I have posted a few questions in the last week about my test drive in the Audi, and you have all been very helpful. Let me just give my impressions on the cars I have test driven, and how the Audi seems to have come out ahead by a mile. I am not ready to purchase a car yet, but I have been looking so I can narrow down the field when the time comes.<p>Acura 3.2 TL (everything standard except for the Navigation system). Lots of standard equipment. Very cushy and luxurious. Luxury ride. Definitely worth the money, but no personality. This car also has the Honda equivalent of the Tiptronic, but the Audi's was much more responsive. It didn't even feel like you were going into other gears on the Acura. Would buy it in a second if I were looking for a nondescript cushy ride.<p>Honda Accord EX - Not much less than the Acura. The Acura had much more going for it, including the Tiptronic and traction control. The Accord was much noisier. Crossed off the list, even though it has exemplary reliability. Had a Prelude for 12 years.<p>Nissan Maxima SE - Great car. I now own a Pathfinder and have had stellar reliability. Great engine, and great performer. Good price for a loaded car. No tiptronic, did not want just and automatic or just a 5 spd. Would be possibly interested to see the changes for this car for the Y2K.<p>VW Passat - Was my #1 choice originally. Test drove it, thought it was a great car. Not as luxurious as some of the Japanese cars, but much more fun to drive. Wanted the GLX with synchro. VW kept on making excuses about the leather on the cars, the availability of synchro, and the availability of the GLX. I got disgusted and started making out the above list. <p>Audi A4 1.8-Was not originally on my list, but after the VW debacle, two people I know who own 1.8's and 2.8's respectively thought I should give Audi a try. I test drove the 1.8 last Saturday with the sport steering wheel, sunroof, etc. and was blown away! Truthfully, no other car I tested came close to it, and I doubt highly that even if VW put the Synchro in the Passat, that it would have matched the drive I had in the Audi. Granted the Passat is a little bigger, but the Audi handled much, much better. No comparison. For those people on the Passat forum who are swearing that VW is playing a propaganda game by delaying the Synchro, leather and everything else for the Passat not to take away sales from Audi, I have something to say to all of them. Test drive the Audi without the Quattro, and tell me you get the same sensation as the Passat! The Audi has now made #1 on my list. Will retest drive it again when I move to Texas, as the deals on them are much better than in NJ.<p>Thanks for your help. I am sure I will have other questions from time to time.

I apologize. Thislast message Audi 1.8t is from Bonnie, not Impressions. Was looking at the subject line instead!

What makes the deals in TX better than NJ?<p>Also, if you'd like some unsolicited advice, test drive a 1.8T 5-speed. I just think it makes the A4 that much more fun to drive.<p>

I don't know what makes the deals better in Texas. Maybe Houston being the port of arrival makes it a little less expensive for them to ship to other parts of the country, but when I went on Carpoint for here in NJ, one place wanted $1500 over invoice, the other $1600 over invoice.<p>When I plugged in the new zip code I will be living in, the dealer in Dallas e-mailed me with a price of $1000-$1100 over invoice. I don't know what constitutes the $100 difference, I guess maybe the 1.8 vs. the 2.8, but I called them in Dallas, and they confirmed the price of $1000 for the model I was interest in. I would rather buy when I get there anyway, as I would like to start a relationship with the dealer who will be servicing my car, and plus I get loaner cars for schedule and unscheduled maintenance for the life of the car if I bring it to the dealer I bought it in. Great service! Most of the high end car dealers have the same deal though.<p>As far as the 5 speed, I have driven one all of my driving life (seems like ages), and have an automatic now. I like not having to shift on a constant basis, agree with all of you that you have more power and control with the car with a 5 spd., but will be living in a high traffic area, and want the option of automatic and/or 5 spd. Although my fiancee knows how to drive a 5 spd., he prefers an automatic. He is not a driving enthusiast, he likes SUV's and offroading. I guess you can call that an enthusiast of a different kind. Anyway, because he will be driving the car sometimes, I think it's a fair compromise to get the Tiptronic. I thought in the Audi only, the 5spd. on the triptronic worked very well compared to the Passat and Acura. Agreed, it is not like manually shifting.<p>Thanks for your advice!

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I spoke with Park Place Porsche/Audi. I don't know exactly what town it is in. <p>MD: I know the Audi and Passat have the same transmissions, but I think the difference lies in the size of the car and the suspensions and obviously the Quattro. I am not a mechanical maven, so I can't pinpoint exactly what it was, but the Passat seemed softer and not as taut as the Audi or responsive. I didn't feel the confidence driving the Passat that I did with the Audi. Maybe some of you could pinpoint the differences.

I screwed up again. The above post was from me, not Oscar and MD! Sorry. I'll get this right soon enough.<br>

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Oscar:<p>What a coincidence. They sounded really nice over the phone, better than the one in NJ. Can I ask you how long ago you purchased your Audi, and did they charge you much over invoice? How is their service dept? They said they would give me loaner cars during and after the warranty, as long as I brought my car in for service at their dealership. Have they honored this with you for service, as well as warranty work? Where in Texas do you live? I am probably going to be settling in Arlington. My fiancee's job is getting transferred there.<p>Did you get the leatherette, as I thought about getting the cloth because of the hot weather in Texas. I spoke with a guy named Joe Sloan, and he was very helpful. Apparently, they get more cloth cars in Texas than in NJ. He said about 70% come with leatherette, and in NJ, both dealerships said about 95% come with leatherette. <p>If you can give me more information about the dealer, stock and service, I would appreciate it very much.<p>Thanks<p>Bonnie