After a short and troubled stint with a 2016 Mercedes C450 AMG, my brother has punted on his silver-star sedan and picked up a 2018 Audi S4 Premium Plus. The move from Stuttgart’s stormy skies to Ingolstadt’s greener grass trades one luxury ride for another, and I’m curious to see Audi’s take on the sports sedan. I expect the Audi to be a significant upgrade.
The differences between the two Germans run deep. Whereas the C450 favored swooping designs inside and out, the S4 is penned with a straight edge from its chiseled jaw to its rectilinear dashboard. Mercedes cluttered its cabin with a curvaceous—if bloated—center console. Audi, on the other hand, drew the doors, dash, and center console away from the passengers, making for a spacious interior.
Although the 2016 C450 is just two years older than the 2018 S4 (original MSRP $62,600), it’s a generation behind in technology. The Mercedes speedometer and tachometer used clock-face dials, and its navigation screen floated in a bezel fit for an original iMac. The S4 flaunts Audi’s crisp digital gauge cluster and a neatly wrapped navigation screen ($2,600). While the 7.0″ Audi MMI screen looks small compared to today’s massive infotainment screens from Tesla and Ford, Audi MMI does support Apple CarPlay, a killer feature that wasn’t available in the C450.
The oily bits differ too. The C450 powertrain bolted a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission to a twin-turbo V6. This is a significantly more complex solution than the single-turbo V6 and ZF 8-speed automatic in the S4. And yet, the Audi steps just as briskly as the Benz and its gearbox swaps cogs even faster!
(While I’d love to drive the two cars back to back for the truest comparison, the C450 is long gone, so my driving impressions will focus solely on the S4.)
Having sampled Audi’s A5, SQ5 and RS5, the shape and quality of the S4’s cabin is familiar and still deeply satisfying, though the materials differ from car to car. Here, carbon fiber ($500), aluminum, microfiber and Nappa leather ($1,250) are masterfully joined into a pleasing and rattle-free interior. Plastic is used—this is no Rolls Royce—but the large panel around the shifter is carefully grained to hide fingerprints. All the buttons and knobs respond with jaunty clicks, and there is not an iota of slop to be found in any control. Simply, this is one of the best interiors in the business.
But it’s time for a drive. A metal-faced start/stop button is hidden by the driver’s knee. When pressed, it sends the signal that brings the 3.0-liter turbocharged engine to life. The grunt of a wakened V6 is heard.
With the engine running and the car stationary, the steering wheel spins with well-oiled lightness: Nevermind that the front tires are grinding across the pavement! Audi’s Dynamic steering ($1,150) slathers on assistance for easy low-speed maneuvering.
I grab the shifter’s grip—it’s wide like a boat’s throttle—and pull back to engage drive. Here we go!
Through town, the S4 delivers a relaxed ride. Drive Select controls the car’s programming, and in Auto mode, the softest damper setting smothers the bumps. A mellow throttle tune smooths my stop-and-go getaways, and the transmission shifts for economy over punch. Auto mode is so comfortable and calming that hides the S4’s sporting potential; the Audi drives more like a luxury sedan than a sports car.
I use Drive Select to dial-up Dynamic mode, and the S4’s racing roots step forward. The steering and suspension are firmed, the throttle sensitivity is heightened, and the transmission drops a gear. An ample 354 hp and 369 lb-ft of torque is available at a toe’s twitch. Even a modest squeeze of the accelerator wakes the turbo and thrusts the S4 forward. Use wide-open throttle, and the car pulls strongly to its 6,750 RPM redline. The classic sports-sedan eagerness that we know from M3s and C63s is unearthed.
(Dynamic mode’s firmer ride would be tolerable in daily use—it’s no worse than the Tesla Model 3’s—but there’s no reason to put up with the extra clomping. Instead, use Individual mode to pair comfort shocks with the sport throttle.)
