Questions Sport Pack

[rawsco]

Hello,hello.

First post, been trawling through a load of posts on here and found some really good info on purchasing a new B8 RS4. Have a 335i and I reckon, having driven the M4 that its about as practically quick as one can exploit on Scottish roads...M4 was just an array of blinking DSC and opposite lock so next logical step is AWD! Seen some good advice on discounts, options and running costs from you guys. Hoping to take advantage of the low rate finance.

Electing to go for:
Sepang Blue
Black Pack and privacy glass
Black Leather/Headlining
VSpoke 20's
Sports Exhaust
DRC
B and O Speakers
Extended Warranty
(Unfortunately) Dynamic Steering from the sport pack...

My questions, Is the dynamic steering that bad? Hoping to get a shot of both but that'll depend on availability of demonstrators (I'm Scottish central belt so Perth/Glasgow/Edinburgh.) and if its bad will the dealers delete the Dynamic steering from the sports pack as the car specs up dearer if you deselect and add in components individually. From what I understand DRC is good sports exhaust is a must as are the 20" rims.

Second what's the experience with negotiating with these dealers? I spoke to Eastern BMW about the M4 and they were 100% absolutely clued up on the M4, I got an engineers level detail on all the bits right down to the A/C driven charge air cooler which was refreshing. Edinburgh couldn't really tell me what the difference between dynamic steering and the normal one was in the RS4 maybe it was just the guy I was speaking to as the person I'm chatting to was on leave.

Also obvious stuff like whens month/quarter end, am I better to buy ahead of the new reg or wait till they are out and pop in then etc...

Thanks again in advance...

R

[Afsimba]

Hi rawsco and welcome ! Personally think a lot of the
Guys on here came from b7s like myself and that it was
A better steering feel all round ! But audi aren't renowned
For steering feel tbh ! It's not as much vague ad falsely weighted
In my opinion !! And haven't driven too many other 60 k cars to
See how it compares ! As far as dealers are concerned
A big bug bear my advice would be stay away from
Glasgow Stirling Edinburgh and Ayr they're all the same
Dealer they're service sucks they're attitude sucks
And I have no faith in there abilities to repair said cars
Bought 2 from Stirling and never again !!! Go to Perth they're
Independants and far more customer focused ! Mine has the sport pack
But so does most of the forum finding one without dynamic steering
Is the hard part most that have them say it rides much better on 19s too
Hope this helps a little

[kmpowell]

Firstly Welcome FON!

As an RS4 newbie I don't have that many miles under my belt with the dynamic steering (c300), however my only advice is you can tailor it in the menu to be on/off through various drive settings, so don't let that be a deal breaker for you if it can't be done.

You've probably missed the ultimate time of year to buy (end of year) re discounts. In order to get the most discounts (which beat DTD) you will need to find a 'new & unregistered' stock car somewhere that suits your needs (buying new and unregistered means you qualify for the low rate 4.9% APR and higher GFV that's not available on used), but you'll then need to factor in how long they've had that car, what targets they might need to hit etc etc. So don't treat each car you find as the same, you will probably need to compromise somewhere along the line re spec and price.

You say you've read posts on here re discount etc, so you may have read mine, but if not then if I was in your position (which I was) I'd be ringing one dealer from every dealer network (Jardine, Inchcape, Shytner etc) and asking them to look through their group stock cars. If they find one that suits your needs, try and subtly find out which dealer it's at and then go directly. A dealer can release a car to another in its group but it has to be a two way agreement, usually with an exchange car, so it's easier to go directly to the dealer with it in stock. Once you are in contact cut straight to the chase about what you want price/discount wise (haggling in stages on these cars is sometimes pointless in my experience) and when you will pick it up etc etc, then put the ball in their court. Most will say no, but if there's one who's willing to do the deal, they will bite.

