Alright, What do you guys think? Worth it?

[NK2007]

So this is another one of those "What do you think of this car" threads...

First of all, let me introduce myself: I have been lurking on here for the past couple months, as well as vortex and af. I've read countless build threads, and all the other random ones. Im 18, go to Colorado State University, and am no noob when it comes to cars. I've done an auto to manual swap on a 93 325i BMW, then three hours later when the owner mis-shifted, replaced the engine. I've also helped swap a v8 from an infinity q45 to a nissan pathfinder. Not to mention all the other random stuff i've done.

So here is the car:

http://denver.craigslist.org/car/637922931.html

It appears to be well maintained and I love the color- Volcano Black Mica

Here are some pictures of the color- note not the same car.



The only problem is that it is a tip-auto. I want a manual soooo bad.

The reason i am considering this car, is that the owner said he would accept my nissan xterra as a trade. I have been trying to sell the xterra for an a4 for a little while now, and am getting anxious.

Now what do you think? I am planning to go BAT (GT3071r) down the road, and i figure when i build the engine for it, i will just swap to a manual crank, and put in a s4 6spd.

Keep in mind, I am in college and this will take some time to get the money to do all this, but i am thinking over the summer, i should be able to get the money.

Should i do it?
Sorry for the long post and dumb question-
Neill

[BONFIRE074]

no not worth swapping IMO, but that is a sexy and rare color

[NK2007]

Why do you say not worth swapping?

As far as facelift, I'm not too worried about that.. plan for s4/rs4 bumper in the future.

I have been looking at a4's for sale in my area since December, and the only manual transmissions around here are silver, and most don't have maintenance records, which is a big plus for me.

[Seerlah]

Don't pay more than 7k for that car. I have an 01 and got it for 7.7 w/107k. I think that car can easily be found for 6.5k.

EDit: Point and case Click this link. And with only 78k w/full carfax to back thier rep. Even though those are not always 100% accurate. I am pretty sure that even this car could be talked down to $6000-6250

[BONFIRE074]

I just don't think its worth it because you can find a 5 spd generally just as easy, but you say you've been looking for a while and cant..id just keep looking so you can save yourself some labor

[NK2007]

Santorin Blue is one of the other colors i am really looking at, but there aren't any around me that are manual.

Seerlah, that is a nice car, especially for the price, But it is not anywhere near me. The market around me tends to be higher for a well maintained one. Most are 8-9k+.

Has anyone bought a car across country like that an driven/shipped it home?

[D's Avant]

Wait for a good clean 5spd. Nice color though...

[4theluvof$]

I think youre better off just getting a 5 spd... not worth it.

[BONFIRE074]

my 98 santorin a4 is for sale but its a 2.8, and im in ct :(

[Seerlah]

I found that one in like a 2 min search. I have no idea where it listed. But even if you did decide to buy that same model (as in the link), you could have it shipped for around $500. Use uship.com. People bid to ship your vehicle and the transporters have feedbacks like on ebay, so you could read posotive and negative feedback on their services. The problem is though is purchasing a car without seeing it in person as we know how this route can end up.

My advice is to keep searching as you can find a 5 speed for way less and way less miles. Not to mention a newer year. If it is a distance and you want to ship, use Uship.com.

EDit: A 10 min search yeilded me to this one 9 miles from zip code 80012. Autotrader FTW. Same place I found mine. Just have to ask them about timing belt and water pump as it is 100k.

Edit 2: I am by no means trying to be a jerk, just trying to say you can find a better deal. This is just from a 10 min search. Search for a day, 2 days, 3 days, 2 weeks and the deals you discover become better and better.
Craiglist 1, Craiglist 2, This one FTW, etc.

[Stampy]

Hey thats my color!

Don't buy without looking first. A friend of mine did that. When we got to Dallas to pick up her car...I didn't have the heart to tell her what I saw. It was too late, the papers were signed and the dude told her everything was great.

I have never looked into the swap. Is it supposed to be hard? Doesn't seem like it would be. I have done a few on other cars with just small hiccups.

[sean1.8t]

skip.. that's going to be a lot more that just "throw in an S4 trans" than you think. first off, you have to fork over the $2500+ they go for. then, axles, rear diff, driveshaft, shifter linkage, etc.. plus, the S4 6spd's have bad 2nd gear shifter collars and syncro's. so throwing mad power at it will require a pricey rebuild... unless you're going to have gobs of money while your a college student. you won't do it..

just wait it out, and the right car will come to you. the denver area is like audi central. there has to be "your" car out there somewhere.. FWIW, i searched for over 6 months to find my first audi. it was everything i wanted. and i couldn't be happier when i finally got it!

[VTAudiA4]

Patience is a bitch when it comes to buying a car that you are really craving. In the end though it will be rewarded. It took me couple months to find the Audi that I wanted. Ended up finding a Santorian blue 00 A4 1.8TQM with 72K, all maintanance done, bone stock, almost perfect condition, and owned by an old lady for $7000.

[Tiluleshpingen]

if it was the one that you posted the pix in this thread. i would say go for it.
the one in craigslist seems to be rebuild buts its an AUTO

[audiness]

its a nice car, but the price seems high for an auto.

[jrock]

shit go for it man. You can find transmissions from people who are parting out cars locally. I know theres a guy in broomfield who has a couple hes parting now cuz i tried to get the engine from him cuz i going BAT too. PM me if you got any more questons. Im down to help if ever go north.

[Militant-Grunt]

skip.. that's going to be a lot more that just "throw in an S4 trans" than you think. first off, you have to fork over the $2500+ they go for. then, axles, rear diff, driveshaft, shifter linkage, etc.. plus, the S4 6spd's have bad 2nd gear shifter collars and syncro's. so throwing mad power at it will require a pricey rebuild... unless you're going to have gobs of money while your a college student. you won't do it..

just wait it out, and the right car will come to you. the denver area is like audi central. there has to be "your" car out there somewhere.. FWIW, i searched for over 6 months to find my first audi. it was everything i wanted. and i couldn't be happier when i finally got it!

2001.5+ had better trannies. Synchro problem was virtually eliminated.

[TQMB5]

if you can get it for 6 i say it would definitely say it would be worth it. Just instead swap in a 2.8 trans instead so it will cost you only about 800-1000 more , and it gives you a great excuse to build your engine into a 2.0 with a big turbo