Hey all,<p>First of all, thanks for such a great web site & a great collection of messages. As a newbie to Audi, it's a great resource.<p>I'm looking to purchase a 99 2.8 quattro stick in the next week. I'd like to hear from anyone who has comments about:<p>1) The car in general (tips, etc).<br>2) Dealer experiences in Seattle.<br>3) % over MRSP.<p>Not surprisingly, the last point is the one I'm most interested in. I've done all the usual research (wish I'd found this site earlier!) and I'm wondering what people are paying. <p>Apart from quattro, I'm getting:<br>* all-weather package<br>* sport package (seems like a great deal)<br>* sunroof<br>* leather<br>* trip computer<br>* sports seat<br>* Bose stero<p>The all-weather package, the leather and the sports seats I'd happily do without but the dealer (University Audi) says that's what all their 2.8s are coming with and I don't want to wait too long.<p>Any suggestions would be much appreciated.<p>Regards,<br>Fergus

It is hard for dealers to sell the cars that don't have the all weather and leather, especially in the 2.8. That is why they generally only order well equipped cars. I don't know the prices around here currently, but I think you can expect University to deal more than Barrier Motors in Bellevue will. Ivan is an excellent salesman there, and he will take good care of you down the road. He really knows the car, and gives an excellent pre-delivery run through also. Having said that, I think Barrier Motors is a much classier operation overall, and I would certainly use them for service. University has a flaky service department, they have horrid long waiting lines in the morning, and the work is questionable, IMO. I would certainly give Barrier Audi atleast a call, and see if they can work up a deal. I think you'll be glad you got the sport seats. They are much more supportive, especially in the thigh area. They also look better. Good luck!<p>Charles<br>

First of all, insist on the All Weather Package or you'll have a cold, rainy day in February when you want to go out of the city for a drive with your girlfriend on a cold, rainy night and regret not having heated seats for sure. Get the package, it's worth it. The sport seats are a marked improvement, if you'll drive the car hard. The sunroof is great on cool nights, and a good choice. Definitely get the 5spd manual, you'll not regret it. My only tip is to be careful with the car for the first 5000 miles and it'll be the most enjoyable sedan in the world at 10000 miles. Good luck. BTW, check at Barrier, they have a steady stream of cars coming in, it seems.<p>Cameron<br>

I looked at A4s at University Audi (Ivan) and at Barrier Motors (Andy), and I bought my A4 1.8TQM at Barrier because they had the colors I wanted. Barrier was not as flexible about price, and the only way I got the price down was to quote the Univerity Audi price for the same car. I agree with Chuck; Barrier seems to run a classier operation. University Audi is very crowded, and I don't like the idea of parking my car (for service) in a crowded situation. When I used Barrier Motors to install the CD-player in the car 3 days after I took delivery, they washed the car (again).<br>

Well, the best I could do with Barrier was $800 under MSRP. I had the feeling that University may have been more willing to deal, but not by much so I didn't waste my time. Roger Jobs in Bellingham would go as low as $2400 over invoice, much better than Barrier and I have a friend at Barrier who just plain couldn't meet the price as they can sell the cars. I ended up going with a local broker, The Car Company in Bellevue. Rhondi or Jeff are the ones to talk to, 425.643.0097. They purchase a lot of cars for Microsoft types (even the biggest Microsoftie), and many others locally. My extended family has purchased probably about 6 cars through Rhondi in the last 4 years. I purchased my last car through them too. They turned me on to Mark White at Audi Van Nuys and I just got my purchase order today! Yes, folks, the A4 is ready to flatbed to Sea-town! <p>Good luck,<p>Kirk

We purchased a 2.8 in January (Chicago) equipped much like yours except Tip and no sports seats. The car has 4000 miles and I can't get my wife out of it. For what its worth, everyone should own this car, its great.<p>LouisE

