Do you think that Audi offers the best Warranty for its cars because they have to?.....A4's seem man

In my opinion, 3 years on everything is a minimalistic warrantee.

The 12 year rust warrantee is because Audi can.

(even our '94 Jeep has a 7 year powertrain warrantee).

NT

My cruise control stopped working (under warranty). I added no more than 2 quarts of oil in between scheduled changes in the whole 78,500 miles! I have owned 13 Porsches, 2 BMW's, 2 Ferrari's, a Maserati Bora and assorted other less interesting cars. Of the cars I bought new ( 3 Porsches & 1988 BMW M5 ) none were more trouble free than my A4! My Audi has been fantastic. I just traded it in for a 2000 A4 2.8 QMS with leather sport seats, sunroof and Xenon lights. It is considerably more fun than my 97 A4. I am about to reach 1000 miles so I can now rev it up a bit. I can not relate to people who have had problematic A4's. I still have an old Porsche 930 to get my "scary fast" fix.

...according to whose data?

Just curious since folks are fast & loose with the allegations...

Thats it. Mines for sale.

Sorry to hear of these "problems." Guess we should boycott Audi. Or, maybe the world does not revolve around one person?

...at my dealership for 4 years now. I must have talked to over 100 people and these problems are common. Certainly you cannot say that are their cars are lemons or that these finding have no importance.

Also, as I've said, 4 friends that own A4's (1 97 2 98 and 1 99) have most of the problems mentioned on the list. They are not very happy with the reliability or quality of the car because of these problems.

Also, as I've said, my Audi mechanic friend of 10 years, as experienced these issues at his shop and agrees with my findings. We are not saying that all A4's are broken-down pieces of junk. But unfortunately, at my mechanics shop, A4's with these problems abound.

Plain and simple, Audi owners experience these high-cost common problems.

Bob
96 A4QM
86 4KCSQM

It seems that it may be time again to print the list. Maybe we should make it a FAQ. The reason for publishing this list to make Audi aware of these issues so that they can improve the A4. My concern is if issues are not addressed, the A4's rating will suffer, as happened with the 96 A4. CR's rating have fallen with the passing years.

The list includes common failures that owners talk to me about at the dealership. I'm a frequent visitor there - every 3-4 weeks. Also my Audi mechanic friend of 10 years confirms that he has seen the same issues at his shop. Four friends that own A4's ( 97, 2 98's and a 99) have identical bad experiences with their A4's. These cars are not lemons. They exhibit common failures. According to my Audi mechanic, Audi has known about control arm issue since 1997 but has decided not to fix the problem because it is an inherent, expensive issue with the 4-link suspension. The 4-link suspension, although a nifty design which eliminates torque steer, is weak.

THE LIST OF AUDI A4 PROBLEMS
1. Control arms and guide links. (Multiple failures in 96-00 A4s and S4s)
2. Tie rod ends. (Audi finally recalled this high failure item, redesigned them in newer A4's)
3. Clutch/Brake master/slave cylinders.
4. Engine valve noise at start up. (Audi unofficially admits bad oil non-return valve design)
5. Oil consumption (Some A4s 1 qt/1K miles, others not a drop - bad mfg?)
6. B-pillar rattles (Bad B-pillar and door seal design)
7. Steering rack (Fewer owners reported this)
8. Seat rails (Same problem on VWs)
9. Idle Control Valves (Need to be cleaned/replaced too often - bad design)
10. Sunroof motors (More of a problem with 96-98)
11. Power window motors (More of a problem with 96-98)
12. Bad valve cover/pan design - leaky gaskets (Multiple failures in all MYs)
13. Rattles and squeaks (Center console, instrument panel, B-pillar, etc.)
14. Water pump (Fewer owners reported this)
15. Heated side mirrors (Bad design with high failure rate - ask Bob Petruska)
16. Dash top peeling off (Only a problem with 96-97 A4's)

Bob
96 A4QM
86 4KCSQM

I just don't see it that way. We both own old and new Audis, and I have owned 3 japanese cars and trucks and 1 US car. The old Audi is in the same poor category for annoying little problems as the US, and the Japanese have had some substantial problems. My Audi has been trouble free. I've talked to my mechanic and dealer and they do not identify anything as being wrong with this model.

Having been on this group for several years, the vast majority of problems are minor inconveniences; far less than any car I'm familiar with. Compare our list of recalls to anyone. So, as the previous poster mentioned, let's see the data proving otherwise.