Acura TL or Audi A4?

[Inspector Jihad]

Originally posted by: ultimatebob
I'm still not sure where this A4 = Unreliable stuff is coming from. My 2003 A4 has almost 80,000 miles on it, and it's only had one significant problem that cost about $300 to fix.

for some reason most of atot are japanese car fanbois

 

[Art Vandelay]

I test drove both a few times and like the A4 much better. Exterior is sexier, interior is more luxurious, more fun to drive. Reliability on the other hand, TL is probably better. Just get something with warranty, then you don't have to worry about it...

p.s. the audi dealership gave my friend a S4 to drive while they were doing something like a 60k service. only for a day but still hot!

 

[mrchan]

Acura extended the warranties on the 00-03 (or 04,, till whenever the new design game out) transmissions for 7 years, 100k.

 

[chuckywang]

Originally posted by: Aharami

Originally posted by: lyssword

Originally posted by: I Saw OJ
Audi is just a rebadged VW

I would go with the Acura

Acura is just a rebadged honda

actually Acura is a true rebadged Honda where Audi isnt a true rebadged VW. Honda created Acura just for the US market. Acuras are sold as Hondas throughout the rest of the world. VW bought Audi, they didnt create Audi. And Audis, not VWs are sold as Audis through all of the world. Also look under the hood of an Acuram it will say Honda. Look under the hood of an Audi, it wont say VW. Audi has separate (mostly) R&D than VW. True VW and Audi share parts, but mostly VW cars and Audi carshave separate R&D whereas the same honda engineers who design Honda components, design Acura components

Good point.

 

[chuckywang]

Originally posted by: FlashG

Originally posted by: Greyd
some TLs prior and including the year 2004 had some issues with transmissions. Buy a TL 2005 (late build the better)

My understanding is that Acura will cover most late model trans problems unless it was abused. Even if it is officially out of warranty.

I've heard about transmission problems as well. Do you have a link for that, FlashG?

 

[chrisrod01]

Nvm

 

[FlashG]

Originally posted by: chuckywang

Originally posted by: FlashG

Originally posted by: Greyd
some TLs prior and including the year 2004 had some issues with transmissions. Buy a TL 2005 (late build the better)

My understanding is that Acura will cover most late model trans problems unless it was abused. Even if it is officially out of warranty.

I've heard about transmission problems as well. Do you have a link for that, FlashG?

Text

 

[sniperruff]

Originally posted by: Aharami

Originally posted by: lyssword

Originally posted by: I Saw OJ
Audi is just a rebadged VW

I would go with the Acura

Acura is just a rebadged honda

actually Acura is a true rebadged Honda where Audi isnt a true rebadged VW. Honda created Acura just for the US market. Acuras are sold as Hondas throughout the rest of the world. VW bought Audi, they didnt create Audi. And Audis, not VWs are sold as Audis through all of the world. Also look under the hood of an Acuram it will say Honda. Look under the hood of an Audi, it wont say VW. Audi has separate (mostly) R&D than VW. True VW and Audi share parts, but mostly VW cars and Audi carshave separate R&D whereas the same honda engineers who design Honda components, design Acura components

the A4 does share a lot of parts with the VW jetta, including wheels.

 

[0roo0roo]

Originally posted by: Aharami

Originally posted by: lyssword

Originally posted by: I Saw OJ
Audi is just a rebadged VW

I would go with the Acura

Acura is just a rebadged honda

actually Acura is a true rebadged Honda where Audi isnt a true rebadged VW. Honda created Acura just for the US market. Acuras are sold as Hondas throughout the rest of the world. VW bought Audi, they didnt create Audi. And Audis, not VWs are sold as Audis through all of the world. Also look under the hood of an Acuram it will say Honda. Look under the hood of an Audi, it wont say VW. Audi has separate (mostly) R&D than VW. True VW and Audi share parts, but mostly VW cars and Audi carshave separate R&D whereas the same honda engineers who design Honda components, design Acura components

doesn't matter, vw is in the sh*t right now with its powerful unions, strong euro, inability to move production to cheaper areas and inability to move quickly to meet market demands and financial difficulties, it drags audi down as well. r&d? you gotta have money for r&d

http://autos.msn.com/advice/CRArt.aspx?contentid=4023544
reliability... vw/audi are pretty bad here.

 

[Caesar]

Originally posted by: sniperruff

Originally posted by: Aharami

Originally posted by: lyssword

Originally posted by: I Saw OJ
Audi is just a rebadged VW

I would go with the Acura

Acura is just a rebadged honda

actually Acura is a true rebadged Honda where Audi isnt a true rebadged VW. Honda created Acura just for the US market. Acuras are sold as Hondas throughout the rest of the world. VW bought Audi, they didnt create Audi. And Audis, not VWs are sold as Audis through all of the world. Also look under the hood of an Acuram it will say Honda. Look under the hood of an Audi, it wont say VW. Audi has separate (mostly) R&D than VW. True VW and Audi share parts, but mostly VW cars and Audi carshave separate R&D whereas the same honda engineers who design Honda components, design Acura components

the A4 does share a lot of parts with the VW jetta, including wheels.

