<br>I like it. I need it. I have not come to love it.<p>there are many great things about this car, which you can assume i agree with, except the following.<p>Little things I wish were different...<p>1. rear windows don't go all the way down.<br>2. low beams suck (re alignment pending...)<br>3. trunk lid easily left unlatched<br>4. brake feel sucks, way to touchy. I like to lay into them. (any way to make them less power assisted?)<br>5. tiptronic for most driving conditions is a yawn. plain old automatic seems to be fine for around-town errands or hwy cruising. higher performance spins on windy roads, tip is nice.<br>6. tiptronic shift is slow to react and slow to engage new gear.<br>7. power steering is too ??? powerful i guess. i can't feel any resistance to straighten up. when cornering hard, i want something to hang on to.<br>8. window on driver's side door arm rest located at my wrist, not fingers, what's up with that?<br>9. arm rests at different levels.<br>10. stereo (bose + CD) is not that great. Bass is muddy, maybe cross-overs are mismatched. $1000+ not well spent. I put a better stereo in my VW Vanagon for that price.<br>11. opal interior, should have gotten onyx.<br>12. remote locking range seems to be intermittent. sometimes have to press multiple times to activate.<br>13. probably should have gone with the 2.8 for the leather and wood interior. the opal looks like, well i hate to say it, like my wife's old honda accord... just too ordinary.<br>14. can't read the dash guages quickly. that may come with time.<br>15. the headlight switch, turn signal, cruise control all packed in that tight area is lame. what happened to the good old pull knob???<br>16. between 3000-4000 RPM there's a nasty high frequency vibration most felt thru the gas pedal, but is audible as well. (exhaust resonator??)<br>17. power is adequate, but not impressive, chipping ASAP.<br>18. head rest so wide/high affects visibilty when looking over my left shoulder<p><br>somethings i found surprisingly neat.<p>color: cactus green. i got this color cuz i didn't want to wait for a silver. the green is certainly *a lot* more rare (rarer??).<p>seat height adjustment.<p>ability to turn stereo on while ignition is off.<p>high beams are great.<p>leather wrapped steering wheel.

none of your comments should be a surprise to you or anyone else - you haven't exactly discovered life on another planet here.<p>have had mine for 3 weeks. i am truly in love. i will agree with your gripes about the window switches however.<p>so, for how long will the brake dust be this bad???<br>

The brake dust goes away when you change the pads to a new brand! Welcome to our HELL.

I had trouble with my remote until I re-read the manual. It recommends pressing the buttons for _one second_. Once I started doing this, the remote worked much better, and with better range.

