Hi all, new member saying hello

Hi Andy,
Mainly a 25m each way commute to work, possibly extending to a 35m one later in the year.
Then mainly pottering around Somerset with the odd trip to Bristol and the South coast of Dorset which is about 50 to 60 miles.
Im losing my work van which I have had a free fuel and no tax agreement for the last 14 years and have 2 months to locate a suitable car.
Cheers,
Rob
Welcome to A2OC.
I have an FSI and I have spent a lot of money on it. Have I spent as much money on it in the last 3 years, that I lost in depreciation on my previous much newer Toyota in 3 years? No where near.
I'll admit that there have been times when my patience has been tested. But now its fully fixed, it is the closest thing to my old Mk 2 Golf gti that I've had and I absolutely adore driving it. They don't like short journeys so your commute should be fine as long as it's not all crawl.
If you buy one, it's worth buying a cheap vcds to check codes and reset the Engine Management Light.
I love my FSI and have decided to go for the best of both worlds and now have a 1.4 for work and my FSI for long journeys and socials.
Hope you find what you are looking for soon
 
Go for a diesel we have owned them since 2002 and we still have 2 if it were me I would go for the tdi 75 with re map cheap to run 100 bhp and none of the tdi probs ie turbo and dmf I know only to well I had two both had issues ..
.we are also in Somerset 12 miles outside Taunton..

Thanks for the input,
So the 90's have a dmf?
I'm still reading and learning atm so dont have too much knowledge about them yet.
 
Thanks for the input,
So the 90's have a dmf?
I'm still reading and learning atm so dont have too much knowledge about them yet.

Yes they do, along with a more complicated (and therefore more failure-prone) variable-vane turbo. But everyone who's got or had one will tell you they're a lot of fun :)
 
Thanks for the input,
So the 90's have a dmf?
I'm still reading and learning atm so dont have too much knowledge about them yet.
The TDI 90 has a duel mass flywheel,and the variable vain turbo,these are the main two problems of that model.If there good that engine is bullet proof
 
A remapped (102bhp and 240lb ft) in a aluminium car weighing at or just under 1000kg makes for a lot of fun driving it, and this is on a none TDI90 i.e a remapped TDI75
They are cheaper, more plentiful and more reliable, not to mention do more to the gallon.
I'm getting 62 mpg on a 8 mile commute to work, well into the 70's on a motor way run.
This is with a remapped and EGR removed tdi75 with long 5th gear fitted - makes for a much more relaxed and quiet motorway cruiser.
add to this rust free, £32 a year tax and for me well under £200 to insure and I have a winner and a keeper.
Suggest you look at 15" rims unless you have pot hole free roads on you normal commutes as the A2 is not know for its ride quality, lets just call it German firm ride and leave it at that

Also work out if you want a 4 or 5 seater, the bench seat on the 5 is very heavy and difficult to remove hence the 4 seater is a more versatile car in most circumstances, but if you need 5 seats then obviously the 5 seater is the one to go for.
Tom did not mention earlier that this is one of the things that cannot be changed / retro fitted, along with Climate control (Aircon) and the open sky system (oss) which is often referred to as broken sky if it no longer opens - its fixable but at a fair old cost

Don't worry about miles on the TDI, if they are serviced regularly then star ship miles are likely, I have recently sold a 3 owner from new TDI75 with 288,500 miles on the clock, still returned 60+mpg, used no oil between services and started first time every time

Best of luck A2 hunting

Any question ask away

Cheers,
Paul
 
Welcome to A2OC.
I have an FSI and I have spent a lot of money on it. Have I spent as much money on it in the last 3 years, that I lost in depreciation on my previous much newer Toyota in 3 years? No where near.
I'll admit that there have been times when my patience has been tested. But now its fully fixed, it is the closest thing to my old Mk 2 Golf gti that I've had and I absolutely adore driving it. They don't like short journeys so your commute should be fine as long as it's not all crawl.
If you buy one, it's worth buying a cheap vcds to check codes and reset the Engine Management Light.
I love my FSI and have decided to go for the best of both worlds and now have a 1.4 for work and my FSI for long journeys and socials.
Hope you find what you are looking for soon

Thanks for the reply/advice,
My commute will be on some nice b
A remapped (102bhp and 240lb ft) in a aluminium car weighing at or just under 1000kg makes for a lot of fun driving it, and this is on a none TDI90 i.e a remapped TDI75
They are cheaper, more plentiful and more reliable, not to mention do more to the gallon.
I'm getting 62 mpg on a 8 mile commute to work, well into the 70's on a motor way run.
This is with a remapped and EGR removed tdi75 with long 5th gear fitted - makes for a much more relaxed and quiet motorway cruiser.
add to this rust free, £32 a year tax and for me well under £200 to insure and I have a winner and a keeper.
Suggest you look at 15" rims unless you have pot hole free roads on you normal commutes as the A2 is not know for its ride quality, lets just call it German firm ride and leave it at that

