Just bought my first Audi. Long time lurker, first time poster.
12-08-2008, 06:12 AM
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Just bought my first Audi. Long time lurker, first time poster.
<center><img src="http://cloudcitydigital.com/missing.jpg"></center><p>Hi folks. After driving a beater 1997 VW Jetta for about 9 years, and then buying my wife a 2005 Subaru Legacy Wagon, I decided to buy a car for myself that I actually wanted to drive (the Subie is awesome, but it's "her" car for haulin' around the baby).
I found a silver 2001 A4 2.8l with a slushbox (wife will have to drive it from time to time) on Craigslist that caught my eye.
87k miles, black leather, sunroof, Bose package, heated seats, etc...
New timing belt/pump at 70k miles, new high performance tires, new spark plugs, and new brakes.
He wanted $7300.
The few issues with the car are as follows:
1. Small scuff on the rear bumper, not a big deal to me.
2. The heating element on the passenger seat died, so he replaced the whole seat with a seat that had its side airbag blown out. The gaping hole on the side of the seat looks pretty bad...
3. The information LCD has the pixel disease that seems unavoidable...
4. The oil light is on, due to what he says was Valvolines fault, they pulled a sensor wire out, and the code needs to be reset after putting it back in. They didn't have the right equip to do it themselves.
So I drove about 45 minutes to meet him and check the car out. First impressions were very good, I drove the car on the highway for about 5 minutes and had it up to about 80mph on Michigan highways (good test for any car!) It felt solid, no thumps or thwomps. The interior was flawless other than the ripped seat side and pixel display.
Always hard to do the bartering thing, but I was able to get him down to $6600, which I felt was a good deal given reasonably low miles, the incredible interior condition, and the recent service on the car.
So, I'm picking the car up this week and have some standard newbie questions which I HAVE tried to search for in the forums. (Coming from VW Vortex, I am familiar with some basic car forum etiquette).
1. Are the Bose stereo, amplifier (assuming it's not in the head unit), and the speaker system integrated to the point that it ALL has to be removed to install an aftermarket system, or can I preserve the speakers and amps, but put in my own double DIN headunit. The Bose stuff sounded good enough for me, but I would like a headunit that works with my iPhone to some degree...
2. Is the side airbag on the passenger seat something that can be replaced, or will I need to buy a whole new seat to fix it. Or, I may just sew it up on the side...
3. Minor quibble, but I think the faux wood trim pieces of the interior look a little cheesy, how feasible is it to replace those with solid black pieces that match the rest of the interior?
4. I won't be doing any serious mods, but I think dropping the car an inch or so and putting some tasteful 17"s on the car might be in my future. What kind of suspension options are out there that won't break the bank (again, I'm not auto-crossing this car, just going for a nice look...)
5. I've attached a picture of the car, you can see its missing a trim piece in the left lower front bumper. What is the exact name for this, I'm going to try to track one down in the forums, or online...
6. Anything else I should be aware of as I own my first Audi? Everyone jokes about all the problems that A4's have, but this one seems well taken care of, and I'm hoping it can give me another 80k miles or so!
Thank you SO much time, I look forward to being a part of your community, not just a question asking newb.
I found a silver 2001 A4 2.8l with a slushbox (wife will have to drive it from time to time) on Craigslist that caught my eye.
87k miles, black leather, sunroof, Bose package, heated seats, etc...
New timing belt/pump at 70k miles, new high performance tires, new spark plugs, and new brakes.
He wanted $7300.
The few issues with the car are as follows:
1. Small scuff on the rear bumper, not a big deal to me.
2. The heating element on the passenger seat died, so he replaced the whole seat with a seat that had its side airbag blown out. The gaping hole on the side of the seat looks pretty bad...
3. The information LCD has the pixel disease that seems unavoidable...
4. The oil light is on, due to what he says was Valvolines fault, they pulled a sensor wire out, and the code needs to be reset after putting it back in. They didn't have the right equip to do it themselves.
So I drove about 45 minutes to meet him and check the car out. First impressions were very good, I drove the car on the highway for about 5 minutes and had it up to about 80mph on Michigan highways (good test for any car!) It felt solid, no thumps or thwomps. The interior was flawless other than the ripped seat side and pixel display.
Always hard to do the bartering thing, but I was able to get him down to $6600, which I felt was a good deal given reasonably low miles, the incredible interior condition, and the recent service on the car.
So, I'm picking the car up this week and have some standard newbie questions which I HAVE tried to search for in the forums. (Coming from VW Vortex, I am familiar with some basic car forum etiquette).
1. Are the Bose stereo, amplifier (assuming it's not in the head unit), and the speaker system integrated to the point that it ALL has to be removed to install an aftermarket system, or can I preserve the speakers and amps, but put in my own double DIN headunit. The Bose stuff sounded good enough for me, but I would like a headunit that works with my iPhone to some degree...
