Audi A3 1.8 T Issues

[faisalgti]

Hey guys ive sold my golf after over 2 years and now looking to buy an audi a3 1.8t.

ive put a deposit down on one ive seen today. its a 51 plate, 92k, black with black leather.

the only problem is its £3995 and the guy wont budge, even though its on the steep end i love it and it ticks every box for the car i wanted next.

took it on a test drive today. main thing i noticed was a squeaky noise coming from the rear wheels, i thought bushes as i had the same problem with the golf. their going to check it out tomorrow as its a service centre and mot garage too and let me know.

is there any more things i should be looking out for??

[fourringsrus]

Only the usual ,ie; cam belts etc ,remember she's basically still a golf with a pretty dress on
Good luck

Stuart

[faisalgti]

Thankx for replying mate, yeah it is but the golf i had was a 2.0!!! a huge mistake really but mainly for insurance purposes at the time. apart from THAT engine the car build and quality was nothing short of amazing and because of the engine i knowt theres still alot of fun to have in either of these cars with the 1.8t engine.

however i want one just before they get too old to have or looking as i plan to keep it for anything up to 3 years(maybe 4 if no problems!!) so defo do want one.

if the car dosent give me any problems for around 18 mnths id consider it to be a bargain. but theres just no chance of making sure of that think the only way is to get the warranty.

By cam belt do you just mean ask when it was changed or check the current one? if you meant check the current one any thing to look for in particular?

So far ive got these on the list to check:

1)Water pump - -has it been changed

2)Lights on dash (for flickering)

3)Both front and rear window washes are working

4)Both driver and passenger windows go up and down

5) And now the cam belt



Any more tips or advice or do you think these checks should be enough?


Also mileage is 93k with fsh? how long are these engines good for on average with fsh?


Heres a link to the car if you wanna check it out:


http://www.fish4.co.uk/cars/advert?model=4402&location=m24+1ls&areaid=2682&maxResults=5&parentId=1197272750&chk=05f81af3acf55c298aabb7a9b47175b3&adId=25754232&pricelow=3000&pagetype=searchresults&within=30&offset=4&make=3847&pricehigh=4000

[fourringsrus]

Yep, with a full history noting just what has been done,93k is just warmed up.
As a rule when Audi do the cam belt they will recommend changing the water pump at the same time because the pump is cheap to buy and the cam belt would have to come off to do it anyway,so saving a lot of work in the future just for a £45/50 pump
Do all your usual checks anyway ie; suspension bushes anti roll bar/bushes shockers and mounts etc ,the 1.8 t is a good reliable strong unit and when looked after will go on for ever
I have viewed the car in your link and she looks great but at nearly 4 grand you are not far away from the price of an early S3 which is a simply superb machine still using the 1.8 turbo but now adding a few more horses and of course quattro
Keep checking and comparing prices on sites like autotrader pistonheads and whichever you go for you won't be unhappy.
I've owned a 2001 S3 and a '97 1.8t sport (check out the gold one in my public profile album).
and they are just great little cars and relatively cheap to run.
Sure you'll find a good one ,.enjoy

Stuart

[faisalgti]

Yep, with a full history noting just what has been done,93k is just warmed up.
As a rule when Audi do the cam belt they will recommend changing the water pump at the same time because the pump is cheap to buy and the cam belt would have to come off to do it anyway,so saving a lot of work in the future just for a £45/50 pump
Do all your usual checks anyway ie; suspension bushes anti roll bar/bushes shockers and mounts etc ,the 1.8 t is a good reliable strong unit and when looked after will go on for ever
I have viewed the car in your link and she looks great but at nearly 4 grand you are not far away from the price of an early S3 which is a simply superb machine still using the 1.8 turbo but now adding a few more horses and of course quattro
Keep checking and comparing prices on sites like autotrader pistonheads and whichever you go for you won't be unhappy.
I've owned a 2001 S3 and a '97 1.8t sport (check out the gold one in my public profile album).
and they are just great little cars and relatively cheap to run.
Sure you'll find a good one ,.enjoy

Stuart



Boy would i love the s3!! Ive been looking at them and yeah for an extra grand i could get a beauty but just running costs and insurance would probably be a step too high for me. but yeah would really love one my uncle had one drove it a couple of times it was class never felt anything like it before.
my mates got a newer one the 57 plate and even though it was impressive id prefer the first one to tell you the truth.

