Should RS4 be faster than stage 1 8p S3?

[DavidRoss]

Managed to get hold of an Rs4 for an hour from my local dealer (albeit an avant)- Was sitting on the fence reading posts on here about power issues and speed etc, been watching some videos on utube as well. Finally got hold of one for an hour and managed to have a couple of totally unscientific blasts against a friend of mine driving my 08 S3 with GIAC map circa 310hp. Give and take no real difference apart from s3 being a little quicker low down maybe.. but quite equal. Left feeling a bit underwhelmed, is this normal ie unhealthy rs4, healthy s3 or do other people have some experience??

[UNI555]

I had an 8p S3 with a miltek and remap for a year before my RS4, that was about 310bhp, the RS is in another world, no comparison, so maybe the one you tried isn't quite right. Mind you, mine doesn't appear to smoke or use oil either, so maybe MINE isn't quite right!!

[UNI555]

And whadya mean - "albeit an avant" ????

[DavidRoss]

sorry just specifying it wasnt a saloon (maybe a little heavier??). Nothing against your avant though- looks amazing especially with those RS6 rims!!

[P_G]

Hmm, can't really say S3 vs Rs4, however my modified B6 S4 was streets quicker than my maoed S3 and the RS4 is quicker than my S4, albeit the S4 had better low down grunt if you haold the RS above 500 rpm to redline it us uncannily quick. What I did learn is you have to drive the RS differentyl as well, I.e use full rev range. S3 and S4 were out of puff by 5500rpm, RS is just getting into its stride.

That and RS4 power delivery and handling are also far improved over either.

[UNI555]

Hmm, can't really say S3 vs Rs4, however my modified B6 S4 was streets quicker than my maoed S3 and the RS4 is quicker than my S4, albeit the S4 had better low down grunt if you haold the RS above 500 rpm to redline it us uncannily quick. What I did learn is you have to drive the RS differentyl as well, I.e use full rev range. S3 and S4 were out of puff by 5500rpm, RS is just getting into its stride.

That and RS4 power delivery and handling are also far improved over either.

Agree with that, the S3 was all mid-range and felt strangled higher up. Nice car though.

[P_G]

Sorry, just noticed my spelling on that last post was atrocious, let me try again.....

Hmm, can't really say S3 vs RS4, however my modified B6 S4 was streets quicker than my mapped S3 and the RS4 is quicker than my S4, albeit the S4 had better low down grunt. If you hold the RS above 5000 rpm to redline it us uncannily quick. What I did learn is you have to drive the RS differently as well, i.e use full rev range. S3 and S4 were out of puff by 5500rpm, RS is just getting into its stride.

That and RS4 power delivery and handling are also far improved over either.

[Dom81]

Sorry, just noticed my spelling on that last post was atrocious, let me try again.....

There I was thinking "maoed" was something to do with the cats...

[DavidRoss]

What bugs me is that i can accept other cars will be faster than an RS4... this is simply fact and doesnt bother me one bit- there is always something quicker at the end of the day. What i'm finding hard to swallow is if i get rid of my S3 and spend 34k on an RS4 (i do really like the car) i want it to perform 'as it should' if that makes sense. I would kind of feel a bit cheated almost to spend all that cash on a car that doesnt deliver what it promises. For 420hp i felt it should be faster... sorry- i think im rambling now...

[Nige_RS4]

You have got to take the difference in weight into account as well, I would guess that the S3 is lighter than the RS4, so maybe the gap is't that big afterall?

You could easily take your S3 to around 420bhp for a few grand and have the same performance as the RS4?

[P_G]

If that is how you feel then try another couple of RS4's first, if that doesn't change your mind don't buy one.

I do know that I am one of a few people who have done the S3 to S4 to RS4 transition and I don't believe any of us have gone back again.

[Nige_RS4]

I do know that I am one of a few people who have done the S3 to S4 to RS4 transition and I don't believe any of us have gone back again.

Was that the new S3?

[Les]

My guess is that you may have been changing up in the same way you do in your current S3, if so you were only using part of the cars power.

Test another one, a saloon in black (cause they go faster ) and use the rpm all the way to 8000, then you can see what a rapid S3 looks like in your rear view mirror

[PetrolDave]

I do know that I am one of a few people who have done the S3 to S4 to RS4 transition and I don't believe any of us have gone back again.

I did 8L S3 (chipped to 265) to B6 S4 to B7 RS4.

The 8L S3 to B6 S4 change didn't feel like a great change in performance (due to the turbo to NA change?) but the numbers from an accelerometer based performance gauge (can't remember the name) suggested otherwise.

The B6 S4 to B7 RS4 change was a much bigger change.

It's easy to be fooled that an NA car isn't "as quick" as a turbo car because it doesn't have the kick as boost comes into play, it's a much more progressive increase in power that doesn't feel as dramatic but the numbers normally suggest otherwise.

[Nige_RS4]

B7 RS4 kerb weight = 1650kgs = 254hp/tonne (420hp std)
8P S3 kerb weight = 1495kgs = 207hp/tonne (310hp modified)

So the RS4 should be noticeable quicker (but like Les said, you will need to use all the revs)

But with a bit of MRC magic ----> 8P S3 kerb weight = 1495kgs = 280hp/tonne (420hp upgrade)