Overview & Reviews

The Audi A4 holds the distinction of having single-handedly revived the Audi brand. Launched in the mid-'90s, the compact A4 quickly became a favorite among luxury car buyers thanks to its beautifully finished cabin, sharp handling and available Quattro all-wheel drive. Although the A4 has offered these core characteristics from day one, it has become increasingly polished and high-tech with each successive generation. No matter which year you're looking at, the A4 promises both engaging performance and suave style inside and out.

The sedan body style has been a constant for the Audi A4, but depending on the vintage, you may also find wagon and convertible variants. Turbocharged four-cylinder power is typically found under the hood, yielding both reasonably spirited acceleration and satisfactory fuel economy. In road tests, we've consistently praised the A4's refined character, with more recent plaudits going to its spacious backseat, which has adequate room for full-size adults.

User Reviews:

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  Fun to drive but expensive to own - 2003 Audi A4
  By David - June 29 - 4:28 pm

  My 2003 A4 has 53,000 miles on it. I bought the car for about $32,000 and have spent over $12,000 on repairs. The car is poorly built and unreliable. It is very difficult to work with Audi of America and the local dealers are terrible. Before buying one of these cars I would strongly recommend talking to someone who has owned one and checking out the service of the dealers where you live and the estimated service costs. My car has had several major problems in the 2 1/2 years that I have owned it and neither the dealer nor Audi or America seems to care.

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  Audi - 1998 Audi A4
  By Suzi - June 25 - 3:28 pm

  I purchased my Audi A4 2.8 Quattro new after studying reports on AWD and 4 wheel drive vehicles on the Internet and in libraries, I narrowed the field to 5 potential cars. I then test drove all of them, most more than once, on surface streets, highway and the Colorado mountain highways to check cornering and ability to keep up with the pack (you know what I mean if youve ever driven I-70). The Audi A4 stood out far above all the others! 8 years later, I am still a huge fan! All scheduled maintenance has been performed, but no major repairs have been necessary. The car still handles and performs like a dream, and looks as good and stylish as any new auto. I love driving this car!

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  Great All Around Car - 2009 Audi A4
  By David - June 25 - 7:16 am

  Had this car for three weeks and I have nothing but good things too say about it. Stylish exterior with just as beautiful interior. Acceleration and power feel much better than when I tested the 2009 TSX which is also a four-banger but not quite as responsive as the other competitors that have a V6. Safety is pretty much on par with everyone else as well but Quattro is a big plus since thats the only real fulltime AWD in its class. I like that automatic not only has a manual shift mode, but also a sport autoshift that lets the car stay in lower gears longer for more power. All in all a real eye-catcher inside and out that gets decent MPG for an AWD and has just enough zip to have fun.

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  California Dream - 2005 Audi A4
  By Tod - June 24 - 9:10 pm

  Absolute fun to drive! Room for 4 adults. Simple, clean trim. Sport package is a must. A bit underpowered at lower speeds, but the fun factor easily compensates for power issues.

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  The ultimate love hate relationship - 1998 Audi A4
  By Shawndh - June 24 - 12:33 pm

  I love to drive this car. The interior is the best in class. I added a GIAC chip which gave a little more throttle response and that was all the power I needed. The 2.8 is very smooth, the handling is great and its a georgous car. On the other hand there have been some reliablity issues. Ive replaced: eng fan, control arm, tie rods, defective CD chg, vac line (recall), cam seals, T-stat, and now the ABS controller is dying. Other probs were from fine tuning modifications that I added. I do most of my own maint and shop for aftermarket parts online and junkyards for deals on parts. So it hasnt been that bad financially. But I wouldnt recommend to a non-DIY type.

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  Im Very Happy - 2005 Audi A4
  By a0 - June 24 - 3:27 am

  This car has awesome handling and power. Im glad I didnt get the BMW. There is a very slight rattle in the sunroof, but otherwise very well put together.

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  A classy car, magnificent ride! - 2005 Audi A4
  By Ardeekay - June 23 - 11:00 pm

  An excellent, wonderfully well-made car.The interior finish is magnificent. The roadholding is superb, with a solid firm ride and and excellent directional stability. One feels as if traveling in a mobile fortress! The braking is outstanding and rear-view vision superb. The engine is powerful enough, though the upgrade to the new 2.0 litre FSI Turbo will give that extra punch at lower revs that one feels the need for at times. This is a car for those who need to travel long distances. It begs to be driven on freeways! Not that good for small suburban shopping trips, though! Thumbs up!

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  Peppy - 2005 Audi A4
  By Mike Y - June 23 - 2:04 pm

  Nice car. Less expensive than the BMW 3, more refined than the Acura TL, and nicer features than both. I sold a 97 E320 Benz to get this car, and the 2.0T in the A4 is just as powerful as the Benz V6, and the Turbo is great. Never thought I would drive another 4 banger, but this one is nice! The design inside and out is a bit boring, but the fun to drive factor is high. I drove everything competitive, and this was the best value.

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  Everything has been fixed - 2005 Audi A4
  By Cactuslady - June 20 - 7:16 pm

  I had a terrific time with my very fun 2001 A4 1.8T FWD sedan. Thought I would hate to give it up, but this one is so good Ive gotten over my previous love quickly. Everything I disliked about the old model has been redesigned for the better and nothing has been made worse. Cupholders actually work. Cargo net actually works. No bottom "spoiler thing" under the front bumper to help the bumper rip off on those parking lot curbs (yes, I ripped the old one off). Turbo lag has been greatly reduced and power is there at lower tach. Cruise control is actually easy to use. Plus, lots more cool gadgets and handy storage spaces. No real complaints about anything so far.

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  2004 Audi A4 1.8T Quattro (manual) - 2004 Audi A4
  By jhopkins - June 20 - 2:00 am

  Only problem experienced has been a reoccuring one, involving the face plate on the driver instrumentation panel becoming loose, and it causes quite a distracting/distrubing noise. Taken in for repair twice, but seems to last only a few weeks before problem resurfaces. Otherwise, the car has been a pleasure, first-time owner but sure to be a loyal owner in the future...quattro performs amazingly well in icy conditions.