I don't care for different R&D if at the end they just jam in the same 2.0t engine in both A4 and Jetta/GTI.

 

[mugs]

Originally posted by: sniperruff

Originally posted by: Aharami

Originally posted by: lyssword

Originally posted by: I Saw OJ
Audi is just a rebadged VW

I would go with the Acura

Acura is just a rebadged honda

actually Acura is a true rebadged Honda where Audi isnt a true rebadged VW. Honda created Acura just for the US market. Acuras are sold as Hondas throughout the rest of the world. VW bought Audi, they didnt create Audi. And Audis, not VWs are sold as Audis through all of the world. Also look under the hood of an Acuram it will say Honda. Look under the hood of an Audi, it wont say VW. Audi has separate (mostly) R&D than VW. True VW and Audi share parts, but mostly VW cars and Audi carshave separate R&D whereas the same honda engineers who design Honda components, design Acura components

the A4 does share a lot of parts with the VW jetta, including wheels.

I'd worry more about the engine than the wheels. The 1.8T engine that they used to use in the A4s had a terrible oil sludge problem. VW extended the warranty on the engine because of that though. Just keep up with your oil changes and it shouldn't be a problem. My wife had her engine seize, but they replaced it for free. Unfortunately it took them several months to do it (we were in college at the time so being without a car wasn't a big deal). They also screwed something up when installing the new engine and she needed to have the transmission replaced shortly thereafter (also free). In the end it was electrical problems that killed the car, but that was mostly because water was leaking into the car.

 

[sniperruff]

Originally posted by: mugs

Originally posted by: sniperruff

Originally posted by: Aharami

Originally posted by: lyssword

Originally posted by: I Saw OJ
Audi is just a rebadged VW

I would go with the Acura

Acura is just a rebadged honda

actually Acura is a true rebadged Honda where Audi isnt a true rebadged VW. Honda created Acura just for the US market. Acuras are sold as Hondas throughout the rest of the world. VW bought Audi, they didnt create Audi. And Audis, not VWs are sold as Audis through all of the world. Also look under the hood of an Acuram it will say Honda. Look under the hood of an Audi, it wont say VW. Audi has separate (mostly) R&D than VW. True VW and Audi share parts, but mostly VW cars and Audi carshave separate R&D whereas the same honda engineers who design Honda components, design Acura components

the A4 does share a lot of parts with the VW jetta, including wheels.

I'd worry more about the engine than the wheels. The 1.8T engine that they used to use in the A4s had a terrible oil sludge problem. VW extended the warranty on the engine because of that though. Just keep up with your oil changes and it shouldn't be a problem. My wife had her engine seize, but they replaced it for free. Unfortunately it took them several months to do it (we were in college at the time so being without a car wasn't a big deal). They also screwed something up when installing the new engine and she needed to have the transmission replaced shortly thereafter (also free). In the end it was electrical problems that killed the car, but that was mostly because water was leaking into the car.

that sounds like a major PITA

 

[Fenixgoon]

Originally posted by: mugs

Originally posted by: sniperruff

Originally posted by: Aharami

Originally posted by: lyssword

Originally posted by: I Saw OJ
Audi is just a rebadged VW

I would go with the Acura

Acura is just a rebadged honda

actually Acura is a true rebadged Honda where Audi isnt a true rebadged VW. Honda created Acura just for the US market. Acuras are sold as Hondas throughout the rest of the world. VW bought Audi, they didnt create Audi. And Audis, not VWs are sold as Audis through all of the world. Also look under the hood of an Acuram it will say Honda. Look under the hood of an Audi, it wont say VW. Audi has separate (mostly) R&D than VW. True VW and Audi share parts, but mostly VW cars and Audi carshave separate R&D whereas the same honda engineers who design Honda components, design Acura components

the A4 does share a lot of parts with the VW jetta, including wheels.

I'd worry more about the engine than the wheels. The 1.8T engine that they used to use in the A4s had a terrible oil sludge problem. VW extended the warranty on the engine because of that though. Just keep up with your oil changes and it shouldn't be a problem. My wife had her engine seize, but they replaced it for free. Unfortunately it took them several months to do it (we were in college at the time so being without a car wasn't a big deal). They also screwed something up when installing the new engine and she needed to have the transmission replaced shortly thereafter (also free). In the end it was electrical problems that killed the car, but that was mostly because water was leaking into the car.

