1993 Audi 90 CS from North America - Comments

Cruise control works intermittently.

Steering makes groaning noise (not power steering fluid).

Small popping backfires upon deceleration when taking foot of gas rapidly - doesn't bother me much - kind of sounds like race car deceleration.

AC doesn't work - I think it needs filling.

Rear caliper needs replacing, as does tie rod.

Leaks some oil (may burn some too - can't tell - no smoke - but they have that reputation and it even says it inthe owner's manual). I ave to put about 1 liter every 2 weeks, regardless of driving.

The above problems existed when I bought the car.

Since I bought it about 3.5 months ago, I have sunk about $1700 (parts and labour) into:

New rear caliper and brakes and tie rod - $500.

Water pump went at 144,000 miles because last owner put in cheap rebuild pump with plastic bits. Fixed this with higher quality aftermarket pump (plus new thermostat) - $600.

2 weeks later car's Heater core goes.

Cost of repair: $600.

I find Audi parts are extremely expensive! I would never buy dealer/OEM parts unless the insurance company is flipping the bill.

This car was imported from the USA. Body and interior are in great shape.

This car is beautiful in it's classic styling both in and out.

It it an inexpensive luxury/sport package. More gadgets than you can shake a stick at.

Lots of power on the highway, I was doing about 95MPH for 4hours - didn't feel the speed - handles great. I found the seats uncomfortable after 2 hours. They are fine for short distances.

Good backseat room. Large trunk with 60/40 split folding rear seats.

Engine itself is pretty to look at.

A great family car, luxury and sportiness - good pickup and handling.

I really like the car itself, but I don't know if I'll buy another mainly because of the repairs I've had to do in such a short time and the expensive dealer parts.

From what the above user has to say, I think it sounds like an okay car for someone with moderate knowledge of cars. Yes, I've looked it up and the parts are a bit on the expensive side, however quite a few of these things can be done on your own with a good shop manual. I bought one for every car I've owned.

I just think its kind of ironic that so often, the people that can actually afford these cars fresh off the line, are the ones that have no mechanical knowledge whatsoever and have to pay outrageous labor charges on parts that are already expensive on their own (especially at the dealerships).

I have owned the car for 6 years now. I bought it with 70,000 miles and it now has 142,000 miles. I have had some of the same issues others have experienced. The Cruise Control works intermittently. The power steering makes a groaning noise when turning to the left. Major oil leaks.

The cruise control problem I can live with, and the power steering noise is no issue. The oil leak required new head gaskets to fix it. I did the work myself. The job was not too hard and I learned a lot about the car.

The car is extremely nice to drive and is awesome in bad weather. I find the seats to be very comfortable on extended trips unlike some others. I would definitely consider another Audi.

I have always looked at the Audi's as a luxury car and I just test drove a 1993 90CS Quattro today and it drove like a champ. I didn't have anything bad to say about it except for it was from a used car dealership and it was what I expected. But the good is that it handled like a dream, it has great cornering, comfortable seats, nice pick up and overall I would definitely consider purchasing one. With all of your comments about the maintenance and repairs for this little car, I do believe that it would be worth it. I live in Colorado and love to go to the mountains and I think this would be a great car to have.

I have this exact car described, and yeah the same things have had to be fixed that you said. My parents got a great deal on this car before giving it to me (they paid $1000). Since then I have sunk about $5000 into the car. But that was paying to fix all the things that are common to break in this car. Now all common breaking parts have been replaced with new parts, the car has given me no troubles since. *knocks on wood*

I find the seats VERY comfortable, although power seat controls would be nice (and I was surprised to not see in this classy luxury car), it's not a big deal.

Like has been mentioned, this car DOES handle like a dream, and also accelerates quite quickly compared to other cars I've driven. All of this, plus it has pretty good fuel economy.

This car being 15+ years old, it does a good job holding up to even new cars, and is still a very nice car. Thumbs up those german car engineers!