Audi S4 vs BMW 525xi

Funkmasterr · Post by **Funkmasterr** » October 29, 2006, 11:33 pm

I am going to sell my car in a year or so and these two cars are what I am trying to choose between. I am thinking that I would probably be looking at the 2005 model or so of each, I was just looking for any possible input on the two, mainly because I have never owned a BMW and figured maybe someone here that has could give me feedback on BMW's in general.

Or maybe if you have ideas for another sports car in the same price range, my only requirement is that it is all wheel drive and comes in a manual transmission (two things I have found to be extremely beneficial in Minnesota)

Thanks!

Kelshara · Post by **Kelshara** » October 30, 2006, 12:59 am

Well neither of those two are really sports cars heh. German cars in general (and Mercedes in particular) took a pretty steep quality dive but they have made it at least partially back up again. With BMWs you will see that they truly are the ultimate driving machines and I personally love the combination of luxury, performance and comfort.

I believe you will find the S4 to be more performance oriented and the BMW to be far more comfortable and luxurious. Repairs will be more expensive on the BMW as well.

miir · Post by **miir** » October 30, 2006, 1:51 am

Get an Impreza.

Pherr the Dorf · Post by **Pherr the Dorf** » October 30, 2006, 10:53 am

I think the 5 series is ugly

Kelshara · Post by **Kelshara** » October 30, 2006, 2:59 pm

Actually a good car to get would be a Legacy GT. Great car.

Funkmasterr · Post by **Funkmasterr** » October 30, 2006, 3:27 pm

Very interesting on the Spec B... It is going to take a damn nice car to get me to go away from German cars. How are Subaru's in general as far as maintenance costs, etc?

miir · Post by **miir** » October 30, 2006, 6:23 pm

Funkmasterr wrote:Very interesting on the Spec B... It is going to take a damn nice car to get me to go away from German cars. How are Subaru's in general as far as maintenance costs, etc?

Subarus always seem to be near or at the top in consumer satisfaction surveys. And being japanese, they will be considerably cheaper to maintain than a german car.

I have 3 friends with Subarus. A Legacy, a vanilla Impreza and a STI. My coworker with the vanilla Impreza has never had to bring his car in for anything outside of scheduled maintenance in a little over 3 years. My buddy with the STI had a problem with the AC (which was covered under warranty) and the guy with the legacy had a minor issue with the power windows in 5 years.

They would not hesitate to buy another and have even been trying to talk me into buying one. I've driven the STI and it's a fucking riot... but it's a way out of my price range and the insurance would be killer.

Funkmasterr · Post by **Funkmasterr** » October 30, 2006, 7:03 pm

Yeah the main reason I am considering other options (I really like Audi's) is because of maintenance. Since my warranty was done at 50k miles, I have spent

$850 on brakes and rotors
$1250 on cam shaft tensioner
$2100 on clutch/flywheel

And it's annoying. It doesn't help that I know I will have to replace my timing belt soon (about $1200) before it goes out on it's own and does some serious damage.

miir · Post by **miir** » October 30, 2006, 8:10 pm

My brother in law has an A4 as well... he's had a similar experience.

Kelshara · Post by **Kelshara** » October 30, 2006, 8:31 pm

Subarus are GREAT cars. Now most of my experience with them is from Norway so not sure how different they are here (many cars are), but there they last forfriggin ever, they have a VERY nice AWD system, are reliable as hell and fun to drive. The Legacy GT is imo one of the best buys out there. It is spacious, comfortable, not as boy-racerish as the STI while still packing a punch (and can be modded if that is what you desire).

miir · Post by **miir** » October 31, 2006, 2:29 am

The Legacy GT doesn't attract much (negative) attention either.

Zver · Post by **Zver** » October 31, 2006, 12:36 pm

I owned A6 3.0 and i can honestly say it was one of the worst cars i have ever owned. I will never get into another Audi. After i sold it, i got a Lexus and never looked back

Spang · Post by **Spang** » October 31, 2006, 12:53 pm

Funkmasterr wrote:How are Subaru's in general as far as maintenance costs, etc?

i owned an impreza for about 3 years. for 6 months during that time it stayed parked in el paso, TX during the spring/summer months. during the entire time i owned the automobile i never got an oil change or any kind of tune-up. i basically treated this car like shit. my friends suggested i keep this car if it started back up. it started up but i was a dumb ass and traded it in.

i had 0 problems with this car. it even got hit 3 times with no repairs after.

