# New To Audi A6 2.8L V6 1999



## xion0374 (Nov 2, 2010)

Hey Audi Gurus,

Im new to the Audi Auto World, I am planning on buying this 1999 Audi A6 2.8L V6 car, but have no clue on what to expect in the future after I purchase it. Such concern as maintenance, repair cost, and efficiencies.

I love the contour of these Audi car but are skeptical because I have never owned one myself and have no clue what to expect from it. Can the Audi community help shine some light for me to ease my tension of whether I should or should not buy the car.

When I do buy the car, what should I be looking at in terms to determine if that vehicle is good shape, what I should be looking for, paying attention to, and expecting the unexpected all that stuff.

Thanks,

Jim.


----------



## Flat_Line (Aug 19, 2010)

xion0374 said:


> Hey Audi Gurus,
> 
> Im new to the Audi Auto World, I am planning on buying this 1999 Audi A6 2.8L V6 car, but have no clue on what to expect in the future after I purchase it. Such concern as maintenance, repair cost, and efficiencies.
> 
> ...


I have owned my 2004 A4 Audi for about 4 years now. I absolutley love it from the mechanical aspect to the culture it carries. Once you drive an audi, every other brand just doesn't seem to compare. 

There are some things you might want to look up before buying it. Research any recall item parts on that vehicle, most likely it will have some. Probably the fuel pump and ignition coils. 

Look for normal wear and tear inside the interior such as the cup holders, glove box, buttons because audi sucked on these features in the early years. These little clues will give you an idea of what kind previous owner the car had. 

Look under the hood to see, how clean it is, a good Audi owner always cares about what it looks like underneath the hood. 

And of course the shape of the car will always depend on how many miles and oil changes it has had. Also if it has turbo make sure they always ran it on Premium 93 gas and fully synthetic oil. Look around the seal gasket to see if there is any oil build up. Ask when the last time the timing belt was changed. Look for any corrosion on the wipers , which are located under the hood connected to the firewall. 

If theres any modifications that have been done to it, as you Audi owners treat there cars like legos and love to put new peaces on. 
The beauty I love about the Audi is that I find it pretty "fixer friendly". The vortex is also great for support and ideas. People here are great and always willing to help. The older models are generaly average in cost to fix, but with a little knowledge and some tools you can do it yourself. The vortex is a great place to find used parts to buy. 

Im not saying that any of these will all go bad for you this is just my experience. Good luck!


----------



## stuffinder (Jan 7, 2010)

*Re:New to AUDI 2.8L V6 1999*

I'm new to Audi's as well having bought a '98 A4 Avant w/141 K mi in Jan and a '99 A6 Avant 2.8 V6 w/ 39 K mi. in February. Both these cars share the same engine, front brakes & control arms.
I knew going in that these cars have frt. suspension issues. The '98 A4 had control arms replaced at about 75 K by 2nd owner using cheap "Ebay" parts. The 3rd owner replaced control arms that were failing again after 20-3- K mi. When I purchased the car at 141 K I had it checked and there was a little play in several of the control arms. I ordered a full set of Meyle replacement control arms and had them all done after one broke. Luckily the one that broke only allowed the wheel to move backward and it didn't crash into the inner fender. If the other had broken I've been told they usually damage the front inner fender/fender! It's got 160 K mi on it and seems fine. The '99 A6 had only 39K mi. but was from W Palm Beach where the heat takes a toll on rubber. A couple of the control arms started making noises over bumps and I ordered a full set of Febi/Bilstein control arms after having several people in forums and a local indy Audi guy recommending them over Meyle. If you can afford it I believe Lemfoerder (OE),TRW and Moog are more highly regarded but harder to find and 50-75% more expensive (at least)!

The 2.8 V-6's are also notorious oil leakers and gaskets and seals should be changed along w/water pump, idler, tensioner, etc. at timing belt service intervals. I did that to both cars as well.

I made the mistake of buying a timing belt kit from a forum who had never installed it. It must have been laying around for several years or perhaps the valve cover gaskets were inferior quality as they still leaked. My mechanic put a fresh set of VW gaskets on and stopped the leaking problem.

These are great cars but sensitive to maintenance issues so be aware of that going in. The services I mentioned above would be incredibly expensive at the dealership. Luckily I have a trained VW mechanic who's very familiar with 30 V V6's as they were used in Passat's. Suspension the same as well. He also works for $40/hr and lets me provide parts!

I don't want to start any flame wars but these are excellent cars but nowhere as cheap to maintain as late '90's Volvo 960/V90's. (Which are considered real money pits by 4 cyl Volvo guys)


----------