As we move to the 15reg they might want to do deals inside the 64 period, so if they offer a discount but stipulate it to be on a 64 I wouldn't necessarily let that put you off because any difference in residual value will probably be offset by the discount you get (do the maths fist to work it out). Mines a 64, but it's still a 2015 registered car.

HTH

[birdseed]

I don't think you can delete the dynamic steering from the sports pack- otherwise it wouldnt be a "package'.

I came from a B7 and i felt the Dynamic steering really let the car down. I even looked into the practicalities of having it changed back to the older servotronic steering. The cost was going to be prohibitive and I'd have been better off selling up and ordering again. I was told that the differences i felt were probably more to do with the fact the car was B8 not a B7. ( I didn't quite take that onboard)

Having had a b8 A4 courtesy car recently, Im now not convinced that a non dynamic steering car would take me back to how a B7 felt.
In fact Id go as far as to say I preferred the dynamic steering!

So if my B8 RS4 was written off tomorrow and I was to order another, I wouldn't get too upset about ordering one with the dynamic steering. In fact it would probably be a requirement.

Oh and I put the adaptive cruise control on mine, I wouldn't want a car without it now- Ive made one long journey of 500 miles and because you weren't constantly having to slow down/ speed up I didn't feel knackered at the end of it. The full beam assist is brilliant too. Lane assist helps but is no big deal, and the audi high connect is a nice option- the google earth imagery looks far better than audi's crap satnav, and being able to find a destination on google maps on your computer then simply send it to the car is a nice feature.

[Graeme4130]

I don't think you can delete the dynamic steering from the sports pack- otherwise it wouldnt be a "package'.

I came from a B7 and i felt the Dynamic steering really let the car down. I even looked into the practicalities of having it changed back to the older servotronic steering. The cost was going to be prohibitive and I'd have been better off selling up and ordering again. I was told that the differences i felt were probably more to do with the fact the car was B8 not a B7. ( I didn't quite take that onboard)

Having had a b8 A4 courtesy car recently, Im now not convinced that a non dynamic steering car would take me back to how a B7 felt.
In fact Id go as far as to say I preferred the dynamic steering!

So if my B8 RS4 was written off tomorrow and I was to order another, I wouldn't get too upset about ordering one with the dynamic steering. In fact it would probably be a requirement.



Oh and I put the adaptive cruise control on mine, I wouldn't want a car without it now- Ive made one long journey of 500 miles and because you weren't constantly having to slow down/ speed up I didn't feel knackered at the end of it. The full beam assist is brilliant too. Lane assist helps but is no big deal, and the audi high connect is a nice option- the google earth imagery looks far better than audi's crap satnav, and being able to find a destination on google maps on your computer then simply send it to the car is a nice feature.

I actually quite like the dynamic steering. Sure, it doesn't have the feel of my old b7's steering, but it's not too bad once you've tailored your requirements in the individual setting (I generally have the steering on auto or comfort)
I like that in comfort you can have nice light easy steering for journeys where you're just going a-b

Re dealer knowledge. It's not a bmw good/Audi bad scenario as I've encountered technically useless people in both marques
Dealers are now getting 'RS specialists' and they should be a bit more up to speed on technical questions relating to the car
If in doubt, ask the salesman if you can speak to someone in service to answer your questions rather than the salesman palming you off with guesses

I use the adaptive cruise/brake guard a lot. It's very good on motorways and d/c where you don't want to have to think about keeping distance. You can get it in the tech pack with the lane keep, which is ok, but doesn't get used much unless my kids want to show off to their mates that 'daddies car can steer on its own' and they pester me to turn it on

[miatang]

I had the dynamic steering on my S4. I personally didnt find it too bad, but I've never had a B7. Coming from a BMW myself the BMW will have lot more feel but the quattro systems gives you so much confidence it kinda makes up for the lack of feedback from the steering wheel

[Revolution]

dynamic steering can be quite annoying at times as too over weighted...

but when you select auto setting and pushing on its great!

