B5 S4 vs. 2005 STI

[1 point 8 tee]

hey guys im stuck, in a hard place....im deciding whether to buy another s4 which is a stage 2+ or a 2005 STI with some mods...such as cobb stg 2, exhaust, BOV, downpipe, tien springs...and a couple other things.....the s4 has 35k miles and the STI has 55k.......interted in everyones opnions...(one reason why im considering the sti is because i can make more serious mods at a much lower price..or so ive heard)

[bryzf1]

Where the hell did you find an s4 w/ that kind of mileage on it... that's nice and low! My mentality is that I would rather spend a little extra on mods and have a more rewarding driving experience and the luxury of the s4. I couldnt get past the rough ride of the sti and the cheap interior in comparison to the S. Plus the S is a lot more rare, and you never seem them on the road... at least in NM!

[1 point 8 tee]

another issue i was considering is the cost of annual maintenance....ive had 2 a4's and an s4...unfortunatly audi isnt too nice when it comes to maintenance prices lol

[Jung]

well ask yourself a question: what do I want from the car?

Do you want a car that's about performance strictly? Do you care about a stiff ride?
Do you want a pretty decent performance car with a nice interior?

[mistert396]

I was stuck trying to make a similar decision when I bought my S4. I drove a 2005 STI that was bone stock and my 2001.5 S4 which is bone stock. After driving both and I knew exactly what I wanted. You just cant beat the quality and luxury of the S compared to the kind of crappy interior of the STI. Having to spend a little more money on mods is completely worth it to me.

[JD797]

yea man, sub's are way too common, audi is just better. plus with that kind of mileage you can run that car stage 2 for a whiiiile probably and just go stg 3 when the turbos go

[ny02s4]

honestly if you have the money and can afford $$ for certain repairs i would say hands down the S4.

[W1CK3D]

You came to an S4 board and ask which we're gonna suggest?

Seriously though there's a few guys on here who have moved from STis to S's (RolledMySTi for one) so you could PM them or hope they post here as to get a real comparison between the two

In the end though yeah you're gonna pay more for the S and they are a b*tch to maintain but so be it. When you get it all sorted out there are very few cars that can match the S in terms of comfort, speed, handling and every day drivability.

my .02

[csre9]

It depends what your looking for..

if you want that rawr ride then do the sti.
if you want the luxury then do the S4..

It basically comes down to that...I agree you can mod an sti much easier but it's not as classy..
A lot more people go from a sti/evo ro something similar to the s4 because they realize that raw power gets old..
And think about how rare a b5 s4 with 35k is..unlike a sti's which there are many of...

[tdn]

I don't own an S, but I think everyone covered everything pretty fairly.

Get the STI if you want pure performance and cheaper.
Get the S4 if you want luxury, quality and performance second but more expensive.

[1 point 8 tee]

thanks for the input...im beginning to lean to the decision of getting anthoer s4.....more input is always accepted though =)

[VinNyS4]

s4 all the way..i personally dont like the body style of sti's at all.

[2fast4me]

I had an 05 sti w/ a few mods (300whp), and currently have a stg 2 s4, as well as a built/ swapped sti, but as far as daily driving is concerned the s4 is amazing, everytime I get out of the subie I look forward to how smooth the S is. But if your looking for a low dollar fast car, 5 or 10k will get you a very fast and reliable sti.

[lnferno]

I'll just say this -- it's a lot easier to make a car quicker than it is to make it more luxurious

[The_Jerbel]

Learn to work on the car yourself, and the cost isn't that bad at all...

[a4_1.8t_01]

For everyday I would say the S4. If you just want a car that you can go out and race legally lol the STI. Ones luxury and the other is a race car lol. The S4 is just sexy though.

[andru1313]

I have been debating this for a while. I have an S4 and an R32. I love Euro. but recently I did a motor swap in a DSM. I was amazed at how cheap and how much power you could get.

My S4 recently has givin me alot of problems. I can do alot of the work myself. but the parts are expensive. Guess that is the price you pay when you go Euro. This car has been a love affair for me. I have always wanted one I found one that had 39k on it and made it into a full STG 2+. Now I am having stupid problems.

I have been thinking of selling the car. That being said i just can't get myself to do it. I have never driven an STI but have always been a fan. I may go test drive one this weekend just so I can rule it out.

I am sure I won't sell but pretty soon I will not be able to justify the cost. Not that the STI is some great mechanical marvel. I do know that with any modded car there are issues. Just a matter of how expensive each issue is..

[The_Jerbel]

If you can work on the car yourself and are smart about where you buy your parts, these S4's aren't that bad at all, $-wise, compared to any other car.