2. Is the side airbag on the passenger seat something that can be replaced, or will I need to buy a whole new seat to fix it. Or, I may just sew it up on the side...
3. Minor quibble, but I think the faux wood trim pieces of the interior look a little cheesy, how feasible is it to replace those with solid black pieces that match the rest of the interior?
4. I won't be doing any serious mods, but I think dropping the car an inch or so and putting some tasteful 17"s on the car might be in my future. What kind of suspension options are out there that won't break the bank (again, I'm not auto-crossing this car, just going for a nice look...)
5. I've attached a picture of the car, you can see its missing a trim piece in the left lower front bumper. What is the exact name for this, I'm going to try to track one down in the forums, or online...
6. Anything else I should be aware of as I own my first Audi? Everyone jokes about all the problems that A4's have, but this one seems well taken care of, and I'm hoping it can give me another 80k miles or so!
Thank you SO much time, I look forward to being a part of your community, not just a question asking newb.
12-08-2008, 06:39 AM
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Automatic FTL . . . why is the hood out of alignment ? Is it a quattro ?
Hmmmm, maybe the hood thing is a camera angle visual trick. You should buy a VagCom interface to be able to scan your car. It works with anything VW including Lamborghini.
Have fun.
.
Have fun.
.
12-08-2008, 06:49 AM
#3
i thought the Bose system was ohm'd out differently.
You're probably better off replacing the entire setup if that's what you're into.
The faux wood... you can do a lot with. You could bring it down to a body shop and have them paint the pieces whatever you like. Or check classifieds on AW/AZ, some people have a DIY enterprise where they carbon-fibre/paint the pieces. Major pain in the *** to remove the dash pieces... but it's worth it.
Suspension not breaking the bank = sport springs and shocks. Probably $600ish, plus install. Or DIY.
That trim piece... look for "Carson@RiversideAudi" and email/call him and he will hook you up. Before you buy the piece, I'd pull out the other side and compare, and make sure there aren't any broken mounting clips/tabs.
Welcome aboard... check the tech section/FAQ (to your upper left) for common issues and everything else.
The faux wood... you can do a lot with. You could bring it down to a body shop and have them paint the pieces whatever you like. Or check classifieds on AW/AZ, some people have a DIY enterprise where they carbon-fibre/paint the pieces. Major pain in the *** to remove the dash pieces... but it's worth it.
Suspension not breaking the bank = sport springs and shocks. Probably $600ish, plus install. Or DIY.
That trim piece... look for "Carson@RiversideAudi" and email/call him and he will hook you up. Before you buy the piece, I'd pull out the other side and compare, and make sure there aren't any broken mounting clips/tabs.
Welcome aboard... check the tech section/FAQ (to your upper left) for common issues and everything else.
12-08-2008, 06:51 AM
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Some answers. >> Read the FAQ, lots of neat articles there.
1. Are the Bose stereo, amplifier (assuming it's not in the head unit), and the speaker system integrated to the point that it ALL has to be removed to install an aftermarket system, or can I preserve the speakers and amps, but put in my own double DIN headunit. The Bose stuff sounded good enough for me, but I would like a headunit that works with my iPhone to some degree...
>> There are some interlinks to connect other equipment to your headunit. I know the older Bose units required COMPLETE SYSTEM replacement if you wanted to change anything, but I'm not sure about the newere ones.
2. Is the side airbag on the passenger seat something that can be replaced, or will I need to buy a whole new seat to fix it. Or, I may just sew it up on the side...
>> Did you run a CarFax?
3. Minor quibble, but I think the faux wood trim pieces of the interior look a little cheesy, how feasible is it to replace those with solid black pieces that match the rest of the interior?
>> Faux wood? This ain't no Chevy. That's real wood.
>> There are some interlinks to connect other equipment to your headunit. I know the older Bose units required COMPLETE SYSTEM replacement if you wanted to change anything, but I'm not sure about the newere ones.
2. Is the side airbag on the passenger seat something that can be replaced, or will I need to buy a whole new seat to fix it. Or, I may just sew it up on the side...
>> Did you run a CarFax?
3. Minor quibble, but I think the faux wood trim pieces of the interior look a little cheesy, how feasible is it to replace those with solid black pieces that match the rest of the interior?
>> Faux wood? This ain't no Chevy. That's real wood.
12-08-2008, 07:20 AM
#6
The oil light should not be on due to a stored error code, that's only the CEL (MIL) light behavior
if the oil light is on then there's still a problem. I would be very careful here.
You can replace the Bose h/u with aftermarket but it will sound like crap with Bose amp and speakers. The Bose h/u is specifically equalized for those speakers.
Make sure you ask about the timing belt, it should've been replaced already, if not do it ASAP.
You can replace the Bose h/u with aftermarket but it will sound like crap with Bose amp and speakers. The Bose h/u is specifically equalized for those speakers.
Make sure you ask about the timing belt, it should've been replaced already, if not do it ASAP.
