guide figure being 12,000 miles annually, no
modifications, and full details depicting the car’s
history in terms of servicing, manufacturer recalls and
warranty.
This is only a guideline, but as with many things, there
are exceptions to the rule.
It’s usually cars that have not been modified which are
the most desirable and sought after.
The downside of being a desirable vehicle is that the S4
is also prone to “ringing” – that is a vehicle which has
had its identity changed after being stolen or repaired
following serious accident damage – we’ll go into how
to safeguard yourself as much as possible from this later
when we discuss “screening”.
Options
The Audi S4 can be specified with a myriad of options,
almost equating to a third of the cost of the basic car.
This provides for the original purchaser to tailor a car
that is very unique indeed.
It’s also one of the reasons that one S4 can
be difficult to price in comparison with
another.
Our advice is firstly to define your choices in terms of
basics such as Colour, Interior, and then “niceties”, such
as sunroof, CD player, Satellite navigation and the like.
Available S4 Colours
The car is available in nine colours, Laser red, Black,
Cactus green, Hibiscus red, Imola yellow, Santorin
blue, Nogaro blue, Pearl white and Silver. The most
expensive paint finishes are Pearl white, Nogaro blue
and Imola yellow, all of which are available by special
order.
The interior is available in a selection of three material
combinations - Jacquard satin cloth, leather, or a
combination of leather and Alcantara – a man made
suede-like material available in a vivid blue or
platinum.
Blue Alcantara Interior
Door and Dash inserts are available in three variants,
walnut burr, silver aluminium and carbon fibre – note
that not all finishes are available in all markets – for
example, walnut burr is not available in the UK.
So, once you’ve established a basic specification for
your potential used S4, decide on what you would
compromise should push come to shove. You might
belay a sunroof in favour of satellite navigation, or
alcantara for leather – give yourself some flexibility.
Finding an S4
Finding the car you want shouldn’t be too tasking. The
most preferred way to buy a used S4 is to source one
via an Audi main dealer or an approved Audi main
dealer Internet network, but if you want to save money
and are prepared to do some legwork, take a look at the
local classifieds. “Auto Trader”, “Car Finder”,
“Exchange and Mart” are all excellent ways of locating
a car and saving money over dealer prices.
If you have access to the Internet, you may wish to try
using a search engine from the many available, to
locate a suitable vehicle in your vicinity.
Draw up a list of potential vehicles – unless you’re at a
dealership, don’t visit more than four cars in a day.
Exceeding this number usually results in an impulse
buy when you are tired and running out of steam, or
will facilitate you in missing important clues that may
come to haunt you later.
The phone call
Using your list of potential vehicles, give the owner a
call – do speak to the owner. Ask them the type of
questions you feel you need answered.
Arrange where possible to view the car during daylight
hours. In your initial call, you should look to find out
basic information.
