Do you guys know why the RS4 gets a bum rap when it comes to performance?
Bum rap compared to what? People who rag on the RS4 only wish they had one. This is one of the finest cars on the planet.
HOW ABOUT THIS REVIEW:
For automotive journalists everywhere, running out of superlatives represents a profound crisis of conscience. But every once in a while, along comes a car so entertaining, so unexpected that it transforms the habitually loquacious into babbling idiots. Consider me flabbergasted.
This muting wasn't the effect of a throbbing BMW, glitzy Mercedes-Benz, or even a rowdy American hopped up on muscle nostalgia. It wasn't at the wheel of relentless Japanese precision or even a four-leaf-clover-rare exotic supercar. No, I was flummoxed by the RS 4, a product of the little German luxury brand that apparently can, Audi.
The RS badge is Audi's answer to the more powerful, sportier versions of mainstream vehicles that BMW and Mercedes sell under the M and AMG badges, respectively—and at a hefty premium. The RS 4 is an up-tuned version of Audi's S4, itself an up-powered version of the A4 sedan. Confusing? Yes. But the result is an experience so good it's likely to leave you saying, "M who? AMG what?"
All this tuning yields a four-door sedan that performs like a Porsche 911, arguably the holy grail of driving. But the proposition isn't cheap. With a base price of $66,000, the 2007 RS 4 is between $12,000 and $15,000 more than the Cadillac CTS-V and Mercedes-Benz C55 AMG. It's also more than $17,000 more expensive than the outgoing 2006 BMW M3.
But that's all OK because the RS 4 is a better-looking, more agile and powerful car than all three. Not to mention that the upcoming redo of BMW's M3 is very likely to weigh in at a similar price point.
The double sixes get you an extensive grab bag of luxury goodies, including heated seats, dual-zone climate controls, power seats, headlamp washers, ultra-glam 19-in. wheels, bi-xenon headlamps, airbags for everybody, and on and on. My test car came with only one option, the $4,700 premium package that adds GPS navigation, dimming mirrors, Bluetooth, satellite radio, upgraded Bose stereo, power rear shade, and heated rear seats.
With a $720 destination charge and $2,100 gas guzzler tax, the total racks up to a sizable $73,520. Yikes! Luckily, it's all oh-so-worth it—even for nearly 75 large.
Audi says it hopes to sell about 1,000 RS 4 models this year. The company is desperately trying to claw market share and brand prestige away from its German rivals. That's undoubtedly a tall order, even if the company has no trouble standing shoulder-to-shoulder with BMW and Mercedes at home and around the world. Even at such low volumes, thrilling cars like this one are sure to generate buzz and push the company further in the right direction.
Power comes courtesy of a 4.2-liter, naturally aspirated V8 that whips up 420 horsepower and 317 foot-pounds of torque. It revs to a stratospheric 8,250 rpm. That's right: high-high redline, 420 horses, no turbo in sight.
But it couldn't matter less, because in any gear the engine just gives and gives and gives like a cross between Mother Teresa and Evander Holyfield. Even said combo probably wouldn't be able to get from zero to 60 in 4.4 seconds or break from that speed to a full stop in a mere 107 feet without any fade whatsoever.
Fresh off the lot, the V8's growl is more technical than guttural. Press the dash-mounted "S" button, however, and the Valkyries will indeed emerge. That button opens valves in the muffler and quickens the throttle response of the six-speed manual, but also takes the engine's tone to monumental crescendo.
The RS 4, like all Audis, is equipped with quattro all-wheel drive. But to eke out more performance, engineers tweaked the differential from a 50-50 split to a 40-60, giving the rear wheels a significant emphasis.
You don't turn in the RS 4. It slices through corners with geometrical precision. You point; it goes. It's by far the best steering in any Audi, and, in my opinion, seriously rivals leader BMW. Engineers must have made a Faustian deal with the Devil to get dynamics like this.
The other notable dash-mounted control is the electronic stability-control switch. Press this once and say adieu to traction control. That's nothing too special.
Press and hold the button for three seconds and electronic stability is fully and utterly disabled. Call this insanity mode, as it makes it easy to induce rally-style slides.
Fellow German Kant would be proud. The RS 4 is a perfect illustration of the categorical imperative. In other words, thanks to the near-perfect tuning and abundant power, excessive speed is as justified as it is necessary. (To no avail, I tried to explain this to the New Jersey state trooper who pulled me over and ticketed me.)
Outside, the RS 4 stands beefier than other Audis. The fenders have, like the performance, been maxed out. Shark-gill vents on the side of the front bumpers are low and sharp without being overly aggressive. The trunk features a nearly invisible integrated spoiler that's as classy as it is discreet.
Inside you'll find a standard, luxe Audi interior: comfortable, extremely well put together, and uncomplicated. Audi's MMI navigation and audio interface is easier to use and nicer to look at than competing systems from BMW and Mercedes-Benz. RS accents include supremely supportive seats, carbon trim, and a sporty stick shift. All is bathed in a sexy red glow.
The RS 4 is rated to get between 14 and 21 mpg. I wouldn't count on getting anything nearly that high, though. This car lives to be pushed hard and thrown around even harder. I averaged around 10 mpg but, then again, the cost seems trivial for the sheer fun.
BUY IT OR BAG IT?
I've driven a fair number of Audis lately, including the diminutive A3 and stately A8. The RS 4 is easily my favorite of the lot. Surely the best sign for Audi is that after driving it, I found myself thinking about more affordable editions and wondering if I could find some corollary joy in them.
