Nothing quite like pushing your car off an LA freeway.
Timing belt… RIP engine. Done this before, not rebuilding again.
B6 fo life, kinda dated now. What’s next?
A3 = silly expensive + no manual. B8 S4 would be sweet. Not in the cards. B8 A4... not interested.
Back to the B7… like a refined B6 but really not a fan of those 2.0t problems.
Yet a black B7 S-liine has always been a huge fav, especially with a titanium pkg.
What to do? Turns out there was another option…
B7 A4 3.2L V6 S-Line Manual
Oh I really like this car.
So damn clean.
Turns out these are difficult to find especially with a manual and even more so an S-line. They’re out there but in very sparse numbers. Furly from the Bay spotted this one on a lot in Pleasanton, CA and Brian @ Bridge City Motors up in Portland was able to source it.
89k miles
3.2 quattro 6MT
S-Line + Premium Packages
RNS-E w/Bluetooth + CD Changer
Moonroof, Heated Power Seats (not since my B5, yes!) + Bi-Xenon AFS Headlights
Completely stock, only debadged.
Side note, Brian @ Bridge City is a true Audi / BMW enthusiast who turned that love into a kick-ass auto brokerage.
Had an excellent and completely smooth purchasing experience. If you’re serious and on the hunt for something in particular - even if you’re outside of Oregon - hit him up.
Props to Molly / Cupcake S5 for the reco as well. Had you not, this wouldn’t have happened.
Bridge City Motors
http://www.bridgecitymotors.com
https://www.yelp.com/biz/bridge-city-motors-portland
It’s an incredibly fortunate thing to have such a great network of Audi family… AUBA, the WM Crew, Jace, Tyler and the rest of you guys.
Time for mods. Had Brian add some 20% tint all around… much better.
After a nite of shenanigans with the Winter Mode Crew, was ready to drive it back down to SoCal.
But not before a ride in Molly's SC S5, Cal’s incredible 71R B6 and of course shuttle service to BCM in Brett’s immaculate Avant.
Seriously thou, this Avant is incredible. It turns heads everywhere, even in downtown Portland at 9am on a Saturday. Thanks man.
Rochele and Pat you guys are awesome. Looking forward to next time!
This was the first time I’d ever driven a 3.2L V6 Audi.
Had a good feeling about it, read / heard lots of positive things about this engine so I pulled the trigger and booked a flight to Portland.
Zero complains whatsoever.
It took from Portland OR to Sacramento CA to really get the feel for the NA engine and 6-speed trans. I’ve been driving 5MT 1.8T B5/6’s for over a decade now, needless to say this was a bit different. While I did initially miss the turbo punch when downshifting, it’s replacement of steady torque in all gears is very appealing… especially 4th on the highway. The six speed gearbox and transmission is so much of an improvement over Audi’s previous offering. The engine loves to rev and makes max tq @ 3250rpms and hp @ 6500rpms (243tq/255hp). Doesn’t sound like too much yet shockingly fulfilling when called upon. Really fun to drive.
Bottom line, this car absolutely destroys it on the highway. Hill climbs are incredible, passing is effortless and it hungers to cruise north of 80mph.
The stock engine / exhaust sound is euphoric. I can not wait to get a proper exhaust (JHM / FI). Driving this car reminded me of the S8 chase scenes in Ronin… what started my love for all things Audi.
Bugpocalypse.
Did the drive in two days, almost sans issue. Discovered this B7 has fallen victim to the dreaded flickering headlight issue. Pretty sketchy at night. Started researching the moment I got home, will be ordering new bulbs to see of that does the trick. If not, ballasts then housings. Props to all of you that have posted up about this issue.
I’ve found that not using the Auto function and fogs has kept the flickering to a minimum. When it starts, flip lights off and back on. Thus far, it’s doable. More on that later.
First bath,
Snapped this across the street from a small Euro car dealer.
The guys were looking at me like WTF is this guy doing taking pics of his car? They just don’t get it.
We will lower you and do many other things. Such a nice fresh canvas to begin with.
1st thing to take care of was that godammed door chime. That was a whole new level of annoying.
While in there, did remote windows + one-click locks and Euro headlights,
Wasted no time in testing this completely stock car out… did the run up Angeles Crest Highway.
I was shocked at how well the B7 3.2 handles out of the box. Granted the suspension has definitely been changed out somewhat recently, it still powered thru turns with ease and was pretty compliant when being thrown around.
Yes, there’s room for improvement and already have a plan in place for suspension. Years of experimenting on the B6 have taught some valuable lessons. Still it was a very compliant drive, lots of fun.
Stock B7 brakes are such a massive improvement compared to the stockers on the B6. No surprise there. However, I had long since upgraded to Stoptechs on the B6 and was expecting to miss them a lot, especially up there. However, the B7 stockers did great. Will eventually upgrade the whole system yet for the time being these will do the job.
So there ya have it. I bought a B7 with a 3.2L V6. Here we go...
Reply With Quote
Looks super clean!
Originally Posted by a4darkness
Bookmarks