Hey guys...I need a new car and am debating between Audi, Mercedes 2008 C class, and BMW. I really think Audi style beats out all of them. Also more affordable. I'm likin the 2008 Audi A4 with S Line package and the special edition package, adding the 17" rims, leather seats and Sirius.
Just got a lease quote on it for $407/mo with $4k down including Audi Care package. Thing is they discounted the audi care package to $360 but that increases the lease buyout by almost $1k...so its probably not worth it, although I've heard of people having to spend $800 on brakes after 2 years of ownership.

The other thing I want is a nice stereo. I gotta have my iPod and MP3 discs to pump some sick techno. Anybody have some feedback on how they like the stereo? I'll have to be sure that quote above included the premium Bose sound.

Also anybody have any insight on their Lease experience? Anybody find that buyout is worth it at the end? It seems like audi's maintain their value and I could easily purchase and sell for a good bit more than the buyout.

I'd also like to know peoples experience with the costs and how much service they required on their new audi's...basically is it going to be worth the price of the Audi Care.

 

The base stereo in the A4 is an 11 speaker system (10 or 11 speaker) which is pretty decent for a base stereo system. You will have to be a real Audiophile to warrant the upgrade to an aftermarket system. I have a Dice Electronics ipod connection DICE Store: DICE iPod Integration Kit for Audi, Bentley and Lamborghini in my car and it workes great. I charges the ipod and lets me control it with the steering wheel controls.

As far as Audi's keeping their value, I'm not 100% sure about this. It seems as if the last generation (B6) had more problems than this generation (B7). I bought my A4 because no one had one. A few months after I picked mine up everyone around me had one, so it is definitely a desirable car. I do think that because the A4 has a smaller engine it will be more desirable for gas consumption purposes and also the quattro system makes it an all year round better choice than the Benz and BMW.