1996 Audi A4 SE review from UK and Ireland

Apart from the Air Conditioning requiring a recharge the car has been absolutely faultless.

I have owned German cars for a number of years and have always been impressed with their reliability and build quality. The Audi has definitely delivered in these departments.

I have marked the dealer servicing rating quite high, but must stress that this is NOT at an Audi main dealer. Find a good specialist and servicing costs are no more expensive than lesser quality family cars. Parts are also relatively inexpensive - in the UK try GSF or EuroCarParts.

The car is very good to drive, it handles pretty well and although more power would be nice - buy a 1.8T then ;) the performance is more than adequate for a family saloon. Fuel consumption isn't brilliant, but it's nothing to be concerned about.

The interior is a very comfortable place to be especially with the front centre armrest. The Climate Control is also great, but I suspect if things went wrong with the control unit this could be expensive. As is typical with VAG cars the interior could be described as somewhat sombre on lesser specced models, but ours is fitted with the full leather interior and walnut cappings which lifts the interior ambience.

My only gripes are the wind noise at speed and a very light clutch which can be difficult to make smooth getaways.

Also shop around for insurance as you seem to be charged a premium for an Audi (more expensive to repair I was told).

All in all a very good family car and thoroughly recommended. In fact I'm half thinking of trading up to a newer A4...