I'm going to look at a 2013 S4 today! Feedback needed ASAP.

[jwallace0988]

Hi all, I posted a few times in the S5 section with my recent poor experience purchasing a 2014 Glacier White S5 at my local Garber Audi of Rochester dealership. More info below!

The car I am now considering is a Used 2013 Ice Silver S4 with 49,657 miles. It has the Fine Napa leather Black w/ Magma interior and CF Atlas inlays. DSG transmission.
The carfax is clean - 1 owner with regular maintenance reported. Asking $33,978. The car was a lease, owner was located in CT. I do not know of it has sport diff yet. I do plan on taking it to an independent shop for full inspection of shape/condition.

Question 1
What is a fair price to pay for extended warranty?

Question 2
What is a safe price to pay for the car?

Question 3
What would you be concerned about that I should check out?

Question 4
Your thoughts! Even though it's my ultimate decision :)




Long story short with the S5 - I had a god awful experience with discovering the car had major body work "covered up" and roughly 8/10 sufaces either repainted/body worked. On top of that it had a speed activated vibration between 63-75mph which they said the tires were bad, and while diagnosing that the tech said I need new front pads ASAP! I'd like to keep this experience separate from this post... I got a full refund of my money. But figured I'd share a portion of if for reference.




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[bakedziti]

Sorry to hear about your bad experience, but I am glad they took care of you after the fact. Not to derail your thread, but I hope you went to another dealer. I haven't heard great things about Garber, and can relay that Schmitt's in Buffalo isn't anything to rave about in my experience either. Hopefully you went east and found a car in Syracuse.

With that said, I assume from your question about the extended warranty that the car is not CPO. In my experience, I have seen extended warranties range from $1,500 -$4,000 depending on the car. They are almost always third party, so find the one that best suites your needs; it doesn't have to be from the dealer you purchase from. Just be aware of what the warranty will and will not cover, because some of the bigger items they will not.


As for price, it seems that the figure you gave is right outside the higher suggested value of the car. I would suspect that you will have a little wiggle room here, as almost every car is negotiable. Additional question for you here however, does the car have MMI and what trim level is the car?

Being that the car is from CT, I would want to have the frame/sub-frame inspected; especially so due to your recent experience. I also would check a reverse VIN lookup online, outside of Carfax, as you will likely be able to determine who the car was originally registered to. A reverse phone number look up would get you contact info for that person if you really wanted to dig into the specifics. Call AoA if you have to, that worked for me while preparing to purchase my A4. An independent inspection should cover most of the concerning areas, and give you some ammunition for your negotiations.

Just my $0.02...Good luck!

[grovlet]

S

Being that the car is from CT, I would want to have the frame/sub-frame inspected; especially so due to your recent experience. I also would check a reverse VIN lookup online, outside of Carfax, as you will likely be able to determine who the car was originally registered to. A reverse phone number look up would get you contact info for that person if you really wanted to dig into the specifics. Call AoA if you have to, that worked for me while preparing to purchase my A4. An independent inspection should cover most of the concerning areas, and give you some ammunition for your negotiations.

Just my $0.02...Good luck!

#1 - What is the reason you are suggesting Sub Frame Inspection? CT does use the liquid salt - but it typically won't effect the cars sub-frame as much as fender wells and body panels near tires.... It does also effect non-stainless metal a little more - so brake lines and such may have additional corrosion - but Audi seems to have better under-body protection than lower end makes. If you trying to make ensure there was not an accident - I'm not quite sure why CT is any different than any other state for that - it's a really just a good general check to determine accident damage - and I'm fairly sure any decent mechanic worth their salt would look there for damage once on the lift.....

As to price - that does seem just a tad bit high($500+ based on Edmunds.com) - but it may include some dealer fees.

As to other items to check - these cars are quite reliable - but can be expensive when a fix is required. The DSG of course is quite expensive to replace - although the 2013 is really part the early problem versions - I would also suggest calling AOA with the VIN to request the status of any Warranty items - they can also provide the details on service and possibly if the car is under "Adui-Care"

[mr shickadance]

if the car was a CT car, there are only 8 audi dealerships in CT.

Call them all, see if you can get some info on it. I did this when I had my 2011, some dealers are reluctant but some are pretty cool about the prior owner history.

CNA underwrites the carmax warranty, it's a good warranty, you pay for what you get, barebones will be ~$1000, max will be $4000 also don't discount your car insurance provider either, some of them are offering mechanical breakdown insurance as an added benefit to your policy. call them up and ask about it.

[bakedziti]

#1 - What is the reason you are suggesting Sub Frame Inspection? CT does use the liquid salt - but it typically won't effect the cars sub-frame as much as fender wells and body panels near tires.... It does also effect non-stainless metal a little more - so brake lines and such may have additional corrosion - but Audi seems to have better under-body protection than lower end makes. If you trying to make ensure there was not an accident - I'm not quite sure why CT is any different than any other state for that - it's a really just a good general check to determine accident damage - and I'm fairly sure any decent mechanic worth their salt would look there for damage once on the lift.....

It was more accident oriented. My logic is that a large portion of CT residents will commute for work, and being smack between NYC and Boston, the amount of traffic and thus potential for accidents increases. The car is 3 - 3 1/2 years old, and is at nearly 50,000 miles, so the original owner clearly used the car regularly (not a bad thing IMO); also adding to the potential for accident, and not all are reported. The use of any kind of salt in the Northeast is more for the exposed metal bits as you mentioned, but can work its way to the sub-frame after an accident or if those undercarriage covers are damaged. With OP's recent experience, and adding my $0.02 (for whatever its worth), this is what I would want to have checked out. As I said, just my opinion.