Ransure · Post by **Ransure** » October 31, 2006, 3:07 pm

I think you mean the BMW 325xi, not the 525xi.... since its not even in the same class as the S4. Ive had a # of friends with S4's and all of them had transmission issues. Im a BMW guy at heart, and if you get one with a warranty, then you should.

But I think either the S4 or the BMW will be comparable for repair costs.

miir · Post by **miir** » October 31, 2006, 3:43 pm

I think you mean the BMW 325xi, not the 525xi

I think he means the 525xi.

Aabidano · Post by **Aabidano** » October 31, 2006, 5:15 pm

Subaru makes fantastic cars, quality is right there with Honda and Toyota IMO. A coworker had an STi, it was scary fast. Much more fun to drive than another coworkers' S4 too.

I've never been a fan of cars that needed expensive and frequent maintenance. Audis and BMWs both fall into that category from everyone I've known that had one, newer Volvos too for that matter. Very nice cars but not worth it to me.

Mercedes is in the same boat for maintenance costs, I'd buy one of those though. They last just about forever. Different class of car altogether if you don't get one from the years where they were having quality issues.

Funkmasterr · Post by **Funkmasterr** » October 31, 2006, 5:17 pm

The two cars are in the same relative price range, but the S4 is up there a bit more.

You guys have me really giving this whole Subaru thing some serious consideration. I went late last night to look at one at the dealership but they didn't have any on the lot.

Lol sorry Miir, I meant to quote your post and edited it instead.

Kelshara · Post by **Kelshara** » October 31, 2006, 8:55 pm

Another car to keep in mind is the Lexus IS 350. Had the pleasure of driving one of those while visiting a friend in Houston and hot damn, that is a nice car! Not a fan of it being auto only but I would almost forgive it for that one. Must admit I fell in love with it.. talk about fast and luxurious!

Chidoro · Post by **Chidoro** » November 8, 2006, 2:10 pm

I'm curious as to how your decision is going for this as I am jumping a bit late on it. For reasons personal to me, I would never own a BMW, much less sit in one if I could avoid it. I'm not sure Subie's are inexpensive to maintain if you went the spec B route because you'd probably need to go to a dealer to service the boxer (although I could be wrong on that). On the service issue, I'd be sure there is a subie dealer close to you. It's screwy, but a sub dealership is probably the furthest a dealership is from me. Shit, ferrari, maserati, and porche dealers are all closer to me than a sub. That being said, I really really liked my test drive in a legacy gt limited. I think I would force my wife to learn to drive stick so I could own it to be perfectly honest.

The IS350 is an excellent car even w/out stick however it isn't awd which was an initial req. Have you looked at the infiniti g35x? It's up for a model update this year so you may get a good deal on an '05 or '06. It, too, is an excellent car.

Not to make this any more difficult, but Audi interiors are the best on the market imo. Of the original two choices, I would select the audi even if it wasn't for my bias against bmw. Anyway, good luck.

Funkmasterr · Post by **Funkmasterr** » November 8, 2006, 2:46 pm

My decision process is still ongoing. The Subaru dealership is actually about 1/4 mile from my house, and they are getting one of the spec b's in on Friday, so I have a test drive scheduled.

I have liked everything I have heard about it, but I really have to see the car in real life before I know for sure that I like it. What I do really like is that all the nice luxury options are standard on it (gps, etc).

I will probably look into the Infinity and the Lexus as well, I have actually always been a fan of how the G35's look and sound, but I have never drove in one. I tested the IS300 a few years ago and I didn't like the interior all that much, but I haven't even seen the 350 so I'll have to drive that too.

But I totally agree with you on the interior of Audi's. I love the inside of my car, and all the buttons and screens and gadgets there are, I just don't like blank spaces on the dash, and Audi does the best job combating that.

I love my car, and I would get another one in a heartbeat but the repairs are just unrealistic for me.

Menelaos · Post by **Menelaos** » March 7, 2007, 9:31 pm

Audis have superior drivetrains, engines, and trannys, as compared to BMW, Toyota (wtf this is doing here, I dunno), and Suburu. There is just no comparison WHATSOEVER.

The problem with Audis is the components around the drivetrains, engines, and trannys, can and will fail if you do not properly maintain them. That's the thing about Audis; they are an enthusiast's car and is designed as such. They require more careful maintenence, plain and simple. The price for performance/luxury is higher maintenence, sadly.

