RE: 2019 Audi S4 | Driven

RE: 2019 Audi S4 | Driven

Wednesday 17th July 2019

2020 Audi S4 | UK Review

Does 516lb ft of torque help take the TDI taste away?



So we've had the S6, now it's the turn of the S4 to prove that diesel has definitely not had its day in a performance-based setting. For Audi's money - and it will have made the bet long ago - the S4 provides the buying public with a genuine rival to the newly overhauled BMW M430i and AMG C43 rival; one that uses a mild-hybrid diesel powerplant to produce 347hp/516lb ft while also offering a claimed 40.9mpg combined. The numbers, it will venture, do not lie. But cars aren't all maths and money - the old petrol V6-powered S4 could also claim to be a moderate amount of fun. For an oil burner, that description is like gold dust.

In fact, the only real drawback of the old machine was arguably its thirst for hydrocarbons; PH's old long-termer would only just edge the right side of 30mpg over a fair distance. But it was keen revving and light on its nose, two traits that aren't normally associated with the running gear of an MHEV diesel. The stats suggest little has been lost in a straight line, as the 48v electrified S4, complete with a belt-driven starter generator for added torque and electric compressor to keep the turbo spooled up, can sprint from 0-62mph in 4.8 seconds. That's just one tenth off the old 354hp petrol, and the instantaneous responses gifted to an electrified car ought to give the new S4 an advantage once rolling as well. Still, the question as to how all that extra kit will affect on road handling remains. More on that shortly.


First, let's look over the revamped S4's broader specifications. Audi's gone full kitchen sink with the equipment of the whole 2019 A4 range which the S4 sits atop. Every UK variant of the line-up gets the full Virtual Cockpit suite, including the 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster and a wider, dashtop-mounted 10.1-inch MMI display as standard, which is a massive win across the board. The touchscreen has crystal clear graphics and it's intuitive to use; if we're searching for flaws it's a shame the update has removed a transmission tunnel rotary dial, because that made for the simplest operation while on the move in the old car. A small price to pay, though, in exchange for what remains comfortably the best and most impressive in-car infotainment tech of the segment.

The new S4 is especially well-trimmed, too, its new Matrix LED lights and sharpened details giving the car a typically digital look that matches the cabin architecture. Our test car received black leather sports seats, contrasting red stitching and carbon fibre trim, creating a premium performance look that suits the S4's cause. The feeling is enhanced by a fairly low seating position low and a steering wheel that can be pulled close; there's even a gravelly tone which hints at the performance on offer.


Get going and the new S4's broader character is instantly obvious. When trundling along in Comfort mode, engine noise is almost inaudible and road noise remains very hushed too, while the adjustable dampers slacken off so the ride on the 19-inch wheels is supple and there's little encouragement to shatter the peace. You could very well leave the engine in this mode and live life leaning on the S4's vast reserves of torque, were the eight-speed ZF torque-converter not a little hesitant when a sudden increase in pace is requested. This annoying trait only slightly improves in Auto mode, so much so that you're often forced to pull the left paddle for a lower cog should you need an instant shove of acceleration - which seems odd given the extent of hybrid tech on board. Presumably it's evidence of the new S4's increased focus on efficiency; a theory backed by the fact the engine will seamlessly switch off when you're coasting with the 48v system busy recharging as soon as you apply the brakes.

The gearbox feels far more appropriate for an S4 when the powertrain's in Dynamic mode, where it offers swift changes up and down the ratios and even a satisfying little thud during full throttle upshifts. There's absolutely no doubting the unit's grunt in this mode as it hauls the S4 from corner to corner, making full use of its all-wheel drive traction in tight corners to the point that you needn't worry about regulating throttle inputs at all, even on bumpy Italian roads. On flowing Bolzano tarmac, the S4's front end ensures swift progress with keen and responsive reactions, characteristics that significantly make up for the lack of feel provided by the steering. The chassis is happy to tighten its line on a trailed brake or even open throttle if you're more aggressive with the steering. It's no four-door Fiesta ST, but there's a neutral balance to be exploited in the S4.