[jwallace0988]

Thank you all so far for the posts! Update coming in just a bit.


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[jwallace0988]

Car is in my possession for a couple hours, putting it through some paces and I'm very content thus far. Visiting a local shop for a 1 HR inspection and take apart to inspect mechanical, wear and tear and paint. Will respond back shortly!


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[whiped]

If you haven't already contact AoA with the VIN.

They will provide you a full history without much fuss. (plus you can see if the car has Audi Care and see if the DSG has been serviced) (FYI I think DSG service is ~$700(?) I cant remember)

Price: Could go lower but not awful
Extended Warranty: I would not pay anything over $2,500
Extra checks: You already mentioned it but, just check to make sure the salt isn't eating away at anything.

You can check if it has sports diff by looking under the car. (http://www.audizine.com/forum/showth...=1#post9539155)

[KRp220]

many dealers put $700 to $1000 i markup on a warranty, so remember that when they offer it and remember that is is negotiable
make sure you get a plan that is conducive to your driving habits and the miles per year you drive. they SHOULD ask you about that and offer an appropriate coverage option

diggin the ice and magma combo

[jwallace0988]

Here she is waiting to be looked at by the shop


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[jwallace0988]

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[jwallace0988]

Also I called AoA and they said the car is cleared of any issues.

Lastly the carfax shows all service intervals up to 45k and its at 49,850 miles now.
It has 4 newer tires Good Year Eagel LS2 and was aligned at that time.

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[jwallace0988]

Has the sports diff - confirmed!

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[sacandagaD]

Has the sports diff - confirmed!

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Roger that, complete with the battery acid coating used on the roads in NW CT, my whole undercarriage has that nasty crap on it!

I see it's also got a restrictor dent in that one exhaust pipe, lol!

[jwallace0988]

Roger that, complete with the battery acid coating used on the roads in NW CT, my whole undercarriage has that nasty crap on it!

Haha amen to that, the guy at the shop said he uses a rust inhibitor called thrust which kills the rust and prevents further corrosion. I'll be purchasing some ASAP.


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[sacandagaD]

Haha amen to that, the guy at the shop said he uses a rust inhibitor called thrust which kills the rust and prevents further corrosion. I'll be purchasing some ASAP.


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My Honda mechanic used some of that on my Element suspension after I had the engine replaced.

[whiped]

Car looks pretty good otherwise.

Welcome to the S4 Family

[MRPANDA]

Looks like a good find. Sport Diff + sweet interior.

That said, figured I'd offer my experience. Bought my CPO'd car sight unseen - did a nationwide search on cars.com/autotrader etc. Negotiated a covered car carrier shipment through uship. Easiest car purchase I ever made, and got everything I wanted - cept the interior. Would have loved magma, but ended up with black, which I can live with. The transport only added $1k to the cost, but doing a nationwide search increased my negotiating ability by an order of magnitude I wouldn't have expected. I let every dealership know what my alternatives were, and most of them became very easy to work with after the commodity discussion. Just my $0.02 on something to consider. That said, I had a lot of faith in the Audi CPO process, which worked well for me as the dealership I purchased from is likely one of the best in the nation, if not the best. Got lucky on that.

[johnstah]

Hi all, I posted a few times in the S5 section with my recent poor experience purchasing a 2014 Glacier White S5 at my local Garber Audi of Rochester dealership. More info below!

The car I am now considering is a Used 2013 Ice Silver S4 with 49,657 miles. It has the Fine Napa leather Black w/ Magma interior and CF Atlas inlays. DSG transmission.
The carfax is clean - 1 owner with regular maintenance reported. Asking $33,978. The car was a lease, owner was located in CT. I do not know of it has sport diff yet. I do plan on taking it to an independent shop for full inspection of shape/condition.

Question 1
What is a fair price to pay for extended warranty?

Question 2
What is a safe price to pay for the car?

Question 3
What would you be concerned about that I should check out?

Question 4
Your thoughts! Even though it's my ultimate decision :)




Long story short with the S5 - I had a god awful experience with discovering the car had major body work "covered up" and roughly 8/10 sufaces either repainted/body worked. On top of that it had a speed activated vibration between 63-75mph which they said the tires were bad, and while diagnosing that the tech said I need new front pads ASAP! I'd like to keep this experience separate from this post... I got a full refund of my money. But figured I'd share a portion of if for reference.




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make sure you enjoy driving with the electronic steering. Many people had issues with the 13' model as it is the first gen with electronic steering.

[sacandagaD]

....and got everything I wanted - cept the interior. Would have loved magma

Would have figured you as a Panda interior guy, Mr Panda.

[jwallace0988]

Car is on hold - came to an agreement after hours and I have the sales agreement in hand. They gave me a 2017 Q7 for a loaner until we get the chance to close it all up! Woohoo!


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[AudiquattroRS4]

You mean 2017 Q7


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[doug97gxe]

Would have figured you as a Panda interior guy, Mr Panda.

LOL

[jwallace0988]

You mean 2017 Q7


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Yes, I looked at that today actually on the reg. First time driving it at night on my way home from work and.... Damn the thing is a beauty. It's so spacious and comfortable, led strip lighting is a fancy touch and with all the driver comforts - really puts you at ease.


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[AudiquattroRS4]

Sure does. We can hardly keep me in stock. They are selling like hot cakes. By far, best SUV in the market in its class


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