As for checking suspension etc im not really great at that kinda stuff wouldnt know what to look out for.

All i know is that the squeaks at the rear sounded exactly like the noise at the front of my golf which i had to change the bushes to, told the garage they said theyd check it out.

Also another thing i noticed was that it was very heavy on bumps the knock is really hard. we drove on an industrial estate road(very bumpy) which i was glad to do as its better to check the car in worst road conditions. and that was the main thing i noticed quite heavy loud knock if it hits a bump, the guy said its probably due to it being lowered at the front a little. Dont know how reliable what he said is but they do look like trustworthy and respectable people and business, but then some cars have a beautiful body and we all know what the engine can be like!!!

[fourringsrus]

Yes , I know what you are saying,if you can get a fitter/mechanic that you trust to have a peek ,especially at the rear suspension I think it would be prudent.
The gold A3 in my profile album was lowered and stiffened and running on 18" alloys and though the ride was a bit harsh to say the least, it did not bang on the bumpy bits.
I would imagine, going only on you description ,that the squeeking is bushes, and if accompanied by a bang on the bumps maybe the shock absorbers are shot.
If they are shot and not doing much they would be 'loose' in the fitment and then highlight the naff bushes,quite often people lower cars badly by fittinf a shorter spring but not upgrading the shockers.
Just a thought ,good luck

Stuart

[faisalgti]

What your saying does sound like the problem and since its one of the things you said to look out for ive got a sneaky feeling that there is probably a problem with the shock absorbers and bushes.

are they an expensive do?

thats probably as far as the problems go with the bodywork the engine was quite loud at the start then eventually at an ok sound(not purring like i hoped) but did sound ok. there was a weird noise at the start the guy said it was the air con and said it goes back to normal when warmed up i switched ac on after it was warm and the noise was gone so hoping thats not an issue.....so badly hope this car turns out to be a good one!!!!

[fourringsrus]

As with most things on most cars,the shockers and bushes can be as cheap or as dear as you are prepared to pay,if these are things you are unable to do yourself do a bit of local research for a garage or even better an independant Audi specialist that you feel able to entrust the job to.
Good luck

Stuart

[faisalgti]

Hey finally got the car today!! Got to say so far i am REALLY impressed. Obviously you all know about the good points glad that im finally experiencing it.

Issues however- Not noticed the bushes as much as i did that day maybe because music is on alot now when im driving, the guy at the garage said they checked them and said they were ok.

The temp gauge dosent go over about a 1/4 in my golf always used to be on halfway, hope thats not a sign of any problems?Noticed today on the motorway it was going up went just above a quater then went down again, not right to the bottom though.

Had a little thing with reverse where it juddered like mad tried it again when i got on my road and seemed fine so could just be me getting used to the clutch.

The drinkholder as well seems like a fizzy drink has been spilt on it and it gets jammed, only comes out on the odd occasion, just gonna give it a good clean next time i can get it open.

Apart from that though so far so good, not even been a day yet though so trying not to get too excited.

In the end in the deal he wouldnt budge on the price, however i did get a service, mot, 6mnths tax. 2 new front brake discs and pads, 1 brand new tyre, a cd changer(which wasnt mentioned in ad, so i thought i had just a tape player which would need replacing so saved some money and glad i get to keep audi stereo inside) and also he forgot to take £40 of me, had money for car in cash just couldnt be bothered going cash machine for the last £40 said id pay it by card and he forgot about it:D

So i reckon i saved a good £300-500 there which i tell myself means i got the car for around 3600-3700 which im really happy about.

But like i said at the start if she gives me no problems for 18mnths id consider her to be a bargain!!