With the torque vectoring Sport Differential optioned, there's even a modest degree of throttle adjustability if you can believe it. The S4 is capable of sending up to 85 per cent of available torque to the back axle, and its interaction is noticeable if you accelerate hard out of a hairpin. Like the mid-corner stuff, it never gets beyond a slight kick of oversteer, but it's amusing enough and of course its bolstered by a huge margin of built-in stability. Heck, we'd even go so far as saying it makes driving along a technical route rather fun.

Do we miss the petrol? In pure performance terms, no; quite the opposite, actually. But subjectively speaking, the diesel's lack of thrust after 4,500rpm does limit the excitement factor somewhat. You operate it through the tractable mid-range so while it feels perfectly capable, it's never going to be as thrilling as something that asks to be worked. But that was a given in the switch to derv and must have been considered a necessary evil as far as Audi was concerned. What's left is a broadly capable car and a half way parsimonious one, too - not to mention something completely different to the traditional alternatives from AMG, BMW and Jaguar. An MHEV diesel S4 won't be for everyone, but at worst the new car does now boast some distinguishing characteristics that its predecessor did not.




SPECIFICATION - AUDI S4 TDI

Engine: 2,967cc, V6 plus starter generator
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic, all-wheel drive
Power (hp): 347@3,850rpm
Torque (lb ft): 516@2,500-3,100rpm
0-62mph: 4.8sec
Top speed: 155mph (electronically limited)
Weight: 1,785kg
MPG: 40.9
CO2: 164g/km
Price: £48,000 (est)

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Author
Discussion

cerb4.5lee

Original Poster:

30,041 posts

179 months

Wednesday 17th July 2019
quotequote all
I'm not quite sure where I sit with this and I appreciate the lazy torque of a diesel, but I associate the S4 as a petrol performance car. I'm a little bit undecided to be fair.

Cupramax

10,468 posts

251 months

Wednesday 17th July 2019
quotequote all
I’m not, diesel S cars is ridiculous, it’s all down to meeting emissions targets and nothing about driving fun which an S car should be. Made all the more ridiculous that the petrol V6’s are now going into SUV’s like the Cayenne and Touareg.

Chestrockwell

2,619 posts

156 months

Wednesday 17th July 2019
quotequote all
I think this will be an exciting car to drive, all that torque with AWD in an Audi S car could be fun unlike the boat like nature of SE suspension 35d x drive BMW’s. Not saying they were bad but they weren’t performance cars. This is and Audi know what they’re doing.

The only gripe I have with this car is the front, it looks just like the M340i that was announced last year, why do all cars look the same now.

I’m a fan of Audi now after spending some time in my brothers new A6. I wouldn’t mind one of these in a few years provided they dip below for year old models!

drpep

1,758 posts

167 months

Wednesday 17th July 2019
quotequote all
Ugh. Two words: Red Line. There is nothing; NOTHING fun about listening to a lung diseasel car begrudgingly grind it's way up to 5000 revs, no matter how much torque it delivers along the way. If you're going to build an ICE car for driver entertainment, keep it petrol or, in this day and age, electric. Thankfully the US hates the concept of performance diesels thanks to California emissions, so we'll likely get a petrol V6 for the S4 equivalent.

I would absolutely not be spending my hard earned tuppence on this thing.

Edited by drpep on Wednesday 17th July 00:50

RobDickinson

31,343 posts

253 months

Wednesday 17th July 2019
quotequote all
SPECIFICATION - AUDI S4 TDI
Engine: 2,967cc, V6 plus starter generator
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic, all-wheel drive
Power (hp): 347@3,850rpm
Torque (lb ft): 516@2,500-3,100rpm
0-62mph: 4.8sec
Top speed: 155mph (electronically limited)
Weight: 1,785kg
MPG: 40.9
CO2: 164g/km
Price: £48,000 (est)

Tesla model 3 Performance
Dual motor
Transmission: nope
Power (hp): 473
Torque (lb ft): 471
0-62mph: 3.4sec
Top speed: 162mph
Weight: 1,847kg
MPG: 120
CO2: 0g/km
Price: £49,000 (this week)

How much bik would the s4 attract at 40%? £6k a year?

