Took delivery of a brand new 04 ar 2.7 6-speed 19 days ago (not that I'm counting). Just in time for extreme cold, snow, snow, and more snow.

Burgundy w/ecru leather. Bose and XM (not sure we'll keep the XM service after the freebie runs out, but it's fun for now). Dual-spoke wheels are nice, not my first choice, but fine anyway so far. Nokian WR V tires -- which took a bit of hunting by my very helpful dealer -- are amazingly quiet and really grippy. And with the rough weather, boy, do we love those heavy duty rubber floor mats!

Everything's just dandy now that the only minor post-delivery glitch is gone: an annoying buzz in the gear shift. Dealer fixed it while I waited, and now it's silent and tight as a drum.

The ar replaced an 01 Saab 9-5 Aero Wagon (5-speed). A very comfortable highway cruiser, and a blast to drive straight ahead on dry roads, but a nightmare on anything else. Torque steer was a pain in the neck. Overall handling was flabby and vague. A real disappointment in winter, surprisingly so for a Swedish car -- even with good Gislaved winter tires. Reliability was subpar, so we abandoned the idea of keeping it when the lease ended.

We flirted with the Volvo R wagon, but decided to go with a second Audi to pair with our '98 A4 2.8Q 5-spd (we used to have a '96 A4 2.8Q), which has shown us daily how much fun a sporty awd car can be in all kinds of weather and on all kinds of roads. (And on one set of tires and rims, thank you very much!

I'd been intrigued by the ar since its debut, so the only question was: what took so long?

Looking forward to a satisfying run with this great car. My wife and two teenage girls, who are usually uninterested in things automotive, absolutely love the ar. (Though, to her eternal credit, my wife remains a stick shift loyalist like me.)

It's good to be a two-Audi family now!

 

Welcome. Nice choice. It's good to see that there are other manual trans families out there.

 

We wouldn't have it any other way. Of course, there are relatively few choices if you want a wagon with awd, stick and decent performance. Why Audi would even think about leaving this niche to anyone else is beyond me. Subarus are perfectly nice cars, but seriously...

We're stubborn on the manual transmission issue: back in '89-'90, we waited six months so Volvo could build us a wagon with a stick.

 

Congrats! Welcome, good choice =)

 

Your garage sounds suspiciously like mine, as you can see....

 

My 03 2.7T 6 speed ar had the same gearshift buzz...got a new shifter as a result (warranty). My wife drives and A4 2.8Q as well... Have the rubber mats and cargo liner too....
Only one girl (22) and 17 boy..the both have Vdubs...

Welcome to the "family"...

 

Welcome! Keep the XM! We have it in both cars! It's about to go to *completely* commercial free broadcasting on Feb. 1, so that's an added bonus! The comedy channels (150 is my favorite) on an 8 hour trip across Florida are what hooked *me*...

 

It's a wonderful thing the ar.

 

Lucky you... two young drivers. My girls won't be driving for another year+ (they're twins, not-quite 15), so I'm enjoying my last year of affordable insurance premiums.