I've had my 98.5 Avant for about 3 months now, equipped pretty much the way you want the Sedan only w/o Bose (my choice - std radio good enuf; lot of goodies I can get for that $1100). My 2 cents worth of input:<br>- As others said, if you enjoy driving, get the manual. If you do a lot of stop-&-go, wimp stick might be best.<br>- DEFINITELY try the Sport seats for a long drive; many have said they're backbreakers. Mine were uncomfortable at the start, but either they're breaking in or my back is getting numb. Other than this, they're extremely supportive, makes it a little more difficult to climb in & out. (Dealer sez "all 2.8s are coming with Sport seats"? Soulds liek a line to me - a 3 local dealers have very few 2.8s with Sport seats).<br>Whatever you get, you should love it - A4 is a fabulous design!<br>

Charles,<p>I bought my 2.8 from Ivan, I agree that he's really good. As I approach my first service, I am skeptical of the service dep't at University, although have no evidence, just a feeling.<p>What about the service dep't at Barrier? (I love that name for an exclusive auto dealership, yuck!) Do you think they will give me the cold shoulder on factory-covered service, since I did not buy there?<p>Any information will be appreciated.<p>Eric<p>PS prospective buyers<p>I have a 2.8q, fullyloaded minus Tip. I enjoy all of the options, but if I were to do it again, I'd delete the Bose. It's pretty boomy and you could probably get a superior system from an aftermarket shop for the same or less $$.<p>e

I stopped using Universities service department because I felt that they were just screwing with me. I just felt like they didn't want to take the time to take care of me, and everything was a rush to get me out of the way. This was with my 90Q. It now sees an independant, but has been to Barrier once. On the A4, University has not seen it since purchase. Barrier has been wonderful on servicing it. The A4 had noisy front windows from delivery, and once the sunroof switch went crazy, I took it in. I told Barrier about the windows and the sunroof, and they ordered the parts without even looking at the car (one thing wasn't in stock). When the parts were all there (a couple days later), they called me, and I set up an appointment. Well, while replacing the window regulators, the tech discovered he didn't have enough rivets or something. Apparently there was a better way of installing the components than the way done at the factory. Anyway, he had one side done, but couldn't do the other side using the new method. I then had the option of waiting for the proper rivets (I think that's what it was), or just having it done the other way, with the risk of the problem developing again later. I let them keep the car an extra day, they let me get something out of the car (you should see all the wires in the doors), and then they put it back together the next day. Everything operates smoothly, and I really feel that they worked with me, and kept me informed on what was going on. Plus, they do a pretty good wash job, I think. They get paid by Audi for doing the work anyway, so they don't care where the car was purchased. Barrier is clean and the staff is friendly and competent, IMO. Hope you have the same experiences!<p>Charles<p>BTW: My 90Q gets the same treatment if I take it there. I couldn't believe how great it looked when I picked it up. I think they use quick detailer or something, and they shine the tires and wheels too when they wash them. <br>

University VW/Audi's parts dept has good customer service. They are much more helpful and informed when compared with Chaplins.

Thanks, everyone, for all the comments; very useful.<p>I just got home from the dealer where I signed up for the car I mentioned. I also took one for a test drive - amazing, so much fun! (And, yes, I did take the test drive *before* I signed the papers!). If it'd been the right color, I would have driven it off the lot.<p>FYI, I ended up paying $700 off MSRP ($35140). I could have got $940 off from a car broker but I wanted to give Ivan Velkov my business. I could care less about a specific dealer but Ivan was just super helpful. Obviously really loves Audi, too. I highly recommend him to anyone in Seattle looking for an Audi.<p>Now I just have to find someone to buy my TDI New Beetle! CD player, sports package, 2500 miles; anyone interested?<p>Thanks again, everyone. I'm sure be asking more questions when the car arrives (next week, hopefully).<p>Oh, I just thought of question: anyone have comments about running it in? Ivan gave me some advice but if you have any tips, I'd love to hear them.<p>Fergus