Edit - £5,619 a year so £15k more expensive to just own than the model 3

Edited by RobDickinson on Wednesday 17th July 02:12

Ahbefive

11,657 posts

171 months

Wednesday 17th July 2019
quotequote all
Chestrockwell said:
I think this will be an exciting car to drive, all that torque with AWD in an Audi S car could be fun
I think the total opposite. Depends what you are used to I suppose.

1781cc

574 posts

93 months

Wednesday 17th July 2019
quotequote all
Having had two V8 S4s and a V10 S8 I initially thought this was sacrilege, however, I’ve been knocking around this summer in a remapped 3.0TDI A4 Cabriolet Quattro and let me tel you, it has its charms, the torque curve is solid and in the real world where the scream of 7,500rpm grabs attention, the quieter diesel goes about its business rarely drawing any attention.

If you are cruising along a 30 zone and hit a nice clear driver friendly backroad the punch out of corners and power delivery make it very usable, ditto for overtaking, I’m a convert.

Sure, it’s an old and car and the chassis isn’t pure sports but it’s fun to drive and the delivery can be addictive while still registering in the 40s MPG wise.

Who can really push a mega hp car on the road day to day now anyway?

cerb4.5lee

Original Poster:

30,041 posts

179 months

Wednesday 17th July 2019
quotequote all
1781cc said:
I’ve been knocking around this summer in a remapped 3.0TDI A4 Cabriolet Quattro and let me tel you, it has its charms, the torque curve is solid and in the real world where the scream of 7,500rpm grabs attention, the quieter diesel goes about its business rarely drawing any attention.
What I love about a Convertible is that you can hear the engine/exhaust so much better(than in a Coupe)...so I do struggle with the thought of a diesel Convertible. A diesel engine(while very effective) hasn't ever been very nice to listen to for me.

I do see loads of diesel Convertibles though so maybe it is just me.

Dale487

1,334 posts

122 months

Wednesday 17th July 2019
quotequote all
cerb4.5lee said:
1781cc said:
I’ve been knocking around this summer in a remapped 3.0TDI A4 Cabriolet Quattro and let me tel you, it has its charms, the torque curve is solid and in the real world where the scream of 7,500rpm grabs attention, the quieter diesel goes about its business rarely drawing any attention.
What I love about a Convertible is that you can hear the engine/exhaust so much better(than in a Coupe)...so I do struggle with the thought of a diesel Convertible. A diesel engine(while very effective) hasn't ever been very nice to listen to for me.

I do see loads of diesel Convertibles though so maybe it is just me.
Its not just you, I'm the same - I don't even understand diesel coupes.

1781cc

574 posts

93 months

Wednesday 17th July 2019
quotequote all
The sound isn’t as great as I replaced the exhausts with miltecs as soon as I got them, but synthesized cabin sounds aren’t great either.

My immediate neighbor has an 18 plate S5 V6T and it’s sounds awful in the mornings, really, really bad, so it doesn’t seem that modern smaller engines sound any better. At least AMG still have that gorgeous sounding V8 in circulation!

Court_S

12,722 posts

176 months

Wednesday 17th July 2019
quotequote all
cerb4.5lee said:
What I love about a Convertible is that you can hear the engine/exhaust so much better(than in a Coupe)...so I do struggle with the thought of a diesel Convertible. A diesel engine(while very effective) hasn't ever been very nice to listen to for me.

I do see loads of diesel Convertibles though so maybe it is just me.
Nope. Not just you. If I’m honest I can’t imagine anything worse! But they do seem very popular although the ones I see never have their roof down.

