"Amazing. Can we do that again?" I ask.
"Sure! The mall doesn't open for another hour ... this lot will be empty for at least another thirty minutes." the salesman replied.
Ahhh ... would that all car-buying experiences be this fun ...
I had the good fortune to test-drive my A4 with a racing enthusiast who encouraged me to "try and spin this car out" during the test drive. So on a rainy morning in an empty parking lot, I drove a Quattro-equipped A4 at 40 MPH toward the section of the lot where water pooled a few inches deep. As soon as my front wheels crossed the deepest part of the pool, I spun the steering wheel a hard right and slammed on the brakes - attempting to trigger a spinout.
Denied.
The A4 carved a neat, controlled stop in the middle of the slick asphalt as if it were mounted on rails. Multiple spinout attempts at higher speeds yielded similar results. Five thousand miles later, I still feel that words cannot adequately describe the unshakable sense of
sure-footedness that Audi's Quattro system offers - it must be experienced firsthand. (Hopefully, your Audi salesman will be as accommodating as mine during the test drive!)
--
A Few Thoughts on the A4's Options
A few of the A4's "options" are, in my opinion, absolutely mandatory.
Quattro: Quattro is the name of Audi's signature electronic all-wheel drive system
*, originally developed for Audi's rally-racing team. In fact, Quattro offered such a dominating advantage that after a string of embarrassingly lopsided victories Team Audi was forced to add 95kg handicap weights to their vehicles ... and when they
continued to win races with the handicap, Quattro was judged to be an "unfair advantage" and banned
**. Quattro is Audi's most distinctive feature - and the most heartbreaking thing for Audi enthusiasts is to see Audis on the road bearing the "FrontTrak" (two-wheel-drive) badges.
Sports Package: The most visible aspect of the Sports Package are the 5-spoke wheels and low-profile high-performance tires. In addition, the Sports Package also offers heavier stabilizer bars (to improve cornering performance) and lowers the car by an inch, giving it a more aggressive stance. Well worth the price.
3.0 Engine Upgrade: Audi's 3.0 is smooth, quiet and powerful - everything that a sport-sedan engine ought to be. By way of comparison, the buzzy baseline 1.8T is underpowered and noisy (even at moderate cruising velocity). Strike One. The 1.8 is also a Turbo - and no matter how well-engineered it may be, Turbos WILL eventually break down before 100,000 miles. Strike Two. Finally, many of the A4's options (leather seats, etc.) are only available w/a 3.0. Strike Three. Skip the 1.8T ... you'll be glad you splashed out for the 3.0 later on.
... But Not Quite Perfect
A few details detract from what is otherwise excellent sport sedan -
Sunroof Wind Noise: when fully-open, the sunroof's aerodynamics creates a distractingly annoying eddy of wind currents so you hear a constant
FFFFFP FFFFFP FFFFFP FFFFFP when you drive over 30 MPH. The noise can be eliminated by opening the rear windows a crack - but this is something they should have fixed at the production stage.
Poorly-Chosen Gear Ratios/Short Overdrive (Manual Transmissions): one would think that a car with six forward gears would allow the driver a generous choice of well-matched gear ratios for a variety of situations. First issue: the second gear is way too tall. When you slow down going into a 90-degree intersection (with the expectation of accelerating out of the turn), intuitively most drivers reach for the second gear ... but the 2nd-gear ratio is so tall that the car languishes in the sluggish, unresponsive low-RPM band of its engine until you get past 25MPH (a friend's glib response: "Duh, take all 90-degree turns at 25+MPH then!" Ha ha). Second issue: Overdrive (6th gear) is WAY too short - at highway cruising speeds, the 3.0 should be able to spin out 32~35 MPH/1000 RPM in overdrive, instead of its current 25 MPH/1000 RPM ... I suspect that the short top gear needlessly cuts down the freeway Miles Per Gallon rating by 3 or 4 MPG
***.
The Verdict
The fact that I'm complaining about
gear-ratios says volumes about the myriad of things this car does
right. It's surpassingly competent in dozens of invisible ways that you only notice in retrospect (for example: even long road trips are extraordinarily comfortable thanks to its ergonomically-designed seats). The title says it best: a near-perfect execution of the european sports sedan.
Now if only Audi offered its mighty 300HP 4.2L V8 with a manual transmission ...
Notes:
* conventional AWD drivetrains use a viscous coupling system, which is considerably less responsive than Audi's computer-controlled Quattro)
** epinions does not allow reviewers to post direct links to outside sites - but if you wish to read more about Quattro's infamous history in obliterating its competitors, go to a search engine and type in keywords "quattro banned race."
*** I will happily concede that my beef with the A4's gear ratios is more a fussy, pet peeve than a flaw with the vehicle itself =)
Amount Paid (US$): 34500
Condition: New
Model Year: 2002
Model and Options: 3.0 Quattro 6-Speed Manual