[andru1313]

If you can work on the car yourself and are smart about where you buy your parts, these S4's aren't that bad at all, $-wise, compared to any other car.

Not sure I agree with that. espically if you have turbo issues or suspension issue.

[tike0rz]

A lot of my friends have STi's, and I have an Audi S4. It definitely sets you apart. It is classy, and you can still maintain professionality, ie: driving to conferences with co-workers. The Suby is just a toy compared to the prestige and class of the S4. I almost got an STi but then I remembered that I was interesting in doing more things with my car than being fast and furious ALL THE TIME.

Imagine your super fast STi on a long trip? Unless you have a second car, that'd be a nightmare. Excuse me for being bias, but the S4 wins hands down.

[The_Jerbel]

Not sure I agree with that. espically if you have turbo issues or suspension issue.

I'll give you the turbos, but if you're like me, you got 160k miles out of the stock K03's before replacing them to go stage 3 (they still work fine). There are plenty of S4's that got a lot of miles out of their K03's. Lots of car need an engine rebuild at that mileage. We can be grateful it's only turbos, instead of an engine that needs rebuilding every 150k miles.

What kind of suspension issues are you talking about? I got Eibach lowering springs and Bilstein sport shocks all around for $750. That's not much at all considering what you get for the money.

[RolledMySTi]

I think I can shed some light on this. First of all you can't go wrong with either car. I miss my STi because that thing was just stupid fast in every way. But I think your decision comes down to what you plan to do with the car. If it's your daily driver I think a S4 would be a better choice. If you just want to go fast cheap it's hard to beat a STi.

The STi handles like a champ, but you pay a price in ride quality. When I used to drive from LA to the Bay Area I would have to take 2 stretch my legs/my ass hurts breaks. It's fine for short trips, but after about 2 hours behind the wheel you were hurting in the STI. I can drive 4 hours to Tahoe for skiing in the Audi and feel great and ready to hit the slopes. The ride handling trade off is way better in the S4.

Also as you can see the interiors are vastly different. No girl cares about a Subaru regardless of how fast it is, an Audi on the other hand is something the ladies like.

My mileage in the STi was only 16mpg while I average 18-19 in the S4.

Reliability the STi wins hands down. I had two Subaru's that lived hard lives in my hands and I didn't have any problems. The S4 on the other hand... If you don't work on an S4 yourself I definitely see how it can get too expensive. Especially around here where the Euro specialist are $150/hr and a good cheap general mechanic is $100/hr. The sad thing at this point is that I am starting to enjoy the gremlins in the S4. I have learn more about cars in the last year and a half trying to fix my S4 than I did in 5 years of car ownership before that. The car has really made me learn automotive systems to track down problems.

The last big difference is stealth. The big wing and hood scope screams "punk" to a cop. Here in the Bay Area I'm just another luxury car that the cops don't look twice at.

So basically if you are a speed junkie go for the STi. You won't regret it and try not to have as much fun as I did If this is your daily go for a S4. I know if I had to buy a new car right now I would pick the S4. The only thing I miss at this point about the STi is the power, but as soon as I go stage 3 I won't be missing the STi too much.

[andru1313]

I'll give you the turbos, but if you're like me, you got 160k miles out of the stock K03's before replacing them to go stage 3 (they still work fine). There are plenty of S4's that got a lot of miles out of their K03's. Lots of car need an engine rebuild at that mileage. We can be grateful it's only turbos, instead of an engine that needs rebuilding every 150k miles.

What kind of suspension issues are you talking about? I got Eibach lowering springs and Bilstein sport shocks all around for $750. That's not much at all considering what you get for the money.

I have stasis street coils and having major control arm issues. my car just hit 60k on it.

[The_Jerbel]

I have stasis street coils and having major control arm issues. my car just hit 60k on it.

^^parts can be as expensive or as inexpensive as you choose to make them. I'm quite positive that you spent a decent amount of coin on the CO's, when you could have gone with a spring/shock setup (like mine, for $750 brand new-bilsteins never wear out either) and probably would have been just as happy. You can get all new control arms for $400. I'm guessing that your ride height is fairly low, which definitely wears out the control arms faster than if you were at stock height.

[GTIBONO]

i dont know how other states do fix it tickets and reff u or anything, but i dont think ive heard of a modded b5 s4 getting state reffed here, but my friends sti has gotten state reffed 2 or 3 times

[skunkoncrunk]

I love STI's, especially with a nice exhaust.

[andru1313]

^^parts can be as expensive or as inexpensive as you choose to make them. I'm quite positive that you spent a decent amount of coin on the CO's, when you could have gone with a spring/shock setup (like mine, for $750 brand new-bilsteins never wear out either) and probably would have been just as happy. You can get all new control arms for $400. I'm guessing that your ride height is fairly low, which definitely wears out the control arms faster than if you were at stock height.

