What to look for when buying a used Audi A4 B8 or B8 FL

After having driven about 20,000 miles on my A4 for a couple of years and having repaired almost everything I could, I decided to share my accumulated wisdom. The car is good, interesting, but you have to choose it correctly.

1. The engine.
   There are petrol and diesel. The most common are below:
   1.1 Diesel 2.0T. Have not heard anything bad about it – they go well and for a long time, you only need to change the timing belt in time. There is a man who has gone 200k miles without engine repair. There are complaints about the oil pump hex and then you have to unbolt the “ecology”;
   1.2 Gasoline 1.8T / 2.0T. Warning. There are two generations of Gen2 and Gen3. What is written below is relevant to Gen2. There will be a bit about Gen3 at the end.
   99% of the time it burns oil if the car is 2007-2013 and has not been rebuilt. How much? As luck would have it. From 1L per 2000 miles (tolerable) to 1L per 300 miles. If you are told that nothing has been repaired, but they do not pour oil – do not be lazy, look at the exhaust pipe and get into the cylinders with an endoscope. Or take off the intake manifold. Most likely you will see the soot and understand that they are trying to love you. Normal oil consumption is considered 1 liter per 5000 miles.
   The second point is a timing chain. If you have not changed it – it is better to do it yourself or get a discount for it. Old chains last up to 60-80 thousand miles, and then they can easily jump over. The new chain has no such problem. It lasts about 120k miles.
   The third – all sorts of small stuff, such as:

• fuel injection pump (after 60k miles may need replacing)
• oil separator (after 50k miles the rubber gets cold and oil flow increases \the car doesn’t go)
• pump (standard pump may burst along its body)
• inlet manifold baffles (may require cleaning)
  The fourth, though it is rather half a point – a turbine. Be sure to check it, it shouldn’t be dripping oil or making noise at idle.
  Be sure to check it out.

The difference between Gen2 and Gen3.
The third generation is almost devoid of the problems of the second – there is no oil consumption, the weight of the block is slightly reduced, the fuel injection is changed. In general, according to the reviews, it turned out to be more reliable and powerful. But these engines are only found on the Audi A4 B8 FL.

Here you can read more about the peculiarities of the generations and which engine markings apply to which Gen

1.3.Gasoline 3.0 Compressor. They say it drives great. But I have never seen them in real life. In addition, there is a 2.7T and a 3.0T diesel. But these engines are rather an exception and it is necessary to choose them for those who know exactly what they want;

2. 2. Drive (front or all-wheel drive) and gearbox (Variator (Multitronic), Automatic, Manual, LSG (Stronic)).
   2.1 Front on the variator – for a smooth and quiet ride. Never seen anything happen to the gearbox, but the box without proper maintenance can be a disaster. It’s regulated to change fluid every 40k miles. Service life is about 150 – 200 thousand miles if it hasn’t been much bumped. It is easy to check – gears should be shifted without jerks, PRND position too. It can be checked as follows: if you drive up to the small curb about 5-10 cm, press the gas, and the car will not go, wheels will not spin (thus the chain in a variator slip), and then there is a shock (the chain snagged) and the car sharply jumps on a curb, then the variator is already tired.
   2.2 Full \ Front on the mechanics. Simple, reliable, expensive. Resource of about 120 thousand miles. Selling this car will be difficult, nowadays mechanics is not in favor.
   2.3 Full on standard automatic. Rare beast in our territories, intended for the American market. Reliable, I can’t remember any repairs. But I don’t think it will digest chip tuning of the engine well if you suddenly think about it;
   2.4 Full on DSG. A common and finicky beast. Almost everyone has had the mechatronic replaced under warranty, in case this problem comes up again (but it seems to have been solved). The second point is two clutch packs. You can check them with computer diagnostics.
3. Suspension.
   There are several types of suspension that are found on the market. They are interchangeable, but seriously change the behavior of the car on the road.
4. 1BR – standard suspension for Russia with increased ground clearance. It steers badly. The car looks like a bumped-up one. Can be solved by changing the suspension. It is necessary to change springs, supports and remove spacers at the rear.
5. 2. 1BA is standard for Europe. It has pleasant steering, keeps the course, but at the same time swallows all the potholes. I installed this one. Looks all right.
6. 1BE – standard sports suspension. I have not encountered it myself.
7. Different assemblies with lowering and different stiffness from Eibach and X & R.
   I will write separately about the rear stabilizer – it is desirable to change it for a reinforced one. Otherwise, in turns, the ass will be pulled down. I replaced 16,7 mm for 21,6 mm. Feel much better.

There are a few other small separate points that make no sense to combine:

1. There are a lot of levers in the Audi A4’s suspension. Pay attention to their condition and how the silents are doing. Otherwise, you can spend a lot of money on it if it’s dead;
2. If the car howls like an airplane on acceleration – look at the hub bearings, they can fail that way
3. Cables are expensive. Look at the dusters and check them on acceleration – there should be no vibration and crunch;
4. The car from 120 hp. (stifled) or 160 (1.8T) easily turns into 210. A lot of firmware for every taste. Haven’t noticed it having much of an effect on life expectancy
5. Pay attention to the rear and front fenders – can start to rust. They are a sore spot.
6. Can bite on the steering wheel while turning left and right – rusty steering cross shaft, replace it;
7. Electric power steering error (actual for B8 FL, there is a reliable hydraulic booster on usual ones). You can’t fix it just like that, and in 80% of cases, it will involve replacing the entire steering rack. The problem is that the location of the board is poorly insulated and if you are unlucky, water can get in there;

If I were buying an Audi right now, I would be looking for a 2013-2014 DSG \ automatic with a Gen3 2.0T engine and all-wheel drive. Front-wheel drive is sorely lacking in the winter. Both in the city and on the highway.