Never owned a performance vehicle before - do's and don'ts?

[Ponyboy]

Owner of an S4 B7 on an 05 for the last 2 weeks now...

Not having owned a performance vehicle before I wondered if there were day to day things I should be doing or avoiding, like waiting til the cold start revs settle before driving, or leaving it to idle for 5 mins before turning it off etc? I know this sort of thing is normally more applicable to people running turbos rather than NA cars, but want to teat the thing in the best possible way etc. I have come from a 61 plate A4 TDi which took no looking after at all.

Also, how important is the petrol I use? I have been using V Power nitro, but it's hella expensive - my boss has an 05 M5 and uses normal unleaded - he reckons it is pointless using 97 ron or whatever unless oyu are on a track day...

Any advice helpful. THANKS!

Tony

[Graze]

Tony

An S4 whilst being a performance sedan is a very well balanced everyday package. Common sense, warm it up, if you've really driven it hard let it cool down to normal, otherwise just turn it off, get it serviced regularly and by someone you trust, change the oil every six months 5000km in between I services, check I fluid levels, air pressure in tyres, run the best fuel you can, get regular wheel alignments, baby it over speed humps ( heavy nose so they love chewing thru control arm bushes)

But mostly Drive it like you stole it whenever you can do so safely

Enjoy

graze

[Ponyboy]

"But mostly Drive it like you stole it whenever you can do so safely"

HAHA!

Impossible not to! Thanks very much for the reply, all sensible straight forward stuff - thanks

[adsgreen]

Changing oil every 5000km (3000 miles) is a waste of money.

It's far better to cool the car down in the last 10-15 minutes of a journey than rely on idling after.

Yes it's a performance car but its not a highly strung exotic. It's been designed for even the most unsympathetic driver so a lot of common sense goes a long way. Warming up properly and using good oil gets you 90% there.
The last bit is simply don't baby it - everything from the brakes through to the engine will respond better to being used firmly than feathered.

[Ponyboy]

The last bit is simply don't baby it - everything from the brakes through to the engine will respond better to being used firmly than feathered.

Got it - drive it with passion.

Thanks.

[bam_bam]

V-Bastard is expensive, really? It's, like, 3-4p more per litre, isn't it?

[Engage_Arthur_mode]
65L @ 138p = £90.00
- vs -
65L @ 144p = £94.00
[/Disengage_Arthur_mode]

Soooo V-Bastard is a massive £4 more per fill up and that's "hella" expensive?
Wait until you put tyres on it...

Next tip: don't scrimp on tyres.

[adsgreen]

Bam's right - the difference is even smaller if there is an economy boost with the higher octane so those figures are worst case.

[adsgreen]

As for the actual point of the fuel... The car is benchmarked on 97+ Ron fuel .
Anything less and it will pull timing so it'll be fine but at a slightly lower state of tune.

[Batfinnk]

I've had my B7 for just over a year now. I was using normal Tesco fuel to start but soon changed to Tesco super and the car does seem to run a bit smoother and also seems slightly more economical on it IMO. I'm sure it is very subjective but as with any car if you look after it, it will look after you.

The other thing that is a must with these is get a non res exhaust on it so it sounds like it should

[MikeFish]

Not only do I find that Tesco Momentum drives better than any of the other fuels available, it is normally cheaper than the normal unleaded round my way too. That's not hella expensive at all!

[Ponyboy]

Point taken, it just feels hella expensive when it's the most expensive at the pump...I suppose it isn't that big a deal as I am used to filling up on diesel which is priced pretty similar.

Side note : I saw the Arthur thread while searching the forum this morning on this particular matter...many laughs were had.

[Batfinnk]

Plus also bear in mind these only have a 50 litre tank so it will feel like your filling up a lot more than you expected.

[bam_bam]

Plus also bear in mind these only have a 50 litre tank so it will feel like your filling up a lot more than you expected.

Wow really? The C5 has an 86L tank and thought that required too many fill ups.

[TimDogg]

Worth using a 97 RON fuel - Tesco Momentum I find the best or Shell, I think Arthur did some maths and it is cheaper, through better economy, to buy the more expensive higher octane fuel. And yes, you DO need to drive it hard.

[C17LJR]

Plus also bear in mind these only have a 50 litre tank so it will feel like your filling up a lot more than you expected.

Nope, I put almost 60 litres in the other morning!