Car had them on there when i bought it. And no i don't run that low. I live around philly roads are shit so no way i can run that low. I have Bilstiens on my VW PSS9's and I track that car. Believe me I know suspension. I have done over 15 installs of coils on VW's alone. I am hesitant with the S cause I haven't done a ton of work on it. I do my own wrenching when i can. and I know you can get all new control arms for that price. I spent over 500 for my adjustable ones on my VW. That being said Everything Euro is more. I can do prothane bushings for a Jap car so much cheaper and they never wear out either. Not getting into a pissing contest about bashing the S or praising the STI. Like I said just been frustrated the past few weeks with it. hands down this car is alot more in upkeep than most. And I have 5 cars.

[2fast4me]

Another thing I must add, that Rolledmysti touched on, the s4 is the least expensive car I have owned, and by far have never gotten so many compliments, especially girls, I mean girls that have no idea about cars; "wow I absolutely love your car".

[S-Power]

S-POWER 4 Ever

[Reich]

Sure s4 are more expensive to make it fast, but it's way more different than an sti. It's like comparing wallmart and a nice boutique.

[matte]

S for sure. my buddy has an STI and it draws a lot more attention. he recently had windows bashed in by some douche. plus the S is just way smoother. you can always make it faster, but you cant get that kinda ride out of an STI

[RolledMySTi]

Also I forgot to mention STi have bypass vavles like S4's do. If this STi you are looking at has a bov that means an idiot who doesn't know what he is doing owned it and I would strongly advise against buying that particular STi.

[quicksilver_S]

I think you should ask your savings if it can afford to get and the upkeep of an S4. My brother just recently spent over 2k on his car in maintenance such as control arm, suspension, brakes, seal and oil. I just spent about close to 1k on timing belt job.

Make sure that you wont have issues paying for those while spending money on mods and insurance.

if you want luxury and can afford the upkeep then go S4. If you dont mind the cheaper interior feel and quick/fast ride then go STI.

hope that helps

[highPSI-S4]

Before buying my S4 i knew i wanted an EVO, coming from a Eclipse turbo i had to have one. But on the way there i saw a dealership with a couple S4's and after my first test drive in the S4 my mind was changed, Diffently isn't as cheap to maintain as i've learned but i don't regret buying the S4 in any way. Although there are some mods that should have not made it onthe car but that can all be changed. Buy the S4 and just do some Tasteful mods and keep up with maintance and you'll love.

[1 point 8 tee]

i appreciate the input

[JMTx86]

I think I can shed some light on this.

OK ill shed some light on this, if your looking to make any power and not have to worry about your motor going get the s4, cyc #4 on the sti will blow up. Those motor's are crap and are like ticking time bombs.



that would be the second time we swapped an sti motor into that thing, 3 days later the 5 speed blew and we went with the 07 sti trany. Then new years eve the car let go again and we lost the motor again. this was only at around 400whp. This time it's getting completely built, but my guess is the block is gonna crack. These cars are nothing but pains in the ass, my friend is selling his 05 if you interested, low miles.

Look the scooby at home, on a trailer.





that other sti that we've had nothing but problems with since day one and its making 430whp with a gt30r and run good but again has been nothing but problems. We expect the motor to let go soon since thats what they tend to do.

Also I forgot to mention STi have bypass vavles like S4's do. If this STi you are looking at has a bov that means an idiot who doesn't know what he is doing owned it and I would strongly advise against buying that particular STi.

Wrong, your the idiot. You have to smash in the stock bypass to get it to hold boost above 15 psi (some will hold more if lucky) but who wants to smash anything on a 05? You can get the car tuned to run fine with a bov, thats right all you need is a tune, no tune = rich between gears.

[BianS4]

I recently bought my S4 and I havent got so many compliments about a car in my life, Makes you feel real good. When I was searching for a ride couple months ago, I would always point out the STI or EVO to my girl and she hated them, she said they look like fast and furious/transformer cars. I still like them though, but the girls seem to not.

[A4 JooN 2.0T]

girls hate it because its not comfy and loud lol

[CHEROHALA]

How old are you...? I'm 27 but I feel too old to drive a STI outside of a track or roadcourse. Please the styling of the BS S4 is holding up pretty well which is rare for cars of this era.

[1 point 8 tee]

that was also 1 thing i didnt really like about the STI's......i like the body-styling *somewhat*...but at the sametime it reminds me of a toy car lol.....*not tryin to bash all those sooby fans*