im moving to boston, a heavy snow area, and im unsure of what car to get. i can get a 2002 audi a4 (1.8t or 3.0) or an acura 3.2 tl type s. i dont know which would be better in the snow, and which would be the smarter buy. i know the acura is faster, however i am willing to chip the audi, as well as other mods, to make it faster. however, speed is not my top priority. please help me out!

 

Do you care about having a NAV? If you do, then the TL-S is the right choice, if not, I'd go with the AWD A4. After that, getting the 1.8 vs 3.0 should be based on your budget.

 

Well if speed is not a priority then get a A4 1.8t and chip it. This car should be enough fun (decent speed and good handling) and better in the snow. On the other hand if you get the TLS, which I have, getting a good set of winter tires should be plenty to keep you on the road in the snow. Like any car having a good set of snows should make a world of difference (that and not driving like an asshole). The TLS may or may not be as fun as the a4 chipped but it should still be a little faster.

 

i would like a navigation, however my life does not depend on it. my dad already bought a lexus gx470 with a navigation, so i can drive that around until im used to the area. i am planning to buy used and i found a great 3.0 a4 for $22.5k, and many 1.8t's for a few hundred less. i hear the 1.8 is funner to drive, easier to mod, however i do not plan on (too much) modding. so the 3.0 sounds like a better deal. agree?

 

Sounds like you already made up your mind.

 

I think the 1.8 is a better car and I think most would agree. The 3.0 is slow (as is the 1.8t) but at least the 1.8 is very, very modable. I know you don't plan on modding much but if you wanted to mod even a little, there isn't a whole lot for the 3.0. You can mod the 1.8 a little or you can mod it a whole lot!

Oh and having spent enough time in both my TLS and my friend's A4 I'd have to say that my car more comfortable for passengers. Not sure if you have a family or travel heavy so thought I would mention it. On the flip side, if you ski, play hockey, or stuff like that then remember that the backsets fold done on the A4 but not the TLS.

The TLS nav rocks...I wish I got one!

 

I had an A4 1.8T and a TL Type S. When it came to trading in one vehicle, I traded in the Audi.

Even though i live in toronto and quattro is far superior for winter, FWD with proper snow tires will get you through anything and the accelleration on a TLS is comparable with an S4.

If you want the A4 do NOT test drive a type s. You might get hooked :-)

 

TL-S > A4 1.8T > A4 3.0
IMO
Chipped the 1.8T is sweet and better in the snow....but if you want to be a P.I.M.P get the TL-S

 

Or better yet, get a 2000 S4. Best of all worlds and not much more than a used A4.

 

Yeah but a 2000 S4 could get pricey down the line...especially new turbos. Might have to worry about the turbo hosing or just the miles on the stockers.

 

I just switched from a 96 A4 2.8 to my 00TL. The TL definitely has more power but the A4 handling felt better at the wheel. As far as snow driving goes, the Audi AWD is one of the best you can get. If you're going to mod it, the smaller liters are more equipped for that. I learning to love my TL every time I step on the gas, but I have to say that I miss my Audi.

 

Hemants is absolutely right. My wife has an older A4 2.8L quattro. When it comes to heavy snow or having snow-covered hills to climb, I wouldn't even think about my snow-tired-equipped TL-S. However, the A4 is always sitting in the garage when the roads are high and dry.

 

Being someone that almost was about to get an A4 1.8T and instead went with the TL-S, I would seriously get the TL-S instead of the A4. The A4 seems incredibly cheap to me inside, as it is basically a Volkswagen Passat with a glorified logo. Having driven a 4-cylinder Passat in the past, a TL-S is another ballgame in towards of ride quality and speed. What is the point of having to heavily mod a 1.8T when you could already have a quick sedan with the TL-S? Get the TL-S, put some Comptech headers, exhaust, icebox, maybe a supercharger, whatever you need to do to make it faster if you really wanna fly, and ride in style. Forget the A4, it is a pile of junk, plus it has that hideous black bumper guard on the bottom that you would HAVE TO paint over because it ruins the entire exterior of the car. Go for the TL-S, hundreds of guys on this forum can tell you how pleased they are with this sedan...

 

I agree with most points but I don't think the interior of an 1.8t is junk...its actually one of the better interiors in my opinion. Also, you mention not modding the A4 and then you go about modding the TLS...well the A4 has a helluva lot more mod potential. I do hate that black on the bottom of the car and it does need to get painted. My buddy painted his and it looks awesome!

 

One more point that quapo will be interested to hear, once i added comptech sways and new tires, the tl handles almost as good as my sport package 2001 A4 did and in some ways, better because the a4 was still prone to understeer

of course, there's no getting over the slightly larger size of the tl but then if you want small, you may as well get a wrx or evo!