A 2009 Audi A4 slipped quietly into our long-term fleet in fall of that year, with subdued styling, meager power, and a fairly high as-tested price. Forgive us if our expectations were low: In 1996, the first A4 was separated at birth from the VW Passat, and this hardly looked different—turbocharged VW Group engine, front-drive foundation, spectacular fit and finish laid over a nagging sense of impending mechanical doom. We shouldn’t have underestimated it.
Our long-term A4 began to seduce us the moment it dove into its first freeway on-ramp, and the charm offensive didn’t let up for 40,000 miles. Four iterations in, the A4 has evolved into a luxury sports sedan with real space, poise, and efficiency, a legitimate competitor to rear-drive standard-bearers such as the BMW 3-series and Infiniti G37.
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