8P Audi S3 - buying advice

digitalwolf

digitalwolf

digitalwolf

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I'm looking at buying an 8P Audi S3.

Is there anything to look out for on these? The 2.0 TFSI is a reasonably solid engine by the looks?

Any advice on what to look for serving / maintenance wise would be great too.

Budget is 9-10k so it'll be a 57-08 plate judging by the market.
 
digitalwolf said:
The 2.0 TFSI is a reasonably solid engine by the looks?
Click to expand...

Aside from the high oil consumption, blown diverter valves, frequent PCV issues, cam follower issues, fuel pump issues etc...
Probably be due a cambelt as well as last I heard they were due every 5 years/60k miles.

Having had an '07 2.0TFSI A3 (and numerous issues with it), I honestly don't think an S3 is anything particularly special - there are better "drivers cars", "premium cars", or "reliable cars" available for £10k - An old S3 doesn't achieve any of those in my view.
 
Armageus said:
Aside from the high oil consumption, blown diverter valves, frequent PCV issues, cam follower issues, fuel pump issues etc...
Probably be due a cambelt as well as last I heard they were due every 5 years/60k miles.

Having had an '07 2.0TFSI A3 (and numerous issues with it), I honestly don't think an S3 is anything particularly special - there are better "drivers cars", "premium cars", or "reliable cars" available for £10k - An old S3 doesn't achieve any of those in my view.
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The manual also eats clutches on anything above stock power.

The DSG needs oil changes and are expensive if the mechatronic failed.

There's also the Haldex oil changes too iirc.

I had a 2.0T and it was largely trouble free for me upto 115K. I had PCV issues only. I kept on top of water pump changes, cam follower changes and DSG servicing though. I used to pay for oil changes between the service intervals and had no oil burning issues.
 
My Golf ED30 has the same engine. With a different tune and IC

PVC - easy to swap cost about £40. Test it by briefly removing the dip stick, the engine should run lumpy.

Diverter Valve can tear, and you lose all you boost. Again really easy to swap and not expensive. You can fit a GFB uprated one if you want (about £100) or about £50 for a VAG one

There is a cam chain on the right-hand side of the engine that links the two camshafts. This can stretch over time and ends up sounding like a diesel. I paid £500 for mine to be replaced with genuine parts. If you hear this change it as soon as possible as if you leave it, it can end up damaging the VVT unit and double the price of the job

Cam Follower - If you buy one change this straight away. Again the parts cheap and easy to get to. Most people check them at every service. If they wear through, you end up needing new camshafts and Fuel pump. The main belt on the other side of the engine is pretty standard, I changed mine myself, but it would probably be about £400 for some one to do it for you.

Oil - I have to top mine up every 3000miles or so only (a few hundred mm) I use The VW stuff platinum I get off eBay for £20 for 5lrts. The oil pickup can get clogged its a good idea to drop the sump and give it a clean.

Thermostat - Check you getting to 90. The main Thermostat is a git to get too, You have to remove the inlet manifold, throttle body, and alternator to get at it, so cost a shed load in labor if your getting a garage to fit a new one.

If your planning to remap it, I'd suggest an auto/DSG, due to the clutch life on a manual. You can get it to 300bhp without any additional parts. 360bhp is about the limit with new fuel pumps, downpipe, exhaust and intake.

If your buying from an enthusiast they'll probably know about these things and will be able to tell you the history, buy average joe will probably not know.
 
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Armageus said:
Aside from the high oil consumption, blown diverter valves, frequent PCV issues, cam follower issues, fuel pump issues etc...
Probably be due a cambelt as well as last I heard they were due every 5 years/60k miles.

Having had an '07 2.0TFSI A3 (and numerous issues with it), I honestly don't think an S3 is anything particularly special - there are better "drivers cars", "premium cars", or "reliable cars" available for £10k - An old S3 doesn't achieve any of those in my view.
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Can confirm this. My 2007 octavia vrs with the 2L TFSI engine needed filling with oil roughly every time the fuel tank went from full to empty. It had numerous problems and brought up 14 different error codes on the specialist's computer. Then it proceeded to pretty much give up the ghost around 80k miles where I swiftly part exchanged it. Some people never had a problem with the engine, but I think considering the amount of people who did have considerable issues with it (like me), it's not a good engine.
 
Slight thread derailment but how are the newer 2.0TSI found in the likes of the cupra 280 and the golf R?
 
I think they fixed a lot of issues, but there are still some there. Oil usage may still be an issue if you unlucky.

If your having to fill it up every 1000 miles it's a duff engine and probably isn't going to last really. It will get worse as it ages until you get to the point where it needs a rebuild, or it just dies.
 
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Nasher said:
I .
If your having to fill it up every 1000 miles it's a duff engine and probably isn't going to last really.
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Mine was 1l/1000 miles but following PCV replacement (as it failed completely) and a software update, it was a lot better (probably 1l/5k miles)
 
Armageus said:
Mine was 1l/1000 miles but following PCV replacement (as it failed completely) and a software update, it was a lot better (probably 1l/5k miles)
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That's still pretty bad though. Even my Subaru engine (which do use some oil) can go all year without needing a top up. Which is 6-8k miles for me.
 
you up the oil to 5w40 and oil consumption lowers quite a lot. I had a BWA GTI 2006, oil top up every 1500 miles. My second 2006 AXX engine GTI goes and goes.

OP, Join the TFSI tuning page on facebook, a wealth of information and lots of people to help/advise :)
 
Well, I'm a bit 'put off' now :eek::D

Honestly thought the TFSI's were solid.

Is it work risking one off an enthusiast or forget about the idea completely?
 
digitalwolf said:
Well, I'm a bit 'put off' now :eek::D

Honestly thought the TFSI's were solid.

Is it work risking one off an enthusiast or forget about the idea completely?
Click to expand...

Most cars have issues it just depends on the severity and how common they are. With preventative maintenance as highlighted above, it shouldn't be any worse than most cars but as with anything 5-10+ years old, there's always risk.
 
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