KNaudiA4 --> S4

[KNaudi]

the S4 is almost eleven years old to the day..... 10,000 miles/year like clockwork.

[KNaudi]

found my favorite hidden EQ setting for the Bose stereo

[HotSauce]

found my favorite hidden EQ setting for the Bose stereo

I remember doing this to my first S...I couldn't believe the difference. Still one of my favorite little discoveries....I feel like a lot of the new people don't know about this.

[KNaudi]

got snow in DC. burned an entire tank of gas doing donuts and drifts.

rando shots

[KNaudi]

Took a road trip to Chicago from DC for my birthday/to look @ law schools/watch the Bears in Chicago. Left at 1am on Sunday to make kickoff at 1pm central time.

PA turnpike at 3:30am is pretty lonely



Did a fair amount on the S4 To Do list: (1) took out the APR SRT catback, (2) installed SSAC catback, (3) oil change and changed from M1 0w-40 to Lubro Moly 5w-40, and (4) installed an integrated Escort Passport SRX system with radar/laser detection and laser diffusion.


Also attended the Bader Audi Club's ice driving school on Lake Sinissippi in Wisconsin. Was really helpful with car control and manuevers with little to no traction. Took both the S6 and the S4 up with us.

Shots from the event:
Its friggen cold


Getting the snows on


B5 S4 stuck






We got the S6 stuck


Vids from event:


Pulling the S6 out


I had a chance to run the new snows (Blizzak WS60s) in deep stuff, packed snow, and pretty much glare ice. There are definitely the best tires I've ever run for the deep stuff and on ice (comparing to Blizzak LM25s and Dunlop Wintersport M3s), pretty much unbeatable. They were a bit squirmy at highway speeds but that is the price you pay for real deal snow tires. They are about the same as the Dunlops on packed snow but better than the LM25s were.

[KNaudi]

Rundown of the Passport SRX radar detection and laser detection and diffusion system:
Sensors:
-Laser sensor and "shifter" (Passport's name for jammer) in front left bumper grille, attached with plastic epoxy
-Laser sensor and shifter in front right bumper grille, attached with plastic epoxy
-Radar detection sensor behind the center front bumper grille, bolted into bottom of bumper
-Laser sensor and shifter in the bottom lip of the rear bumper, epoxied in place and wire run into the spare wheel well

Control units:
-Central wiring box is under the center console, behind where the head unit is
-External speaker mounted in the dash above the fuse box
-System light (green on, red for warnings) wedged in between knee bolster and belt line trim on right side of steering wheel (will be moved later)
-Mute button mounted between the ebrake and the shifter for easy access
-Central control unit with all the settings and on/off switch just sits in the glove box

Everything provided


The only issue is that I'm in Virginia and DC a lot, where these are illegal. I already got ticketed for it in VA and I've had this installed for all of a week. So I need to wire an on/off switch I can access very quickly (AKA that I don't have to open the glove box to get to). Overall though, I love this system and it is a BIG step up from my windshield mounted, 7 year old K40 RD850.

Here is the front bumper, the sensors don't really stand out


here is a shot of one of the laser sensor/jammers


Crappy shot of where the radar sensor is in the front bumper


Mute button. need to run the wire under the shift surround.


Indicator light

[sherbet]

Whats the deal with the EQ settings? This is the first I've heard of that

[KNaudi]

Whats the deal with the EQ settings? This is the first I've heard of that

you are really missing out then. check it out here: http://www.audizine.com/forum/showth...en-EQ-question

[Alkivar]

you are really missing out then. check it out here: http://www.audizine.com/forum/showth...en-EQ-question

should have set it to 8675309 for the picture ;)

[KNaudi]

should have set it to 8675309 for the picture ;)

jenny jenny!

[KNaudi]

January 28th 2011: new b1s1 oxygen sensor.

[KNaudi]

February 21st, alignment done by Firestone. Lifetime alignments for one time $180 fee

also played with the fitment on the SSAC exhaust. definitely better after putting some clamps on the hangers to keep the exhaust away from the walls of the tunnel. still needs a little bit of work. I also had some extra red spray paint laying around so I painted my tow hook red. No good shots of this for now.


here are the alignment specs:

[KNaudi]

Put on a new trunk lid as mine had some very minor dings that wouldn't come out. I decided I wanted to put on an aftermarket new style S4 badge but with a black flag instead of red. Got it from eurobadgz on ebay. Also put on an Audi Sport plate frame that I got for Christmas, didn't want to put it on while there was still salt on the roads.

[awdjunkies]

This is another one of my fav. threads that I like to come in and read from time to time even if there hasn't been any (Ahem) updates

[KNaudi]

This is another one of my fav. threads that I like to come in and read from time to time even if there hasn't been any (Ahem) updates

lol, well I appreciate that. I'll try to break some more shit so I have to fix it and I'll update here for ya

[awdjunkies]

lol, well I appreciate that. I'll try to break some more shit so I have to fix it and I'll update here for ya

LMAO!!! There went my Peach Iced Tea!!!!

[KNaudi]

April 4th, 2011: replaced the almost dead key battery. now I don't need to stand next to the car to lock it. The car has cost me $2.79 this month, I don't think I can take it any longer!

[awdjunkies]

April 4th, 2011: replaced the almost dead key battery. now I don't need to stand next to the car to lock it. The car has cost me $2.79 this month, I don't think I can take it any longer!

lol nice.. that's the way to do it!!

