For some time, I’ve generally ignored the B7 RS4. This probably comes as a surprise, as being an Audi fan it should be a natural favorite of mine. They look good, offered uncompromising performance, and – while expensive when new – in predictable fashion they became much more affordable recently.
But it’s also an expensive car to maintain, and residual values from the first and second crop of owners has dropped down towards the point where third-tier owners are getting into them. The problem is that if you’re thinking about buying one of these long term, you may be better suited buying one before the typical scenario occurs with these cars – prices drop, people that can’t afford to maintain them well buy them, and when you finally get one it’s an uphill battle to try to keep it going.
Recent sales of great condition, lower-mileage RS4s have been trending upwards, with prime examples hitting betweem $35,000 and $45,000 over the past few months. So it’s tempting to consider one with a few more miles than average to save a few dollars. But is it worth it?
CLICK FOR DETAILS: 2008 Audi RS4 on eBay
Year: 2008
Model: RS4
VIN: WUADU78E48N901646
Engine: 4.2 liter V8
Transmission: 6-speed manual
Mileage: 144,390 mi
Location: Oradell, New Jersey
Price: Reserve Auction
One of 44 made in 2008 in Misano Red. It is beautiful and really hard to find!
The car also has the following options:
Titanium Package
Premium Package
iPod ConnectorIn addition, this car has heated seats front and rear, leather, sunroof and bluetooth.
For those of you in the know, the factory DRC suspension is extremely problematic. This car has been upgraded to KW V1 coilovers in the past 1000 miles, thereby eliminating the problematic factory suspension. The car handles extremely well and drives great.
Other maintenance recently done includes:
Trans and differential service
New rear TPMS antenna
New washer fluid bottle
New OEM Audi windshieldAny other questions, feel free to message me.
If you feel like you don’t see Misano Red on the Audi RS4 often, you’re not wrong. Just 109 are known to have made it to the US between 2007 and 2008, accounting for roughly 5% of production. The seller claims this is one of 44 for 2008, which seems pretty believable. The Titanium package is equally rare, too – with only about 8% of RS4s so equipped. In all, that makes for a pretty rare bit of kit. It’s got some expensive coilovers, and some maintenance disclosed – though the expensive bits – variable intake flaps, carbon cleaning, and so on aren’t disclosed.
At the end of the day, this car offers a lot of performance, and performance doesn’t come free. It looks like a nice example overall, and should trade toward the lower-end of RS4 prices because of its mileage. That should mean around 20k or maybe even less, though the color could pull it up. It might be worth it to jump in for a year of more affordable RS4 ownership before the big bills hit.
-Carter
I’m curious about the signatures on the plastic cover in the engine bay. Would I even want them there? I looked at the listing and didn’t come up with an explanation, but that piece is potentially ruined and would need replacing, and those parts aren’t cheap.
Seven owners would give me pause on this one. Full Service History would help.
Great looking and a wonderful driver through the S-bends.
Thanks for showing this one.
I really like/respect these cars. I was riding in one owned by my buddy up in Newport RI a few years ago, he hit the gas to show me what the car was capable of. The car launch was epic, so epic that it caught the eye of a local hidden policeman. My buddy actually talked his way out of that ticket!
I have not heard of any serious issues with that particular V8, so maybe you can run it up to 200K with no fear of any big bills.
And I understand it, the DRC suspension is purely passive, so is it really that expensive/unreliable? I thought it was just opposing shocks connected via fluid to act as if it were a corner to corner sway bar? No pumps or sensors to fail.
I have 166K on my 2006 3.2 avant, and the interior has held up spectacularly. So this mileage doesn’t scare me overall, but no way I could see paying more than $12K for a 144K mile high performance German car. $20K just seems really high to me, but heck, it might be worth every penny of $20K given it is an exotic supersedan with a manual.