Which cabriolet?

[randall977]

I'm after an A4 cabriolet for £7500 - £9000 but I'm not sure which to go for. Would it be unwise to spend £7500 (the least as far as I can see)? Which engine is best? Also what should I look out for? I have discounted the pre 2000 cabriolet as exponentially worse quality than the A4 cabriolet - is this unfair? Thanks for any advice in advance.

[randall977]

Anyone? I'm thinking a 1.8t sport 2004 with about 55K - £8500? What about the 3.0? The 2.4 is cheap - why? Ta

[upliftin]

Hi

Good choice of car. However, i test drove an A4 cab 1.8T and to be honest i thought that the 1.8T was way underpowered for this car. It is very heavy, due to all the extra strengthening to stop body shake.

In the end i tested a 3.0 quattro, which was the puppies danglies, however, the fuel consumption was outrageous. So that leaves the 2.4 which is the one i am going to go for.

There is also the v6 2.5 Tdi which would be the best IMO but thats as long as you can handle the nosie of a diesel engine with the top down :biglaugh:

Lovely car. Go manual, 2.4 V6, in blue, grey or sliver, maybe black. All nice colours. Plus get 17's on her too.

Enjoy.

[randall977]

Thanks Upliftin. The 2.4 seems best value, it's certainly smooth (though not particularly fast). The reviews say that the cabrio tends to be front heavy - I wonder if the 1.8T (being a lighter engine) helps with this? Think I might have to test drive a few... What kind of price are you hoping to pay just out of interest?

[upliftin]

Hi

i think the 2.4 will be slightly quicker than the 1.8T and definately better on the motorway, and its possible to chip the 2.4 as im sure it has more to give than 170bhp.

Im living in germany so will be looking to pay around 12-14000 euros for a low km 2.4.

trouble was when i tested the 1.8T, i went down the autobahn and it was pants when trying to overtake anyone....but im sure that could be chipped too as its the same motor thats in the TT giving 225....maybe the turbo is different....not sure.

But its a heavy car, and feels well built, typical Audi over engineering, and IMO a lovely understated cabrio, much nicer than the BMW 3er cab.

cheers
j

[upliftin]

Oh and dont forget, the 2.4 will sound soooo much better with the hood down than the 1.8T....especially if you fit a nice remus stainless system on the back.

:biglaugh:

J

[randall977]

Yes, the 2.4 does sound very nice - though I've only driven the A6 version. I guess it cheaper as it's kind of the in-between model - neither the more economical 1.8 or the more powerful 3.0. It must be the sport model though - as with all Audi's!

[coolio]

Hi

Good choice of car. However, i test drove an A4 cab 1.8T and to be honest i thought that the 1.8T was way underpowered for this car. It is very heavy, due to all the extra strengthening to stop body shake.

In the end i tested a 3.0 quattro, which was the puppies danglies, however, the fuel consumption was outrageous. So that leaves the 2.4 which is the one i am going to go for.

There is also the v6 2.5 Tdi which would be the best IMO but thats as long as you can handle the nosie of a diesel engine with the top down :biglaugh:

Lovely car. Go manual, 2.4 V6, in blue, grey or sliver, maybe black. All nice colours. Plus get 17's on her too.

Enjoy.


I get over 30mpg combined from my 3.0 manual

[randall977]

That's very respectable! So I guess you would recommend the 3.0 over the 2.4 then...

[coolio]

I think in order of desirability, it goes 3.0, then 1.8T then 2.4. I don't regret getting a 3.0 for a second

[randall977]

I've decided to go for a 2004 3.0 Sport - quattro or just 2WD. I've seen a few with around 45K for the £9000 mark - does this sound about right. It's a lot of car for the money but it's a good time to buy.

[upliftin]

I have to agree the 3.0 is EPIC! I just loved the sound with the hood down, but i suppose thats why i got low mpgs during the test as i was not driving it with mpg in mind. It was the quattro as well.

and yes a great time to buy as prices have dropped a shed load.

have fun and post us some piccies when you get it!

:beerchug:

[coolio]

I think Lincoln Audi have a black one, 53 plate for a tad under 10k, maybe triptronic though.

Mine does only get about 18mpg around town (c london) but i mainly use it v late at night combined with motorway, and 30mins london, 30mins motorway, i get 32mpgish. I have gotten 40mpg in it before when just motorway.

The roar with the hood down accelerating hard in 2nd or 3rd is immense. I remember turning around franticly wondering where the motorbike was behind me until I realised it was me.

