine just not very charismatic.
the urS4s are pretty thin on the ground, off the radar for most, which is why i like it personally.
If you want something a bit more subtle the S4 is definitely that, the B5 is growing on me more and more. I might get short down in flames but I feel the B5 was the last of the high build quality models.
I don't know what to look for in these but there is a good buyers guide on RS246 for the B5 RS/S4.
If you want something a bit more subtle the S4 is definitely that, the B5 is growing on me more and more. I might get short down in flames but I feel the B5 was the last of the high build quality models.
I don't know what to look for in these but there is a good buyers guide on RS246 for the B5 RS/S4.
I think you will be pleasantly surprised how good a car the S4 is. I've had my avant for about 9 months and it is one of the best cars i've had. On paper i thought the S4 might be slower than my 260bhp sunny or my subaru from years ago. Mid range and torque is awesome and will leave most cars sucking your exhaust fumes. The S4 should be quicker than your type R, but you won't need to go dropping gears to get the best out of it.
Mine has full service and had 85K on the clock. First thing i did was to give it a full service and timing belt. I felt the brakes (like on most cars) when pushed hard did fade. I put on goodridge hoses, new fluid, better pads and new discs on the front. Brakes are good now with no fade. I can let you know the exact costs of everything i've done if you want.
Remapping will apparently give you some nice gains and will transform the S4 for £300ish, it would be an option for you.
Good luck if you decide to go for one.
Mine has full service and had 85K on the clock. First thing i did was to give it a full service and timing belt. I felt the brakes (like on most cars) when pushed hard did fade. I put on goodridge hoses, new fluid, better pads and new discs on the front. Brakes are good now with no fade. I can let you know the exact costs of everything i've done if you want.
Remapping will apparently give you some nice gains and will transform the S4 for £300ish, it would be an option for you.
Good luck if you decide to go for one.
I loved my B5 S4, sold it just over a year ago now and i miss it like crazy, beautifully built, outstanding levels of grip, as others have said, your first port of call if you buy one should be MRC in Banbury for them to check it over and make it right.
Best options to look out for are '99 onwards cars are facelifted and just a bit nicer, recaro sports seats are the business but not a common upgrade (same as found in the B6 S4 and B5 RS4 etc)
Bose sound is OK but not essential. suspension bushes can wear quite quickly (and there is a lot of them) so bear this in mind come refresh time.
front brake discs can warp under abuse, there are quite a few options available, popular mods tend to be RS4 or RS6 disc and caliper setup, or Porsche 911 (993 i think) setup.
Centre displays on the dash do fade on most cars and the occasional pixels tend to drop out.
It is likley that if it still has the original stereo the volume control will be tempremantal in cold weather, fixable for not too much cash but has to be sent away for repair.
Do consider a remap, they respond so well it just makes sense.
Use good oil and have fun.
Avant versions seem to be preferred come resale time, i would buy another in a shot if someone would sell me a good one, but they are a bit thin on the ground in low miles and well looked after.
Best options to look out for are '99 onwards cars are facelifted and just a bit nicer, recaro sports seats are the business but not a common upgrade (same as found in the B6 S4 and B5 RS4 etc)
Bose sound is OK but not essential. suspension bushes can wear quite quickly (and there is a lot of them) so bear this in mind come refresh time.
front brake discs can warp under abuse, there are quite a few options available, popular mods tend to be RS4 or RS6 disc and caliper setup, or Porsche 911 (993 i think) setup.
Centre displays on the dash do fade on most cars and the occasional pixels tend to drop out.
It is likley that if it still has the original stereo the volume control will be tempremantal in cold weather, fixable for not too much cash but has to be sent away for repair.
Do consider a remap, they respond so well it just makes sense.
Use good oil and have fun.
Avant versions seem to be preferred come resale time, i would buy another in a shot if someone would sell me a good one, but they are a bit thin on the ground in low miles and well looked after.
Cheers for the replies the last two are exactly what I was looking for in terms of known issues. I know they will be quite a bit quicker than my Civic just mentioned it as a benchmark. The torque is the one thing I do miss, the EP3 is great when your absolutely on it and keeping the revs above 6.5k all the time but its hard work the rest of the time! I have trouble keeping up with my dad who has a diesel Leon FR when he is driving normally!
From what I have read so far on RS246 they do seem to be pretty reliable where the only major issues seem to be an exhaust manifold rattle and turbos going....however the general consensus seems to be if they are left to cool down and warm up properly (always did this with my 205 turbo anyway) that they are capable of high mileage without any issues. They are K03's which is the same as my Golf and there is plenty of higher mileage examples of them running around so can't see why they should be so prone to failure, they only run 8psi standard...
There is just that nagging worry that if the worst does happen i.e turbo's I have heard bills of £3k+ are not uncommon. I guess its important to look around for a good one and get it checked out like suggested.
I am really seriously considering one now so thanks for all your advice.
just mentioned it as a benchmark. The torque is the one thing I do miss, the EP3 is great when your absolutely on it and keeping the revs above 6.5k all the time but its hard work the rest of the time! I have trouble keeping up with my dad who has a diesel Leon FR when he is driving normally!From what I have read so far on RS246 they do seem to be pretty reliable where the only major issues seem to be an exhaust manifold rattle and turbos going....however the general consensus seems to be if they are left to cool down and warm up properly (always did this with my 205 turbo anyway) that they are capable of high mileage without any issues. They are K03's which is the same as my Golf and there is plenty of higher mileage examples of them running around so can't see why they should be so prone to failure, they only run 8psi standard...
There is just that nagging worry that if the worst does happen i.e turbo's I have heard bills of £3k+ are not uncommon. I guess its important to look around for a good one and get it checked out like suggested.
I am really seriously considering one now so thanks for all your advice.
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