What's more, the inevitable game of "I would buy this over…," comparing a long list of cars, both direct competitors and otherwise, was a total wash in the RS 4. That's because, all things being equal, I couldn't think of any other car I have recently driven that I would take for everyday pure fun over this Audi. That's including a $185,045 Aston Martin DB9 Volante with a 5.9-liter V12 and James Bond bravado.
Unfortunately, all things aren't equal and budgets are a fact of life. The RS 4 is more than worth the premium over the competitors I mentioned above. In fact, since there's not yet an RS 6, I'd throw in an RS 4 test drive if you're considering getting the bigger, badder BMW M5 or Mercedes E55.
But be forewarned, to drive one is to want one. Uncontrollably so. So if you really can't afford it, stay far, far away.
OR THIS ONE:
Audi RS4
By Jonny Lieberman
October 27th, 2006
Buy a Toyota Prius and you get a backup camera, keyless ignition, iPod integration and travel over 50 miles for every gallon of gas poured therein. Buy an Audi RS4 and you don't even get self-dimming mirrors, and you can only drive 11 miles per gallon of dead dinos (EPA notwithstanding). The Prius will set you back $25k. The RS4 costs three Prii. At freeway speeds, the Toyota is a near silent and comfortable cruiser, whereas the Audi sounds and feels like a volcano making love to an avalanche. I only tell you this because the moment I saw the RS4 a Toyota angel appeared on my left shoulder and an Audi demon manifested itself on my right. And then I drove the RS4 and the demon kicked the snot out of the angel.
Allow me to dispense with the unimportant stuff. The RS4 looks like Shawne Merriman in a tight blue shirt, its mirrors are too small and the interior is stereotypically Audi-perfect minus the ugly, useless strip of tacky carbon fiber trim half-circling the dash. The stereo sounds tinny and the back seats are a joke. Got it? Good.
Most buff books clock the RS4's 0-60 time at 4.4 seconds. That's stupid fast indeed, well ahead of its main competition, the M3. However, what they leave out is that the RS4 can do 0-110 in 4.7 seconds. Or at least it feels like it can. Blindfolded, you would swear the Audi is being launched from a trebuchet. Sitting forward of the front wheels is an all-aluminum, 317lbs., 4.2-liter miracle of human imagination. Yes, it makes 420hp, but so does a Dodge SRT-8. While fun, the Dodge Boys' 6.1-liter Hemi is far from miraculous. The RS4's V8 is nothing short of a revelation.
Let's say you're cruising at 80mph in sixth-gear and the engine is doing 3,000rpm, the mechanical equivalent of sipping a latte. You downshift to fifth and the engine quickly and smoothly spins up to 4,000rpm. In most cars, the engine would slow you down; the RS4 just screams louder and burns more gas. Your velocity remains unchanged. More proof? In first gear, release the clutch without touching the go-pedal. You won't stall. You'll go. Also, a V8 with an 8,250rpm redline is mechanical heroin.
Fine, so the engine is a torque-tastic beast, but they put it in an Audi so it's nothing more than a bloated understeerer totally devoid of road feel and reflexes, right? Dead wrong. I have a turgid, secret back road I use to evaluate the handling prowess of my testers. Until this week, Porsche's Boxster was the champ. I could whip it through the turns at 70mph. For comparison's sake, the nearly-as-nifty handling Miata could "only" do the twists at about 60mph. The RS4 dominated the two-mile stretch at 100mph, and if I wasn't so ham-fisted it could have gone faster. Much faster.
Audi used every trick in the playbook to get the RS4 – with 58% of its weight over the front wheels – to handle near-on perfectly. Credit the DRC (Dynamic Ride Control) which hydraulically links the diagonal suspension bits to each other. As the front wheels read the road, the rear shocks preemptively (and correctly) react. This setup works so well the WRC just banned it. The engineers also made sure every body panel in front of the doors is composed of kilogram saving aluminum. And the 19" Pirellis are fantastic. While the initial turn in isn't as effortless and eager as say an EVO, this two-ton all-wheel driver can safely carry more speed through a corner than you can handle. After the apex, the RS4 can blast sideways with such force that you will swear you are piloting violence.
And that's before you push the innocuous little button marked "S." Normally, the RS4 is faster than whatever car you are driving next to, sounds bonkers and has a devastatingly punishing ride. Push the button though, and three things happen. First, the throttle control is remapped so that the rev-happy mill will crank faster with less input. Second, valves open in the mufflers changing the sound from Howard Dean's scream to Gunnery Sgt. Hartman showing Joker his war face. Lastly, the shocks get firmer and the ride goes from mercilessly painful to f-you. I absolutely love it. Forget violence, you are now driving war.
There aren't enough superlatives (or space) to properly describe the vulgar joy of driving an RS4. For instance, I haven't even mentioned that the brakes are stolen from Lamborghini's Gallardo. Nor did I tell you that while normally quite brave and stupid, I was too frightened to turn off the handling nanny. In short, if you have the means, the RS4 is your end. Right. Now excuse me. I've got some sinning to do before the Audi man comes and it's time to repent.
Reply With Quote
. Welcome, and congrats on your new purchase, you wont be disappointed
'01 S4 Racecar "Giggles" - Sponsored by 034Motorsport
->'12 TTRS - Phantom, Titanium, CF Mirrors, Sport Exhaust, Tech, Butt Warmers, Tint and Clear Bra, APR Stage 1, 034 Midpipes, AWE Boost Gauge
Originally Posted by twinsnailsS4
C6-ZO6 is a pretty impressive car as well.
Bookmarks