I hear folks whine about their audis crapping out on them all the time, but truth is the HUGE majority of those folks don't properly maintain their cars.

I own a 99 Audi A4 V6 2.8L, and with proper maintenence and regular servicing, have not had any major issues whatsoever. Car now has about 55K miles on it (car was driven very lightly), and runs as strong as it was brand new. Do some research at http://www.vortex.com or http://www.audiworld.com to get some better first-hand accounts of other folks with Audis. I personally love my Audi and plan on driving it well past 150K.

Funkmasterr · Post by **Funkmasterr** » March 7, 2007, 9:49 pm

Menelaos wrote:Audis have superior drivetrains, engines, and trannys, as compared to BMW, Toyota (wtf this is doing here, I dunno), and Suburu. There is just no comparison WHATSOEVER.

The problem with Audis is the components around the drivetrains, engines, and trannys, can and will fail if you do not properly maintain them. That's the thing about Audis; they are an enthusiast's car and is designed as such. They require more careful maintenence, plain and simple. The price for performance/luxury is higher maintenence, sadly.

I hear folks whine about their audis crapping out on them all the time, but truth is the HUGE majority of those folks don't properly maintain their cars.

I own a 99 Audi A4 V6 2.8L, and with proper maintenence and regular servicing, have not had any major issues whatsoever. Car now has about 55K miles on it (car was driven very lightly), and runs as strong as it was brand new. Do some research at http://www.vortex.com or http://www.audiworld.com to get some better first-hand accounts of other folks with Audis. I personally love my Audi and plan on driving it well past 150K.

I can see this to a point, but I have taken care of my car. I got all the scheduled services when it was under warranty, I have taken care of it since - but shit has just not gone in my favor.

I am now looking at replacing my O2 sensors - front & rear which is going to run me around 600 dollars.

Don't get me wrong though, I still love the car and if I had money to constantly have check ups and tune ups done on my car (or if I could do the work myself) I would totally stick with this one longer and get another one.

Menelaos · Post by **Menelaos** » March 8, 2007, 4:17 am

Yea, I should probably qualify my above statements with the knowledge that you can get unlucky with Audis and get a "lemon". I've heard all the horror stories, believe me

A good friend of mine had his A4's electrical system go haywire, and the car wouldn't even start. He's avoided Audi like the plague since.

Oh well...butI have heard they've corrected many of the issues in the latest models. I don't much like the look of the new models however. I'm in love with the B5 chassis (1996-2001). It's still in my mind the most elegant looking sedan among the three latest iterations of the A4. Also the most modifiable, if you're into that; it get's a lot more gains than the later years from stuff like EMU chips, stage 1-3 chips for the Turbos, intake/exhaust etc. My car is lovingly stock with some minor cosmetic touches. It essentially looks like a 1999 european A4, but with 2001-2004 RS4 rims.

Menelaos · Post by **Menelaos** » March 8, 2007, 4:20 am

Oh by the way Funk, did you replace your air filter on your car with an aftermarket one, like a K&N? If so, I've heard that they can have a detrimental effect on your mass air flow sensors, caused somehow by the oil or solution used to saturate the filter after cleaning it. End up having to replace it to fix the problem.

I wonder if this is the case with you?

Funkmasterr · Post by **Funkmasterr** » March 8, 2007, 1:48 pm

Menelaos wrote:Oh by the way Funk, did you replace your air filter on your car with an aftermarket one, like a K&N? If so, I've heard that they can have a detrimental effect on your mass air flow sensors, caused somehow by the oil or solution used to saturate the filter after cleaning it. End up having to replace it to fix the problem.

I wonder if this is the case with you?

No I haven't. Here is what is happening: My acceleration isn't what it used to be (at lower speeds mostly), my gas mileage is about in-line with a 1 ton pick up truck carrying a full load, obviously my check engine light is on.. and when I first start the car up you can faintly smell engine exhaust in the car (gone after a few minutes).

I am probably gonna have someone I know hook it up and check the error codes before I do anything, though.

You have any other ideas ?

Momopi · Post by **Momopi** » March 15, 2007, 9:02 am

My brother is the top mechanic at the audi dealership in salt lake city and he said avoid the newer audi's like the plague, since they are all basically piles of crap and always break down.

Kelshara · Post by **Kelshara** » March 17, 2007, 2:03 pm

Your brother is an idiot