John Davies

I don't currently own an S4, but am considering an S4 Avant. I keep my cars a LONG time - up to 12 to 15 years. I would love an S6 Avant, but there is no way I could afford one, and it doesn't seem that we will soon see an A6 Avant manual with the 2.7T, so the S4 Avant remains my one Audi choice. I don't like the looks of the Allroad, and I shudder to think of the future cost of replacing that suspension system.

The S4 seems to be a very labor intensive beast - the Audi tech I spoke with said that the 2.7T in the A6 takes about twice the man-hours to do the same job as the 4.2 V8 in the same car. I would suspect that the 2.7T in the S4 is even harder to work on due to the smaller vehicle size - am I right?

After warranty I usually do my own maintenance, so this is a real factor for me. Even an extended warranty runs out eventually. I don't want to spend forever yanking extra parts to get to the broken one.

For this reason I am seriously considering a 2001 Saab 9-5 Aero Wagon. Sure it's 2wd, but it is much simpler to maintain, hundreds of pound lighter than the much smaller S4, is rated at 28 mpg highway, and has very similar performance (in the dry). The interior volume is comparable to the A6 with better storage features. And it's easily modded to 300 hp/ 342 ft lbs. The Saab 2.3 liter I4 seems to have a reputaion for durability. I drove a stock Aero and was amazed at the acceleration, handling and lack of torque steer. Barrier Saab offered me a 2000 model with BBS wheels for $7000 under MSRP, which put it around $37K.

Has anyone else driven the Saab? Any other comments? Winter driving performance is a factor for me, but not a significant one. I can live without awd, as my wife has an A4 quattro we can use for the infrequent snow we get here in the Seattle area.

Don't flame me guys - I love Audis. I just need find the right car to suit my desires and practical needs.

eharleq

Two very different cars in feel and handling in my opinion.

The v6 is supremely reliable, same engine since the I-5 was dropped two generations ago. How is it hard to work on? To do anything really serious with either motor you are going to need the same equipment. Saabs have had some serious problems with the transmission. That certainly is not trivial.

Take a look at the fit and design of the parts and tell me that the far less-stressed Audi parts are not superior. (The car has 1/2 the torque stress on the driveline, and REAL independant rear suspension.)

Not really a comparison. But if the feel of the Saab is what you want, then the choice is different.

S4 Vince

I have both a 99 A4 and a 99 Saab 9-5. Now granted it's not an Aero but for comparision sake who cares. The Saab is so big compared to my A4. The A4 is a pain in the neck even putting a kid in and out of it. The 9-5 build quality is excellent and the dealer support far better than the Audi. Both are good. Given the deals available on Saabs these days, it foolish not to buy one.

All I can say is take a test drive and hammer the Aero, you'll love it.

Norm 9-5 Aero

The tranmissions that eharleq mentioned were in the 9000 automatics and the delicate 900 SPG's. I was talking with a Saab menchanic(Shaker Saab in Cleveland) about how tight the motor was when new and the gas mileage just keeps rising through 10K miles on both my 9-5 Aeros(sedan and wagon) and he mentioned that the 9000 automatics had their problems and the SPG sitting next to us was not to durable much over 200 hp(rated 175(?) hp stock). He said that the 9-5 motor and transmission is vertually indestructible. I have upgraded the 9-5 Aero sedan to Nordic's Stage III for the past 6000 miles and have had no problems. This after a number of autocross events and many hot laps around at Lime Rock Park. I even would go down the highway at about 60 MPH and rev the motor and pop the clutch at 5500 RPMs and the clutch would not slip.

Besides the 9-5 Aero wagon is probably has the biggest cargo of any wagon on the market besides the Mercedes.

I, too, have no need for AWD but will be purchasing a set of snow tires for out Cleveland winters.

Good luck!

Norm
9-5 Aero