Review: 2005 Audi S4

Goodness, gracious, great gobs of torque. There's no other way to describes how the Audi S4 just lays down the power and keeps laying down the power- seemingly forever.



When you see an "S" on an Audi badge, you know it is going to have the best that Audi engineers can provide. With each model, Audi has continued to raise its own bar to the point where they meet or exceed what BMW offers with the M-Series and Mercedes-Benz has with AMG.

The S4 may look identical to the tame A4, but that's where the similarities end.

Into the engine bay that normally holds a four-cylinder in the A4, Audi has created a pocket battleship sedan or wagon by stuffing in the big 4.2-litre, quad cam, five-valve V8 usually reserved for the flagship A8 premium luxury sedan. Look at the four-cylinder engine in the A4 and it's already a tight fit. The car already has a short hood and minimal front overhangs, so it's a marvel how Audi was able to squeeze in that big, wonking V8. I tell you, dealership technicians must shudder when they know they have to do a tune-up on one of these babies.

Opens your eyes

On paper, the 4.2-litre produces 340 hp and 302 ft./lb. of torque. In real life, it opens your eyes to what real power in an automobile is all about.

Full review here

Anim8or - 12/15/2005 11:53:10 PM

+1 Boost

RS4

The 420hp RS4 is now the new direct competitor to both the current M3, and the upcoming (and far more expensive) E90 M3. Audi's S cars are now intermediate models between the standard variants and the top-of-the-line RS versions.

The RS4 is priced quite resonably in Erope, coming in slightly higher than the current M3, and is predicted to cost less than the next M3.

Basically, Audi's 'Quattro GmbH' division is the equivalent of BMW's M division and Merc's AMG. Quattro GmbH re-engineers S models into RS models. The regular S models are created at Audi without extra help from its high performance division.

Same goes for the RS6, which is a direct competitor to the M5 (not the S6). The previous RS6 bested all comparos with the previous M5. The forthcoming 550hp RS6 is also expected to rival the current 400/500hp M5.

Top Gear recently tested the RS4 and deemed it superior to the M3. They went on to say that even the new M3 would probably not rival the Audi.

We'll wait and see.

Anyway, as you can see, Audi is very, very, very serious about toppling BMW as the #1 high performance volume luxury sports company. And judging by the RS4, they've already succeeded.

FateZero - 12/17/2005 2:51:26 AM

+1 Boost

First off, you M3's owners are all the same. You think your car is invincible, yet consistently at drag strips the car runs low 14’s and it gets its tail whipped by Audi’s all the time on race track’s around the world.

Kaiser Soze, you need to get your facts straight. If you want to talk about quality, let’s talk about the M3 crank seal that went bad on the first TWO years of the E46 M3 that caused BMW to extend warranties to 100K for FREE! Or how the Diff’s on M3’s are always braking on normal street driving.

Granted, Audi was a bit behind in the states for the last 10 years, but when M3 had a 4 cyl E30 M3 in 1992 making 200 hp, Audi had an RS2 with 350hp that kept up with Ferrari. They were racing when BMW was still playing with airplanes in the First World War. To even compare the two car companies is a joke. For god sakes, every type of racing that Audi enters, they consistently win…from rally, to 5 WINS in Le Mans, to DTM! I mean, Audi is racing a diesel for their Le Mans car next year, and where is BMW? Maybe they should go back to making airplanes….