BE AWARE, THIS IS LONG AND PROBABLEY BORING.<p>I took delivery of my '99 A4 2.8QMS on 12/7/98 and now have 604 miles on the "clock". I must admit that your rather lengthy list of "Little things" that you are not happy with is so different from my own first impressions that I thought I might reply to offer a view from a little different perspective.<p>First our 2 vehicles are quite different in engine and transmission selections, so several of your observations are not going to apply in my car's case. But otherwise the general direction of your comments seem to indicate that you are less than exstatic about your new vehicle. I, on the other hand, am quite unashamedly in love with this piece of "engineering art".<p>Maybe a little explanation of my personal auto philosophy would help you understand why I may be so positive about my A4 and you seem somewhat reserved in your initial impressions. When I was much younger (I'm now 57 years old)I wanted as much automotive performance as I could afford and creature comforts and utility were way down on my list of automotive priorities. For example, I purchased a new 1966 Shelby GT-350 in early 1967 and drove it for about 5 years (excluding a 12-month tour in Vietnam). This car was, simply put, a race car with upholstry and mufflers. It rode like a Conestoga wagon and had minimal creature comforts, but it "went" like hell when you dropped the hammer. It was fun and had plenty of "personality", as long as the trip wasn't too long. It was not the kind of car that you relished driving 500 miles in a single day. But, I was young and I was more than willing to overlook its comfort shortcomings, to get that adrenaline rush when you executed a perfect power- enduced 4-wheel drift through the apex of a particularly challenging turn or bend.<p>Now, I'm older. I still love a finely crafted performance automobile, but when I'm not trying to hit the perfect apex in a sweeping "S" curve, I want a vehicle that will allow me to enjoy a long trip where the Interstate highway system, as deadly dull as it is, is the only practical way to cover long distances in the shortest possible time. To achieve this requires compromise in some areas that negatively effect pure performance. The recent comparison test in C&D between the A4 and the new BMW 328 got it right. If they wanted a car for the track they would have chosen the 328, but for the road the nod still went to the A4. On the road, in a car designed for everyday use is what I call "real world" performance. Great "real world" perfomance is a balancing act which pits pure high speed performance and abilities against the need for high quality, long lasting materials and great fit and finish, safety, comfort, and utility. To get a good balance of all of these, mixed in with that intangible factor of "personality", and make such a vehicle available at a price that is within the reach of more than the very rich is a very daunting task. Audi, in my opion, has achieved this sysnthesis of conflicting perameters in the A4. Overall, its really amazing.<p>I have yet to experience an automobile that was good at everything. As my father used to say, "It's hard to run all the 'coons up the same stump." Kind of corny, but it says a lot. The A4 has some features that are not perfect designs. But, as a former engineer myself, I realize that many times there are considerations that are not readily apparent that mandate design compromise. Such design compromises may be necessary to get the best overall package.<p>If you really want a "hairy-chested canyon carver", try a 930 Turbo Porsche. However, don't expect it to make you happy when you need your vehicle to sub as a pickup truck or you want to relax and enjoy a long trip, listing to your favorite music, without attracting the unwanted attention of every highway patrolman you pass.<p>My initial impression of my new A4 is that the overall engineering package is so good and so much better than anything else that I have ever owned or driven, that the small "imperfections" are just not that important. The car has great "real world" performance, with good torque where you can use it and its handling is remarkable for a car weighing 3,200+ lbs. It esthetics are wonderful, inside and out. I have found myself taking the car out for a drive to nowhere in particular, which I have not been keen to do in many years. I go out in the garage and just look at the lines of the car, admiring it like you might a fine painting or piece of sculpture. The fact that the rear windows do not roll all the way down and the window controls are a couple of inches too far to the rear are things that shrink to insignificance within the overall balance of its design. This machine has the ability to touch an emotional cord in me, whether I'm behind the wheel are standing on the outside admiring its exterior design, or its beautiful fit and finish.<p>I must assume you have invested your hard-earned money in your A4 and will have to keep it far some time to come. So, try to minimize the effort you are spending looking for the "little annoyances", and spend more of your time soaking up the truly wonderful things that this piece of automotive art has to offer. JUST ENJOY IT!<p>

My '98 2.8 Avant Q Tip has 4,300 miles now: I agree with some of Jay's observations, though on balance most are inconsequential to me: the one that matters for driving/control/stability purposes is the steering feel (way too light, I'm used to M-B and my '73 Porsche 911 [another buckboard pure sports car: I love it but not for daily driving!]); the brake feel is a bit touchy but I prefer that they grab hard and the driver has to learn the skill to modulate, rather than spongy brakes. <p>The Tip is fine for street, no better than a regular auto, but nice for spirited driving, as Jay notes.<br>I listened to the Bose & compared and saved my $1,000 in the showroom...skipped it. The other little ergonomic faults are disappointing primarily because they glare in comparison to what Stephen points out is the overall exceptional package. I'd add to Jay's list, the always on heated mirrors (my fuses are out'til it snows); and the no recirculation HVAC w/o A/C on.<p>Still, I think Stephen sums it up overall: no package is perfect, so enjoy this one for what it is and if it falls short, there are lots of other choices out there. <p>

Stephen you have hit the nail on the head. It must be our age bracket that we enjoy the finer things in life. Why ruin the day over little things when we have much more important things to do like take a little drive in our A4's. I too am an engineer and really enjoy cars. It is a lot of fun to take your A4 for little trips that you really don't need to go on and to spend an afternoon washing and waxing your A4. Some people would rather play a round of golf (can you figure that out) . It is a heck of a lot of fun just setting in the garage and looking at your A4. As you say JUST ENJOY IT .<br>Roy M 2.8q Tip (and enjoying it fully)

..

Sounds like you should have gotten something else. A Subaru, perhaps? 8^)<p>CraigB

nt.

One question after reading Stephen's list: If you like to corner hard why get an automatic????

want to be bothered with the clutch. Keep in mind that about 100% of Formula 1 drivers, when last surveyed, drive automatics on their street cars (M-B S classes mostly).

Wow-you should write for an automobile mag!

