This may sound like a stupid question to all of you enthusiasts . . . I' getting ready to trade in my VW for my first Audi A4 and am wondering how much difference there is--in terms of acceleration--between the 1.8T 4 cylinder and the 2.8-liter 6 cylinder engines? I assumethe A4 2.8 has more torque and, thus power, but I'm mainly concerned with accerleration. Thanks!

At stock levels, the 2.8 will be quicker than the 1.8t (at least the
two that I test drove). It does have 40 more HP. It is also
a smoother engine and the 2.8 has more luxury appointments
available (leather, wood, etc..). Having said that, if you are going
to chip and/or do other mods, then you can make the 1.8 quicker
than the 2.8.

I bought the 2.8 1 1/2 years ago, and still LOVE it. No regrets.
The S4 is tempting me, though...

Nealr
98.5 2.8 QM(all but sport)

I had the same question ~8 months ago. I wanted the A4 and wanted reliability in my first new car, as well as some good acceleration. I was considering the Integra GS-R, so the A4 I would buy had to be faster to warrant the additional expenses.

I went into the dealership with a friend with 3 items to cover:
1.) Wanted to know the salesman's views on the differences between the 1.8T and the 2.8
2.) Wanted to tally up the numbers with my options and see what other costs are involved (didn't want "surprise" charges later)
3.) Wanted to test drive the 2 diff models to see what I couls feel.

We did all of the above. I am 23 and the salesman was less than 5 years older than me. I had noted the 0-60 times of each model being 7.1 (2.8) and 8.1 (1.8T) from the brochure. I mentioned that I would be interested in doing some visual mods (wheels, etc) and would like to get the 0-60 in the mid 6's. But I was hesitant in doing any changes which would conflict with the warranty. The salesman, to my surprise, was suggesting the 1.8T. For a salesman to suggest the $4K less expensive car meant that he was being honest and not just in it for the sale.

We proceeded on for the test drive of our life. He took us ourt to show what the car could do. Amazing! Believe it or not, he tried to get "air" over a railroad crossing.

Well, from that day forward, I started to notice what people were saying regardind the differences between the models (I hadn't payed much attention before). What I found out and you will is that almost all of the aftermarket performance (engine) enhancements are made for the 1.8T. A big part of that is because the turbo is electronically controlled and it is under utilized by the factory programming. For $150-600, you can get a chip and filter that will get your 150hp up to the 190's. That's almost a 33% increase. Changing the exhaust, turbo or a few other mods can easily get you into the mid 200's. A bigger investment can get you over the 300hp mark. I think the typically A4 owner on this board has at least the chip and filter and are just shy of 200hp. The next largest group has spent the money on an exhaust and may be in the 210-225 range.

As for the 2.8, I believe a chip and filter may get you 15hp, bringing you to 205hp. Otherwise your only option is the PES supercharger for $4000+ and that will boost you to 280hp.

One thing I was shown was with the V6 engine you have an additional 150-200lbs on your front end. This difference seemed more obvious during the test drive than the 1 sec 0-60 difference.

I'm sure there's a lot more to add, but in the end I went with a '00 1.8T. I'm not planning on going overboard with mods, but I would like ~210hp. So for me, spending $500 (1.8T mods) to get there was better than $4000 (price difference between models). Not to mention that I don't have that weight on my front end.

Oh yeah, one other thing - fuel economy: With the turbo engine, you have the speed when you push it and you have the fuel economy when you don't. With the V6, you're paying for it all the time.

my views,
Mark P

it is true that you get more after-market performance with a turbo. So if that is what you want go for it. But the chip does void the warranty, and reduces the overall life of the car. I feel after paying so much for a car (i'm young too, 22) I don't want to put more money in it only to break it.
In response to the dealer pushing the 1.8, there is a good reason. The dealership makes more money from them. 1.8TQM is the most wanted, thus the most in terms of relative expense. Simple supply and demand.

I'm sure the other guy did too. I would guess there was slight age discrimination. Some dealers tried to bully me around.

is that the 1.8T represents about 33% of AoA's A4 sales. Thus, being the less preferred model, dealers are awarded a larger comission off a 1.8T than a 2.8. Consequently, dealerships get a higher rating from Audi for moving more 1.8T's as well.

99.5 30vQMS

It would depend if the 33% is due to low AoA supply of 1.8T rather high customer demand for the 2.8. My general observation is that dealer lots seem to have more 2.8's sitting around whereas all 1.8Ts are either sold or people are waiting for delivery.

If this is true, then dealers will get better commissions on 1.8T because they don't have to discount as much due to high demand, but they may receive volume incentives to sell 2.8 since they aren't moving as quickly.

My view is that if you're willing to go through effort and inconvenience to get maximum performance, modifying a 1.8T is a great way to go. Also, more bang for the buck.

If you're risk averse (warranty), value smoothness, have more money, and just don't want the bother, the 2.8 is great.

Keep in mind, that the cost difference between a chipped 1.8T vs the stock V6 is roughly $4,500.00. ( That translates into a lot of engine life.)

Depending on where, and how you drive, 90% of the time, the horse Power demands you will make on your car, will fall far short of it's maximum capacity.

Unless you spend three hours a day jumping on and off highway ramps, chances are you're rarely demanding 200 HP to go grocery shopping on your way home back from work. After all, you don't need 200 HP's to accelerate to 40 mph in modest traffic.

Therefore, the likelihood of noticing ANY reduction in engine life with a chipped 1.8T is well, in my opinion, insignificant. Of course, I can't prove that, but is seems like a reasonable assesment.

Even if you did, the loss of engine life, converted into dollars, would always be less than $4,500.00.

The origninal Audiboy with the '96 12V :-)<ul><li><a href="http:\team-A4technik.theshoppe.com">the original Audiboy website :-)</a></li></ul>

BTW, I will have the AutoX pictures tonight in our website<ul><li><a href="http://team-a4technik.theshoppe.com/">original audiboy website</a></li></ul>

I have the 98.5 30vqms and am very happy with it. I was looking for all the comfy stuff you can get - leather, wood, seat heaters. Different strokes for different people, of course. The V6 engine is smooth. When I drove friends' 1.8T (chipped and lowered - thanks Sharon) the difference between the cars was obvious: the 1.8T felt quicker and rougher. Definitely louder.

When on the track, I can more or less keep up with Sharon - she pulls away at the beginning of the straightaway, I catch her by the end. No way one could pass the other, assuming same driving skill.

Off track, I'd take my V6 anytime over the 1.8T, just because it's feel. The only shocker is every other day at the gas pump - 20mpg at best with my 225 PolePosition tires and suburbia driving.

- Stan