Seems a bit odd that the S cars are going diesel hybrid yet SUV’s, traditionally suited to Diesel engines are getting the V6 petrol. I guess it shows what the general buying public want.

cowboyengineer

1,410 posts

113 months

Wednesday 17th July 2019
quotequote all
I’ve been waiting for a car like this for a while.

I want the sharper handling of an “s” Audi but I do 35000 miles a year. Until now it was all either comfort suspension or sporty models from ford or be with only 190 ish hp.

Finally there is something that will do 0-60 sub 5sec, won’t fall apart in the corners and should get 500 miles to a tank.


Bladedancer

1,254 posts

195 months

Wednesday 17th July 2019
quotequote all
Great move from Audi's bookeeping department.
Take the engine you already have, put in the a car you already have, tart it up a bit with quilted seats and fancier steering wheel, sell at 30% premium.
PROFIT.

cerb4.5lee

Original Poster:

30,041 posts

179 months

Wednesday 17th July 2019
quotequote all
Court_S said:
Seems a bit odd that the S cars are going diesel hybrid yet SUV’s, traditionally suited to Diesel engines are getting the V6 petrol. I guess it shows what the general buying public want.
I've thought this as well and I was flicking through Autocar yesterday and looking at the new Macan S and its combined mpg figure was 25mpg(so it will do much less). A diesel SUV can be fairly frugal on a long run but a petrol not so much.

I guess that if you have the money to spend on a Porsche SUV the mpg isn't given a second thought though. I am a big petrol head don't get me wrong, but I do think that a nice lazy torquey diesel does suit the laid back nature of a SUV.

Helicopter123

8,831 posts

155 months

Wednesday 17th July 2019
quotequote all
1781cc said:
Sure, it’s an old and car
No it isn't, the A4 is going through its mid life facelift.

anonymous-user

53 months

Wednesday 17th July 2019
quotequote all
Helicopter123 said:
No it isn't, the A4 is going through its mid life facelift.
Crisis more like. A stting diesel!

9k rpm

513 posts

209 months

Wednesday 17th July 2019
quotequote all
I’m going to be in the market for an estate in this segment early next year; an S4 has a fair bit of appeal and I’m sure it will be great in the naff winter weather.

However, I’m not sure I’d take it over the forthcoming M340i touring which will have AWD and 380bhp ish so quicker and no doubt be far more fun. I only do 10k miles a year; if I did more the diesel might make more sense.

Burnham

3,668 posts

258 months

Wednesday 17th July 2019
quotequote all
These are very similar performance figures to my Alpina D3, which has averaged 40mpg over the 23k miles I've had it, while being is as fast and as fun as I need a daily driver to be (being RWD only).

Clearly people who want a weekend/sports car wont be buying this, but if you only had space for one car and needed it to be good at everything (but not necessary the best in any particular area), then there's certainly room in the market for it.

As someone mentioned above, the way cars like this can pile on speed without shouting about it is quite a nice feeling. I don't necessary want to wring my cars neck out to 8,000 rpm every time I drive it, and with torque like this available from 1,500rpm you can access it more of the time, while not drawing attention to yourself.

The thing I love about mine is it subtlety, Q-Car-esque, semi-sleeper style that can keep up with a C63 while doing 500 miles on a tank.

So this new diesel S4 gets a thumbs up from me.

1781cc

574 posts

93 months

Wednesday 17th July 2019
quotequote all
Helicopter123 said:
No it isn't, the A4 is going through its mid life facelift.
Yes it is, they stopped making A4 cabriolets in 2009, which is what I was referring to

Bladedancer

1,254 posts

195 months

Wednesday 17th July 2019
quotequote all
Burnham said:
Q-Car-esque, semi-sleeper style that can keep up with a C63 while doing 500 miles on a tank.
As in keep up when both of you are doing 70 mph on an M-way right?