Couple of comments, based on 6000 miles on my A4QM Avant:<p>2. Adjsutthe hadlight height up -makes a world of difference in lighting.<br>5. Your fault for picking a Tip, not a good transmission (one that comes with 3 pedalss on the floor) - just joking!<br>10. Std stereo if fine for my use. many audiophilses have complained before aabout steresos, so you should have been forewarned.<br>7. Could always disconnect the PS belt - that'll REALLY give you something to hang onto! Bsides, this, shouldn't be using the steering as a "support" while drivng - you need Sport seats and a good 5-point race harness.<br>12. Agree with remote operation; wil ring this to attention of my dealer. Bigger complaint is the need for careful 2-punch hitting of remote fi you are trying to open all the doors.<br>14. Get your eyes checked. On the other hand, sould just be age.<br>15. If you like knob controls, buy American. I love the stalk control of all features; can actuate lights without searching for a stupid dash switch.<br>16. Could be a resonator, or maybe a heat shield in the exhaust is loose. Could also be normal 4 cyl. vibration (have heard 4 cyl. is more "noisy" than V6).<br>17. Your call; to me dragging more power out of that 'lil 4-banger is asking for trouble.<br>18. I'm 5' 10"; headrest doesn't bother me (I have it pulled up all the way). Then again, have the Sport seats; might make a difference.<p>So, what bomb would you rather have for same or less money than A4?

The brake sensitivity will wear off after a couple thousand miles.... at least mine did.<p>The power steering can be corrected by adding wider tires. I am running 235/40 R 17 and that problem is gone. This also gives quicker steering response. I think Audi used the same power steering system that they use in the S4. With 205mm tires, it is simply too powerful.<p>The other items, excepting 3 & 11, I agree with. I can't comment on the Tiptronic, or the 1.8T parts, as I have 2.8QMS.

Hey, not too bad... only a singed eyebrow or two.<p>Thanks for some of the constructive feed back on some of my gripes.<p>Now to answer some of the inflamatory questions...<p>1. I bought this car because my wife needed a new one and we needed AWD for ski trips. I didn't want an SUV or Subaru (design & performance). I have always owned German or Swedish cars (plus a good ole CJ7 that just won't die). I wanted to stick with German engineering. Also, it is more my wife's car, she loves it. I posted my gripes because this is supposed to be a high quality, well designed, good performing car. I beg to differ on a few points.<p>2. Yes, I test drove the car 3 times: 1.8 stick, 2.8 sport everything, 1.8 tip. I like the car, it's just that some of this stuff didn't occur to me during the test drive. PLus, I just had to have that quattro... kinda fogged my judgment.<p>3. I did quite a bit of homework, but I was (and still am) convinced that this is the best car for my needs: quattro, good quality, safe, sporty, speedy little 4 door sedan for my wife (and me when we head up to the slopes)<p><br>4. And why should I have gotten a Subaru, Craig??? This banal remark is worthless. You (and I) are judged by others on this board by how (un)intelligent our posts are. I'm sorry your insecure personanilty took offense to my gripes. Can I assume you prefer 'poor low beam illumination' or 'having the window controls at your wrist'? Have you driven a sports car known for its braking performance? Simply stated, the brakes are not great, period. Argue all you want, but do so with facts, and broad experience.<p>5. I never said the car sucked. I can say that about my wife's 97 honda accord. I would agree that the overall package is pretty nice.<p>"Should of got a Subaru..." What's that supposed to mean????<p>Merry xmas!<p>

maybe you should sell to someone on this forum and find another car more to your liking.<br>

Hi Ray,<p>About number 15, controls in general:<p>15. Well, if you didn't KNOW the headlight switch is where it is in the A4, you'd have to search for it and let me tell you, it would take longer than to spot a knob on the dash!<p>This applies to all controls: after you get used to them and know exactly where they are, they become very easy to use. The point is for them to be easy to use with a very short learning period (or ideally none at all).<p>Enjoy your car,<br>Andrei D<br>Red 1.8T QMS

You wrote:<br>>4. brake feel sucks, way to touchy.<br>>I like to lay into them. (any way<br>>to make them less power assisted?)<p>I'd suggest just getting used to them a bit more before you change anything. They are very "touchy" as you say, but you'll quickly get used to them. If you really don't like the feel, swap them out with a set of Rofrens, several folks on the board have mentioned that they stop just as well as the stock pads, produce far-less brake dust, with the only negative (maybe not a negative for you) being that they require more pedal pressure. Perhaps they'd give you the better modulation you're looking for.<p>Andy Hedin<br>'97 A4 1.8Tqms, Wett 1.0 Bar Chip, ABT Filter, Tint, Snows --> but no snow to play in!!

I own a 1999 A4 1.8 with 1650 miles on it. My sport package wheels are constantly covered with black dust. I assume this is brake dust. Are the brakes simply being broken in, or will this continue indefinitely?

I own a 1999 A4 1.8 with 1650 miles on it. I'm very happy with it; however, I get quite a bit of wind noise on the driver side. Is this normal?