[ARSEY4]

Hi and welcome. I had a b7 from new back in 2007 and now have a RS5. I recently had a dealer car for a day and it had no adjustable dampers and no dynamic steering and I loved it. It honestly reminded me of the first time I jumped in a b7 for a test drive. I very nearly bought one but at the time they were only offering 4k dealer and finance contribution.
The problem is we are all conditioned to think that it would be resale suicide to not tick certain boxes!
My opinion is that without the adjustable dampers and dynamic steering it feels spot on. I genuinely feel that the dynamic steering takes too much away from the driving experience. I would strongly recommend you try both.
Good luck with your search.

[Graeme4130]

Hi and welcome. I had a b7 from new back in 2007 and now have a RS5. I recently had a dealer car for a day and it had no adjustable dampers and no dynamic steering and I loved it. It honestly reminded me of the first time I jumped in a b7 for a test drive. I very nearly bought one but at the time they were only offering 4k dealer and finance contribution.
The problem is we are all conditioned to think that it would be resale suicide to not tick certain boxes!
My opinion is that without the adjustable dampers and dynamic steering it feels spot on. I genuinely feel that the dynamic steering takes too much away from the driving experience. I would strongly recommend you try both.
Good luck with your search.

In the real world, it may actually be advantageous to resale not to have drc if it starts to prove to have longevity of the B7 set up
DRC puts off a lot of B7 buyers now the cars on the market are well out of warranty, so a b8 may be the sane deal in 2-3 years if B8's are failing constantly and cars are on expired manufacturers warranty
Just food for thought if you're planning on buying for the long term and the early signs are that the system isn't more bullet proof judging the amount of people on here that have b8's fixed for drc

[miatang]

I'd imagine the main problem you'll have now is finding a demo without the dynamic steering

[copperband]

I have the Sport pack and personally find the car perfectly good to drive on Comfort setting for sterring, the Dynamic setting for me is too heavy and artificial and adds nothing to the drivability.

As others have said, Audi are not known for their steering with great feel but to be honest any new car with electronic steering suffers this problem to an extent.
When i drove the new Porsche Cayman and compared it with my own Cayman (with mechanical steering) I felt really disappointed that Porsche had ruined the feel.
It was like trying to eat with a glove on....my RS4 i find is like trying to each with 2 pairs of gloves on

[RSChief]

I am from Central Belt too and always travel to Perth Audi to buy my cars. Salesman Kerr Elliot is a great guy to deal,with and well worth a call. Great knowledge of the cars and a bit of a petrolhead too which I think helps.
service from Perth really good IMO and much better than I ever received from Stirling or Edinburgh. Never sampled Glasgow to be fair.

I must be one of the few on here who don't have the sport pack. I find my car spot on and don't really think I'm really missing much. Most people complain about the dynamic steering and there's been lots of talk about knocking DRC which Audi don't seem to be sorting out. I think the 20's would be nice but I reckon the 19s are pretty nice In there own right and the car probably rides better as a result. Dealer told me theres not much between the standard and sports exhaust, mine still blips nicely on downshifts believe me. It' still sounds lovely.

I'm not too hung up on resale, my GFV is still decent without these "must have" options. I don't think it will make much difference come the day of selling unless you plan to private sale. Trade in to a dealer I doubt there will be much in it.

I would just buy what you want not what people tell you that you should.

Sepang is the best colour too lol

[rawsco]

Thanks for all the comments folks looks like I've got a drive lined up on a non dynamic steering car next weekend at Perth and hopefully the one at Edinburgh has dynamic.

[Afsimba]

Was in Stirling yesterday looking at a Suzuka R8 not that I would buy from em but they have two rs4s currently on the forecourt but if your in central certainly wouldn't be a problem organising a run out ! Must say that never really took mine off dynamic since I got as harsh ride wasn't really an issue but it's a totally different car on auto ! And now much prefer it

[RIV]

I drive mine on dynamic for everything apart from suspension on auto