Sending it at the nearest on-ramp, I find acceleration that’s closer to the big-brother RS4’s than the little sibling A4’s. The S4 steps lively at 4.3s to 60 mph, per Car and Driver, but subjectively lacks the ultimate bite found in the RS4/M3/C63 super sedans. That’s fine; they aren’t in the S4’s cohort. (More troubling for Audi is that C&D tested the updated BMW M340i at 3.8s for 0-60 mph. The Bimmer, it appears, is an underrated freak.)
A nice V6 growl and turbo whistle accompany the S4’s dash. The S4’s cabin is very well insulated against outside sounds, and the exhaust volume is maturely restrained, so I crack a window to hear the engine working.
Manual upshifts come with Audi’s signature burp. The S4’s flappy paddles feel as responsive here as they do in other ZF 8-speed cars (like the Dodge Challenger and BMW 3-series). While the shift response is excellent, the shifts themselves are smoother—less crisp—than those from the best DCTs.
On the highway, the S4 strides with the confidence of autobahn royalty. Light and precise steering can make a car feel nervous at highway speeds, but the S4 tracks true like a bloodhound. 80 mph—American fast—won’t elevate this car’s pulse. The Audi leaves me longing for transcontinental road trips without speed limits. If only that were possible in the USA! I’d suggest European delivery of your new Audi, but sadly that program was canceled in 2019.
I will complain that around town and on the highway, there’s little-to-no road texture at my fingertips. Instead, pavement imperfections are felt through my shorts and shoes. This mute steering tuning seems deliberately done by Audi, but I don’t know why.
We exit the highway and head into the wilderness. The hills in this part of California are subject to tectonic forces and are forever shifting and sliding. Our road has been affected: it bucks and writhes like a sea serpent trying to escape a giant squid but can’t free itself from the S4’s tenacious grip.
The Audi’s sucker grasp is a combination of excellent damping and masterful power delivery. (The $2,500 S sport package hardens both the shocks and the AWD.) The adjustable suspension (still in firm Dynamic mode) supplely absorbs the pavement’s flagellations, maintaining the body control without transferring the battering to the passengers.
The torque-vectoring differential slays the onslaught of second-gear turns. The S4 enters the corners without hesitation and then squirts neutrally out the far side. The diff’s aggressive Dynamic mode carves nearly as cleanly as a Mitsubishi Evo X—the best-of-the-best for AWD programming—but the S4 has a whisper of understeer when the turbo reaches full boost with the steering wheel still turned. (In Comfort mode, the S4 loses some of its urge to turn.)
(I recently drove this same pass in my Cadillac CTS-V wagon. The S4 and CTS-V offer similar ride comfort over the slumping tarmac, but the S4 has superior torsional resistance and body control. The S4 feels nimble and lithe, while the CTS-V can’t hide its 4,400 lbs. Both cars are supremely faithful to their drivers’ inputs, although the analog CTS-V can be throttle rotated while the point-and-shoot S4 stubbornly follows the line indicated by the steering wheel.)
The road unwinds into third and fourth-gear sweepers. I’m happy to find that through the bumpy, high-speed turns, the previously quiet steering gives hints of the tires’ work. By no means is the S4’s steering a master conversationalist, but it reports some of the work being done underfoot and its weighting (in Dynamic mode) and accuracy are faultless.
The mountain pass was the grand finale of my trip. As I arrive at my destination, I consider my favorite aspects of the S4. Curiously, it’s the diamond-stitched seats that have me most enamored. They are cushy, supportive and perfect for all driving. (Except perhaps a high-G thrashing on a race track.) I’m also broadly appreciative of the attention Audi lavished on this S4. All my inputs—be they button presses or pedal pushes—produce tight reactions from the S4. There’s no slack to be found here!
If Audi meant the S4 to find that small overlap between sport, comfort, luxury and all-weather capability, then bravo! They shot their arrow straight through the bull’s-eye.
And as compared to my brother’s ill-fated Mercedes C450? For both its exhaust tuning and interior design, the S4 strikes me as more reserved but higher quality than the C450. I can’t honestly say which car is better, but I am mighty impressed with the S4. What matters most, though, is that my brother is happier with the Audi in every way.
Mike's Steering Column 