Faults:

The throttle position sensor failed (causing loss of kickdown).

Heater hose bleeder started leaking and the replacement hose was almost 50 pounds.

Drive shaft came away from front hub, making a very loud clunking noise.

Water leaked into the front footwell.

Rear hatch shut mechanism came loose.

Bad pinking under acceleration, especially when the engine was cold.

Auto box judders when changing down during braking.

Lambda sensor failure.

The horn stopped working as it was full of water!!!

General Comments:

The car was bought with a full Audi main-dealer service history.

Good confidence inspiring anti-lock brakes and handling.

Comfortable seats, but my left leg was hurting for a few days after a 250 mile journey (as it was needed to drive the auto box).

Estate boot not as accommodating as the Ford Escort that replaced it.

Fuel consumption rarely beat 20 miles per gallon. 17 MPG was typical of urban driving.

The car felt very solid and there was only a tiny failure in the galvanising that had caused rust on the tailgate.

When it was working properly the auto box was responsive in both sport and economy mode.

None of the faults (apart from a suspicion of the water leak) I experienced were evident when the car was inspected at purchase.

The dealers couldn't find or fix the pinking problem and the expensive fix they did do (i.e. the lambda sensor) made no difference.

With 150 brake-horse-power and only front wheel drive, this car desperately needed traction control in anything other than dry road conditions.

A non dealer cam-belt change was well over 200 pounds - over 4 hours work (which at 58 pounds an hour at an Audi dealer was out of the question).

Friends and relatives who have also owned Audis and VWs have also found the dealers unhelpful and often cannot fix persistent problems.

Very expensive to insure, at over 800 pounds a year with full no claims and I'm the only driver, 30 years old with a clean license.

Faults:

Air flow meter.

General Comments:

Excellent build both inside and out, no rattles, no rust (galvanised body), bombproof engine.

117000 miles and just run in really, but needs regular servicing which is not expensive if you avoid main dealers, many parts available from German specialists at a fraction of the cost of branded parts. Most servicing and repairs are easy DIY jobs.

Faults:

Not much, accelerator pad fell off as did the panel for the window winder.

General Comments:

Very good car, a joy to drive, no real problems (but can be expensive if there are).

Faults:

The idle control sensor on the fuel injection failed. This did not stop the car but caused erratic running. Had to be replaced by VAG dealer at £160!!

Otherwise the car has been very reliable.

General Comments:

Front tyre wear is heavy: 15,000 miles on a budget tyre; 20,000 max. on Michelin Pilots. The 2.0 litre 8v engine is underpowered for the size of car and only delivers 32mpg. The 16v would be a better choice. The boot is massive and with the seats folded down who needs a hatchback? Build quality is excellent, although red appears to be a colour that fades easily. I service the car myself as I would not pay dealer prices.

Faults:

The central locking vacuum pump seems to be a common fault amongst Audi's of this age, dealer replacement parts can cause heart attacks, so please sit down before you ring!!!

General Comments:

It's the smoothest and most reliable car I've owned.

Faults:

Absolutely nothing.

General Comments:

Good Car. Never less than 47MPG winter, 55 MPG in summer. Really needs an electric engine heater, as it takes 4 miles to warm up. Big services at main dealer very expensive.

Faults:

ABS fault, which I guessed was a dry joint on the sensor, but it cost me £280 just to have the fault diagnosis confirmed! No other faults.

General Comments:

This has been my favourite car so far, lovely to drive, good in-car comfort, reliable, a real mile-muncher.