Also work out if you want a 4 or 5 seater, the bench seat on the 5 is very heavy and difficult to remove hence the 4 seater is a more versatile car in most circumstances, but if you need 5 seats then obviously the 5 seater is the one to go for.
Tom did not mention earlier that this is one of the things that cannot be changed / retro fitted, along with Climate control (Aircon) and the open sky system (oss) which is often referred to as broken sky if it no longer opens - its fixable but at a fair old cost

Don't worry about miles on the TDI, if they are serviced regularly then star ship miles are likely, I have recently sold a 3 owner from new TDI75 with 288,500 miles on the clock, still returned 60+mpg, used no oil between services and started first time every time

Best of luck A2 hunting

Any question ask away

Cheers,
Paul

Thanks Paul, Im sure I'll have many!
 
A lot depends on what you intend to do with the car. By that I am asking about your driving style. Yes the suspension is firm even crashy but they are very stable considering the height of the body. 4 seats or 5 as you can not change them later. Air con a must. If you are a sporty driver then the diesels as standard will surprise you, throw in a remap and they really do fly. The 1.6 FSI is the fastest and being petrol smoother but at a cost. A good compromise is the SE 16" wheels and are easy to get second hand. 17" sport will find every pot hole and let you know about it. Diesels are cheaper to tax insure and lower running costs but if you need petrol 1.4 good all rounder and a lot easier to maintain than the 1.6 FSI. Suggest you find a couple of different engines and see what suits you. Personally I would recommend a 1.4 tdi 75 as they are more common and cheaper than the 1.4 tdi 90, just no DMF or VVT to worry about.
 
I'd just like to say thanks to you all for taking the time to offer advice and welcome me etc.
A lot depends on what you intend to do with the car. By that I am asking about your driving style. Yes the suspension is firm even crashy but they are very stable considering the height of the body. 4 seats or 5 as you can not change them later. Air con a must. If you are a sporty driver then the diesels as standard will surprise you, throw in a remap and they really do fly. The 1.6 FSI is the fastest and being petrol smoother but at a cost. A good compromise is the SE 16" wheels and are easy to get second hand. 17" sport will find every pot hole and let you know about it. Diesels are cheaper to tax insure and lower running costs but if you need petrol 1.4 good all rounder and a lot easier to maintain than the 1.6 FSI. Suggest you find a couple of different engines and see what suits you. Personally I would recommend a 1.4 tdi 75 as they are more common and cheaper than the 1.4 tdi 90, just no DMF or VVT to worry about.

I would say driving style is sporty in a low range diesel kind of way, if that makes sense?
Im not one for revving the engine and in reality prefer the way a tdi drives.
The car will be for 25m to 35m commutes and A & B road driving with the odd short motorway hop between one or two junctions.
4 or 5 seats makes no difference, I think I'd prefer 4 but dont know why really, maybe as its a bit different than most cars out there.
From what Ive read and been advised over the last couple of days, I think in an ideal world I would like a nice colour, high spec 75bhp tdi with a remap, but have spotted what I think is a really nice 1.6 fsi locally!
The tax bracket of the diesel is appealing and the insurance is about the same for all engines so thats not a concern to me. More mpg from the diesels is always good too.
But I would really love it to have leather or leather/alcantara and a Bose system fitted.
Cheers,
Rob
 
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Totally your choice. I don't want to be accused of "slagging off" FSI, as long as you are aware of there issues and costs then if that is what you want go for it. Still suggest you drive a tdi 75 and the FSI to see what you prefer. Any members nearby that can offer you a test drive? Why not start another thread stating just that. Worth a try, they may even be able to help check over the FSI with you. Only other piece of advice I would say is to go for a tdi 75 with the Webasto heater (working) as in winter you will be about a third of the way to work before the engine is warm enough for cabin heating. The later electric auxilary heater is not as good in my opinion.
 
Hi to everyone. I bought a 1.6 FSI a few days ago 48,000 mls, full Audi Service History, and 2 previous owners, the first for 12 years. It goes really well, not quite the equal of my Mk1 TT, but good fun. We'll see what the future brings, but for now? I have a good local indie, who knows his stuff, and his advice is always use Super Unleaded, and add a shot of Wurth additive now and again to keep things clean. Buying an old car is always a gamble. I'm sure there's a few dodgy diesels out there to tempt you. Pays your money, takes your chance. Mac.
 
Hi Rob,
welcome to the A2 club, as you can tell by all the enthusiastic hellos and helpful pointers for your choice of car, you really are in good friendly hands.