ECU + exhaust + KO4 turbo = 300hp @ crank

 

[DeviousTrap]

Originally posted by: mugs

Originally posted by: sniperruff

Originally posted by: Aharami

Originally posted by: lyssword

Originally posted by: I Saw OJ
Audi is just a rebadged VW

I would go with the Acura

Acura is just a rebadged honda

actually Acura is a true rebadged Honda where Audi isnt a true rebadged VW. Honda created Acura just for the US market. Acuras are sold as Hondas throughout the rest of the world. VW bought Audi, they didnt create Audi. And Audis, not VWs are sold as Audis through all of the world. Also look under the hood of an Acuram it will say Honda. Look under the hood of an Audi, it wont say VW. Audi has separate (mostly) R&D than VW. True VW and Audi share parts, but mostly VW cars and Audi carshave separate R&D whereas the same honda engineers who design Honda components, design Acura components

the A4 does share a lot of parts with the VW jetta, including wheels.

I'd worry more about the engine than the wheels. The 1.8T engine that they used to use in the A4s had a terrible oil sludge problem. VW extended the warranty on the engine because of that though. Just keep up with your oil changes and it shouldn't be a problem. My wife had her engine seize, but they replaced it for free. Unfortunately it took them several months to do it (we were in college at the time so being without a car wasn't a big deal). They also screwed something up when installing the new engine and she needed to have the transmission replaced shortly thereafter (also free). In the end it was electrical problems that killed the car, but that was mostly because water was leaking into the car.

Not many cars suffered from that, as long as they were properly maintained. IIRC a recent Toyota 4 cyl. also had some sludge problems recently, as well as Saab's 2.3T. The new 2.0T engines appear to be fine.

 

[mugs]

Originally posted by: DeviousTrap

Not many cars suffered from that, as long as they were properly maintained. IIRC a recent Toyota 4 cyl. also had some sludge problems recently, as well as Saab's 2.3T. The new 2.0T engines appear to be fine.

That's why I said keep up with the oil changes and you should be fine.

He's looking at a used A4, not new, so he'll probably have the 1.8T.

 

[DeviousTrap]

Originally posted by: mugs

Originally posted by: DeviousTrap

Not many cars suffered from that, as long as they were properly maintained. IIRC a recent Toyota 4 cyl. also had some sludge problems recently, as well as Saab's 2.3T. The new 2.0T engines appear to be fine.

That's why I said keep up with the oil changes and you should be fine.

He's looking at a used A4, not new, so he'll probably have the 1.8T.

I guess I should start reading the OPs.

 

[thatsright]

I have a 2000 Maxima SE. Next car will be a TL. More value for price paid for TL, comapred to A4



Dude, get the TL

 

[DeviousTrap]

Originally posted by: thatsright
I have a 2000 Maxima SE. Next car will be a TL. More value for price paid for TL, comapred to A4



Dude, get the TL

How exactly do you get more value for the price? The A4 (as well as most other cars), depreciates a lot faster than the TL. When buying used I'd think that the A4 would be a better value for the price and a TL.

 

[knightc2]

The TL should be more reliable statistically but the Audi would handle the elements better (I am a huge fan of AWD by the way) and might be more fun to drive. Have you test drove either of these cars? What about the purchase price, insurance premiums, gas mileage, warranties, maintenance intervals, etc? All of these things should be considered.

I used to own a VW Sirocco and while it wasn't the most reliable car I owned it was fun to drive. I didn't buy it for the reliability however. I currently have a 96 A4 Quattro with 144k miles on it and is being retired because it is getting too expensive to repair all the time. The dealer here gets $100/hr to work on them so I have always taken it to local mechanics. It was a champion in the snow and fun to drive but it is just getting old and falling apart. We also have a 98 Honda CRV and it has been very reliable (knock on wood). Based on my limited experience with the brands the Honda (Acura) would be the more reliable choice.

I just bought a Subaru to replace the Audi and although it was less expensive to buy and insure, uses regular gas and should be more reliable it sure is a step back in terms of stature, refinement and 'fun to drive' factor. In my case the lower cost, more reliable option won out in the end.

 

[mk52]

doesn't anyone get a car these days because they like the way it looks or makes them feel? To me a car is an extremely visual purchase, the interior and exterior have to create a sense of excitement everytime I get into the vehicle. Hence the entire purchase is nearly 90% subjective. All these stats on reliability and HP that people present really add nothing to the discussion if a person really loves a car may it be a TL or an A4. I recently got an A4 and while the 2.0T stock might not be the mightiest engine in the world chipped it consistently puts a smile on my face. Aside I like the way it looks, which completely subjective is impossible to really argue.

 

[newParadigm]

Subura Wrx

 

[raildogg]

If I had that much to spend, I would get the Acura TSX first and the TL would be my second choice. I like smaller cars, but I would love the have the TL too. I think you should try a TSX also while your trying a TL. I would pick them both over the competition.

 

[chuckywang]

Originally posted by: newParadigm
Subura Wrx

Another possibility!!

 

[imported_Mike]

Originally posted by: chuckywang

Originally posted by: newParadigm
Subura Wrx

Another possibility!!

What about a slightly used CPO C32 AMG?

 

[chuckywang]

Originally posted by: Mike

Originally posted by: chuckywang

Originally posted by: newParadigm
Subura Wrx

Another possibility!!

What about a slightly used CPO C32 AMG?

Why? You got one?