Prices have come down. I spent 5 months trying to find a 3.0 from March last year. I was gutted when I missed out on a 3.0 quattro 04, 25k on the clock for £16k. I got so bored of looking and waiting for the spec I wanted, I started looking at the 1.8T. I did not want grey leather (what is with that in every car?) and it took me until late August to get pearlescent black, full black leather, parking sensors, 6 cd changer, 1 owner since new, FASH (variable but done every year for some reason), and warranty from a specialist garage, Rs4 alloys absolutely mint for £13.5k. I bit their hand off and had to travel a fair distance also. So that indicates what prices were like then. My car at the time (Golf GTi) needed some work doing at some point so although I lost money, that could've been an expensive car to keep hold of.

I didn't worry much about Quattro or not. My bro is a mechanic and he said it's just more to go wrong, acceleration was no better, mpg was worse, so while yes, having the 'Quattro' badge on it would be pretty flash, in reality wouldn't make any difference to me.

[randall977]

Thanks Coolio. There is one out there which I've seen with 44K, 53 plate in a nice deep met blue (which I like). Black half leather, parking aid, 3.0 sport 2WD, manual - £8990. Seems a good price but I guess you have to be very careful with one of these history wise. I'm wondering if I should hold out for a quattro with electric alll leather seats??? Yes worse mpg and actually a bit slower but it's a quattro!

[coolio]

I preferred the full leather personally. But I hear the alcantera keeps youin place when cornering ;)

The 3.0 should have full leccy seats although won't necessarily have the heated seats (mine don't). And I agree, the moro blue is gorgeous. It was my 2nd favourite colour choice :beerchug:

Bodywork I think shows a lot. Mine was pretty mint (paint swirl/scratches) but only 3 paint chips on the bonnet. That was before I reversed into concrete pillars on both sides :Blush2: Yet I saw a 52 with only 22k on the clock at a dealership and the bodywork was worse than my 92k Golf.

If you test drive, turn the lights on as some of the errors only come up then on the onboard computer.

Harrogate have a 05 in black Quattro with Anis (love that color leather) for £12850. Try and put in a silly offer ;)

With the black leather, the inside of the roof is also black. I don't find it too dark, but some may.

[randall977]

Great advice - any tips very much appreciated! Ah yes the Golf (I assume it was a mk4 you had) - they always look good whatever - I've had two GT TDi's and they were such great cars - you can only really go to an Audi once you've had a Golf.

So the 3.0 Cabrio - any idea about cam belt changes and costs to look out for? I'm useless at haggling - the intention is there but...

[coolio]

At the moment, aim very low, I would knock off 20% and if needbe work up a bit. I have seen dealers with cars since the summer and they've dropped from 14k down to 10k or lower.

Stafford Audi are on eBay and they do cheap servicing, including cambelts, I believe for about £250 whereas your local dealership would be after a lot more. I recall for my Golf (yes, Mk4) Epsom VW wanted £600.

Unfortunately I live in London but will be popping up to Stafford next month for my servicing and a few other things.

Obviously check the hood for fading, this should indicate whether its been stuck outside or inside. Make sure hood goes up and down nicely (yes it takes forever and finger has to stay on the button). Check for rattles. Check seat electrics, heating. Some centre consoles seem to suffer from blistering of the buttons. The aircon unit has to be replaced as a whole unit if this happens but the rest you can buy for a few quid. Check drivers side leather seat as some I have seen have been 'caught' badly and worn. Parking sensors will beep as soon as you go into reverse, and then beep when you get close to something, I think solid beep when only 30cm away.

[randall977]

Seems that 95% of A4 cabrios for sale at the moment are trade - wonder why? I'm always suspicious of trade - I would much rather buy private - though for what I want to pay trade seems better value at the mo - maybe because they have realised the state of the market? Kind of tempted by a 1.8T Quattro - but really there's only a couple of mpg between a 1.8 and a 3.0 - the 3.0 must be a very good engine!

[randall977]

Bought an 05 1.8T Quattro Sport, Moro Blue, Full Black Nappa Leather, Xenons, 57K - £8600. Just caught the guy before he p/x'd it - literally he was in the Audi garage in the process of signing it over. Picking it up next week - very excited - what great value!

[coolio]

Wow, great price :beerchug:

[daz4805]

Hi,

I wonder if anyone can give me a little bit of advice?

I am looking for a 3.0 a4 cabrio but I am not sure whether to go Manual or Automatic Multitronic gearbox and was wondering if anyone could give me an idea on which one you would recommend?

Many thanks,

Darren