I am a newish member myself so can't really offer much in the way of insight, but my vote is for the tdi 75. I bought one of these a few months ago and have been driving it like it's stolen for the last 12k miles. Robust and economical are the two words that spring to mind.

Good luck with your search.

Stephen
 
Hi Rob, I am between Bristol n Gloucester and have a 1.4, an FSI and a Tdi75 (remapped). Am away to Cornwall next week but if you want to try them let me know?
The 1.4 is quiet and sedate. The FSI is livelier and a nice ride, with a great engine note once up at 4~5000 rpm!
The remapped Tdi has a 6 speed MYP gearbox from a Passat 1.6 Bluemotion, which gives sedate cruising, 2000rpm at 70mph. Its cheap to tax, economical and fun to drive. It is a noisier drive than the petrols though not obtrusive.
Welcome by the way!


Sent from my SM-N960F using Tapatalk
 
Hi Rob,

A couple of points on the nice local FSI you are tempted by.

1. I reiterate the need to run a FSI on 99 octane (Shell V-Power/Tesco Momentum), there is the extra running cost to consider.

2. You will have gathered by now the FSI engine is partial to illuminating the EML, quite often caused by an inlet manifold problem fault. Be warned many FSIs for sale have been nobbled to mask the EML light to hide this fault. If you view a FSI check to make sure the EML illuminates when you insert and turn the ignition key, if not walk away. Check that you see this.

Andy
 
Download a free copy of VCDS Lite, from Rosstech website, and buy a KKL lead on ebay for under £10. Install it on an old laptop, and scan your prospective purchase. This will give you the insight you need on the car's health, not just EML, but all the rest of the diagnostic info. Indicators like the EML are being fiddled with in much subtler ways than sticky tape! Mini computer chips with software that makes the indicators go through the correct sequences are available, so just checking the light is not enough. Mac.
 
Thanks for the reply's all.
Yes, I love the G60 engine and also my old Corrado it sat in, now that was a money pit! In a good way though!
In a way I wish I hadn't posted now (sad face) as the reply's and info have thrown me a bit.
These are the two local cars that I have found which do sound/look nice .


I do actually prefer diesel as I like to drive in an easy low revving style and let the power build, Im not one for lots of revs and cog swapping (hence my love of the torquey G60 engine) but would also like a nice high spec too.
Are there cars for sale in the market?
Cheers,
Rob
I absolutely agree with you on the Corrado G60. Fantastic car tho with a demented vacuum cleaner sound from the supercharger (owned 2 myself) and wouldn't hesitate to own another. All A2's are going to be collectors items soon. It really depends on how patient you are. The fsi is a great motor when running well and is guaranteed to put a smile on your face, but it does have it's problems. The tdi tho not as enjoyable to drive as an fsi will give you 50+ mpg and reliable motoring. Ultimately the choice is yours but we are a friendly bunch and I'm sure if there is someone local to you a test drive can be arranged.
Welcome and best of luck. Steve
P1020491.jpg

My last g60 :(
 
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Download a free copy of VCDS Lite, from Rosstech website, and buy a KKL lead on ebay for under £10. Install it on an old laptop, and scan your prospective purchase. This will give you the insight you need on the car's health, not just EML, but all the rest of the diagnostic info. Indicators like the EML are being fiddled with in much subtler ways than sticky tape! Mini computer chips with software that makes the indicators go through the correct sequences are available, so just checking the light is not enough. Mac.
Agreed, but this does depend on a seller giving permission for a scan. Dodgy sellers certainly will certainly not allow permission, many sellers will not give permission in that they know it will possibly yield haggling ammunition ( I would be surprised if something did not show, eg climate ). As an honest seller I would probably not allow permission for a scan; I do not want some stranger using unkown kit at unkown skill level that is capable corrupting my car, but I would use my VCDS for the buyer if they request.

Andy
 
VCDS Lite (compared to the paid version) is pretty low risk corruption wise. I wouldn't buy a car that the seller would not allow me to scan, I'd assume he had something to hide. If you're still worried, run a scan on your laptop for the buyer to see, or even simpler run a scan and print it out for any buyer to see. That would make you an honest seller. We're talking a thousand or, thousands of pounds of (my) money here. Mac.
 
VCDS Lite (compared to the paid version) is pretty low risk corruption wise. I wouldn't buy a car that the seller would not allow me to scan, I'd assume he had something to hide. If you're still worried, run a scan on your laptop for the buyer to see, or even simpler run a scan and print it out for any buyer to see. That would make you an honest seller. We're talking a thousand or, thousands of pounds of (my) money here. Mac.
I am not worried, (or selling), that is what I would do, but I would be upfront about any faults when I advertise. - Andy
 
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