[KNaudi]

May 11th: A post that I hoped I would never have to make, don't ever valet your car. Long story made short, a DC valet curbed the ever living shit out of a mint VMR v710s. I am beyond livid (the valet manager arguing with me did nothing to improve my mood either). 2/3 of the outside of the wheel is now curbed as well as the face of the spokes (I couldn't accomplish that even if I tried). This wheel was mint just a few hours ago:

[awdjunkies]

Ouch!! Sorry this happened to you. I too, learned my lesson when My wife and I went out for dinner one night and decided to take our MKIV Supra. Yeah I made the mistake of valeting the car and boom there went my 18x11 inch rear wheels.

[VMRWheels]

Wow, what a shame!! Hopefully we can help get things sorted ASAP!

Oddly enough, I've had this happen with a few different customers as of late - perhaps there's a curse going around?

edit: By the way, that ice racing looks like a blast!

[dubzackvr6]

Bummer. I hate valets.
On a different note, how does your s4 compare to the s6? I know it's a super un-fare comparison luxury wise, but how about performance-wise?

[KNaudi]

Bummer. I hate valets.
On a different note, how does your s4 compare to the s6? I know it's a super un-fare comparison luxury wise, but how about performance-wise?

They are quite different. The S4 is raw and feels very quick. The S6 doesn't feel fast. The way I like to think of it is if I need to get to someone's house across town the fastest, drive the S6 but if you actually want to drive the faster car and can deal with having to religiously warm and cool the turbos, drive the S4. It depends the mood I'm in as to which one I prefer. The S6 is a very nice long distance cruiser and the S4 is definitely more fun and the S6 is VERY heavy. With that being said, I love both cars.

[KNaudi]

Finally got back to my B5 after driving the S6 for a few weeks and couldn't be happier. The C6 is just SO much heavier. Great for lapping the Chicago/DC trip but not great for tossing around corners. Anyway, I got back home, gave both a proper bath, and took some shots with a decent camera (finally):













I also got a replacement V710 from Matt@Velocity:

[sherbet]

spray down those tires with some degreaser and get scrubbing!!! Looks great otherwise though.

[KNaudi]

September 30th: Time for new motor mounts. I ordered Stern "soft" mounts (soft is a very relative term here) and had the work done at Dubwerks in Libertyville (http://www.dubwerks.com/). I normally would do this kind of work myself but time has been sparse lately (as you might be able to tell by my lack of posts recently).

Here are the new mounts before they went in:


Here are the old mounts after they came out:






Now I started to notice fluid leaking from my RS4 mounts last fall (almost a year ago) but I just didn't have time to address them. There has been increasing movement and slack up front since then but I had no idea that the RS4 mounts (only 45k miles old) were THIS bad. So, gents, check your motor mounts.

As for the Stern "soft" mounts, I have only driven 20 miles on them. I will review them in my next post after a few more miles. So far, so good though.

[KNaudi]

October 14th: I've put ~500 miles on since the Stern soft mounts went in. I have to say the car feels much more buttoned up and tighter than it did before and I love it. With that being said, there is a noticeable increase in harshness. You can definitely feel increased vibrations in the cabin at idle and WOT (not that it bothers me one bit). But shifts feel crisper and the car just feels better... its kinda hard to describe to be honest, just better.

Grabbed a few shots around Chicago today... sadly only with my Blackberry and not with a quality camera:

[Richard]

There's love, then there is this thread. Love thecomplete updates.

[KNaudi]

November 5th: Winter mode in full effect. RS4 reps with the 50 mile old Blizzak WS60s are on, car is washed and waxed, and ready for a Chicago winter.




poodles aren't much good with wheel swaps, FYI


more pics: http://www.flickr.com/photos/6663526...7627670734811/

here's my agenda for the winter months:


-replace headliner (thanks Steve_AgArrow from QW)
-replace cabin air filter
-tranny flush
-oil change (Shell Rotella T6 5w-40)
-Anti squeel goo on all brake pads

[KNaudi]

yea, I'm missing a center cap... so what

[KNaudi]

so I've been a bit of a picture whore lately but what the hell


gotta love the blight of the rust belt:

[KNaudi]

some more picture whoring:

next to my favorite bar


my old plate:



So I will be spending a good chuck of time on routine stuff in mid-January (on break from school). Here's what I need to address:
-F and R rotors and pads (damn StopTech replacement rotor rings are pricey!)
-Tranny flush (with Motul this time instead of Redline.)
-New headliner
-Cabin air filter
-Oil and filter change (its early on the miles but not on time, Shell Rotella 5w-40 and Bosch filter)
-Detail
-Fix broken headlight tab
-Might paint the winter wheels (RS4 reps) in black. Thoughts on this?

If anyone lives in Northern IN and wants to help out around the 10th of January, drop me a line.

[KNaudi]

[KNaudi]

road trip!

[KNaudi]

January 12th: Just swapped tranny fluid from Redline to Motul Gear 300, did an oil change with Shell Rotella T6 5w-40 with a Bosch filter, and also put new rear Meyle rotors and PBR Ceramic pads on.

The Motul is a pretty significant improvement over the 2 year old Redline mix (2/3 MT-90 and 1/3 MTL). There is less notchiness and its much easier to get into gear. I would highly suggest anyone using Redline switch to Motul 300.

On a somewhat un-Audi related note, I bought a new jack that I absolutely love. I bought this: http://www.harborfreight.com/automot...ump-68050.html. Its got a 2ft lift range and its pretty reasonably priced. Its heavy, about 90lbs, but definitely worth it.