A while back I wanted to purchase the S4 valance for my B7 A4 because I was planning on a quadtip exhaust system from AWE. I figured that purchasing and painting the valence would be a good start to the project to I went into the parts department at the local Audi dealership here in WI and told them I wanted to purchase part number 8E0807521M1RR (S4 Rear Valance). I didnt figure it would be a problem.

The parts associate told me that the part would not fit - he had, in fact, tried it on his car, and pretty much refused me the sale. Slightly frustrated, I emailed the other major Audi dealership in WI. The parts manager emailed me back and said "the book says it doesnt fit". A wonderful response from the parts manager. At that point, I was a little worried about purchasing a $1,000 exhaust system from AWE because everyone online says the valence fits, but two Audi dealerships say it doesnt.

I ended up just purchasing the valance from a fellow AZ'er and painted it anyways. Since the exhaust installation is right around the corner, I figured it would be a good time to install the valance. Well, needless to say......IT FITS. No problems! Everything is flush, and it was relatively easy to install. I really frustrates me that the parts department doesnt know if something is going to fit or not - isnt that their job?! It would have slightly better if the people I talked to were just peon workers, but they were both managers...very disappointed.

Moral of the story...check online and with other people, and not just the dealership!

Has anyone else had a similar time with dealerships? Maybe I was a little naive, but I went into this whole thing thinking that they were the experts and viable resource to turn to, but now, I would much rather ask my questions on AZ!

P.S. AWE Diamond Black Quadtip gets installed on Friday!!