To all you S4 guys that left B5 a4 life, some questions?

[karmad]

Hey im a b5 a4 owner of a 1.8t, and was looking to jump ship to a S4 but wanted to know a few things:

1. Is the S4 more to maintain vs the A4
2. Is a S4 Tip stronger than the A4 or should i just wait for a 6s manual
3. Other than turbo upgrades are there any upgrades that cost more vs A4

someone shed some light plz and thnx and yes i am searching

[BoostinonYOU]

1. Yes the s4 is much more to maintain
2. The tip is stronger, but you should wait for a 6mt A because its funner, and 2 less maintence.
3. Think of it this way, Diverter valve for your car will be cheaper because for the b5 s4 you have to buy two :O

[gaspeedracer]

my last car was a vw passat which was basically the same car.

1. yes, it gives me more problems than the vw.

2. my vw was a tip but my current s4 is a 6speed so i dont have that much knowlege on an s4 tip. but its always good to go 6speed for performance reasons and its just so damn fun to drive.

3. sometimes they're the same price. the s4 uses a lot of the a4 parts since it has the same chasis but some parts are different and are usually more expensive. performance wise expect to pay more than a4 parts just because the s has more engine components.

my 2 cents of course

[onemoremile]

Other than the engine and transmission they are basically the same cars. Everything else will break at a relatively even pace.

You can blow a turbo, tear a hose that causes a blown turbo, bend a shift fork, or trash a second gear synchro. Otherwise they are pretty much even. My 1.8t A4 Avant has been much more expensive from 70k - 140k than the S4 has been from 64 miles to it's current 215k miles. This isn't including the turbo upgrade though. The Ar is in the 4-5k range while the S4 is about 3-4k not including the 6k for the turbos and intercoolers and clutch and whatnot.

[lil' is 300]

I think this question gets asked at least once a week. I'll say the same thing I always say...

If you can't afford to fix this car, don't buy it.

[Caddy7]

I have an S4 w/ 120k and my wife have an 2.8 A4 w/ 100k.

I fix both myself and so far they both have had the same problems/maintenance, control arms, tie rods, brakes... the difference is the parts cost alittle more for the S.

I dont thik the S have more problems (depend on the drive) just that performance parts cost more. Even the tires are more expensive!

[onemoremile]

Even the tires are more expensive!

$250 - $320 a set doesn't sound bad to me. I've been running these for a couple years. 225/50-16 on the A4, 225/45-17 on the S4, and 275/40-17 and 335/35-17 on the SuperFormance mkiii.

[AB18]

My S4 has been rock solid reliable. Sure, ive had some tough breaks, but all in all, i can't complain.


Now, my BT A4 was a different story, that was always giving me problems, but was a blast.