2004 Audi S4 Avant

This 4.2-litre (4163cc) V8 powered B6 generation Audi S4 Avant was first registered on 8th April 2004 as a demonstrator for West London Audi in Brentford and found its first private owner just six months later.

That second owner divided his time between London and South Wales and during the 12-13 years he owned the car as his daily driver, clocked up the vast majority of its 138,000 miles on the UK’s motorway network.

When he mentioned he was selling it in 2016, his best friend became the next (and current) owner but, as it wasn’t his only car, he has since added only a few thousand miles - although he enjoyed every single one of them.

Both previous owners are petrolheads, having also had Porsches and Ferraris between them and the vendor is now selling due to having recently bought a Lancia Flavia Coupé and is consequently suffering limitations of both time and space to properly enjoy the Audi.

Finished in the oxymoronically named Brilliant Black paint, the exterior of this S4 Avant is pretty good considering its relatively high mileage. The door mirror caps are picked out in a contrasting silver which matches the wheels, roof rails, grille and window trims.

The car has been regularly cleaned but never mechanically polished so there are a number of light scratches and abrasions here and there around the car as you might expect - at its worst on the rear bumper where deeper scratches have been touched in. There’s also a small rust patch at the rear of the front nearside wheel arch and the lining is also coming detached at the front.

We’re looking after this S4 Avant during the sale and would welcome a closer inspection in person, although we understand that some potential bidders may be limiting travel and social exposure. Be sure to scrutinise the detailed photos in the gallery first but why not use the ‘Contact Seller’ option to get in touch and arrange a viewing or set up a video call with us to discuss the car and we can zoom in on any areas you’d like a closer look at.

The original 18-inch alloy wheels are finished in silver and present in a reasonably good condition with just light scuffing around one or two of the rims. All were refitted with matching Michelin Pilot Sport 4 tyres in January 2019. Regular readers of our listings will know we have a thing for good quality matching rubber on a car. Whilst it’s not infallible, it is a good indicator that a car has had a mechanically sympathetic owner who doesn’t take short cuts where it matters most.

Inside the car, the interior too has held up well to the miles. It’s very clean and tidy with leather upholstery and carbon fibre inserts in the doors, dash and centre console. The steering wheel is also clad in hide, although now rather polished around the rim through use. The driver’s side armrest-mounted controls also show quite a bit of scratching as do some of the other more commonly used switches.

The leather Recaro seats, a nod to the sporting performance positioning of the S4 over the regular Audi, are comfortable and in good condition with the only significant evidence of wear being the creasing and burnishing on the driver’s seat bolsters as you might expect.

In the rear, the seats present very well and the centre armrest still contains the apparently unused Audi ski bag which prevents sharp edges damaging the leather and stops snow dripping onto the seats. The carpets appear in good order, protected by both the original fabric fitted floor mats front and rear and the more recent additional rubber mats all round.

So far as we have been able to test all the switches and buttons, we believe most equipment is functioning as it should, including the original CD changer stereo which pumps out through the multiple Bose speakers. The vendor reports that the air conditioning is a little lack-lustre so would be worth getting looked at. A Nokia phone cradle has been installed but it doesn’t look like removal would leave unsightly holes.

Under the bonnet, the engine bay is a masterclass in efficient packaging. Audi certainly knew how to neatly fit a mighty V8 and all its ancillaries into a relatively small space. All appears clean and serviceable with no apparent rust apart from a small area on the bonnet lid catch.

The undersides, so far as we can see, are largely clean with just a little surface rust on exposed metal structures and the exhaust. Plastic under trays are fitted where required and appear intact.

Inside the boot space, the roller-blind load cover is present and in good order and the carpeting and linings around the boot are clean and tidy. The boot contains the original warning triangle and a can of top up oil. Behind the cover to one side is a first aid kit and under the floorboard is a full size spare alloy wheel, jack and wheel-change toolkit.

The S4 Avant has a current MOT certificate valid until August 2021 and a check of the online test history shows only one failure at the most recent MOT for a split CV joint boot. The mileage record shows that the car has been in regular use since new which, although it builds the miles, is actually better for a car than long periods of non-use.

The car comes with two key fobs, the original owners manual pack and a substantial history file with lots of invoices and test reports from the last 16 years. It also comes with an Audi indoor fleece-lined car cover, custom-tailored for an S4 Avant.

Please note: As the car was readied for shipping to The Market HQ, the engine warning light came on and the fault code P0348 was identified. This refers to the camshaft position sensor and the likely issue would be a break in the wiring somewhere or a faulty sensor. In either case it is unlikely to be an expensive fix and had it occurred before, the vendor would have dealt with it.

This is a good looking car, which would be relatively easy to make great again by tidying up the few external cosmetic issues. It drives and performs well too with a very smooth running V8 and a slight burble at the exhaust, as can be seen and heard in the video. After all, in German bahn-stormer terms, this engine’s only just run-in!

Offered for sale with NO RESERVE, we think this highly practical and ‘friendly monster’ of a car will fetch between £4,000 and £7,000 But of course it will be selling from the very first bid so why not try out a few smaller four-digit numbers to see if you can be the next owner to enjoy this peak-power S4 Avant.

Viewing is always encouraged, and this particular car is located with us at The Market HQ near Abingdon; to arrange an appointment please use the ‘Contact Seller’ button at the top of the listing. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.