RS4 Vs M3 Evo magazine

[confusionhunter]

I reckon you do have a lemon. Is it not worth while investigating these potential issues? I would invest in a VAGcom cable take some logs and compare them to others on here. If there is an issue demand that its fixed. simple as that.
I'm not normally one to judge but after reading several of your posts, you really do come over as someone who is generally very annoyed with your car yet quite happy to do not very much about it?

Do you not find it puzzling that no one on this earth as far as I can tell seems to hate the RS4 as much as you? To everyone else that means one of two things......the car is at fault....or something else is at fault.... and without any evidence to suggest the car is actually at fault ...well it must be something else.....

With that much money invested in a car you have to be "stuck" with it seems you dont want to do much to fix the issue, ie perhaps a rolling road, vagcom scans etc etc..... the other plausible explanation is you just like to try winding people up

certainly I dont think many 4.2 FSI V8 owners need to keep above 4500rpm????

[RussianM3_dude]

I am getting things fixed. Next week the car is going for another trim fix and my S mode is getting checked out. I am thinking whether I should complain about the gearbox too now.

[confusionhunter]

Mate, TBH. I wouldnt even trust the dealers.... Id get VAGCOM, take some logs, gets some independent opinions on here and if you can get a Rolling road...... something is FAR wrong if you need to keep the revs up

Sorry for going off topic...
Steve.... Pleasure reading your opinions and feedback from some other members, Great post.

[SR71]

Well I've got to say EVO detected the only thing that bothers me on the car and that is its tendency to wander under heavy braking.

Its distinctly disconcerting and I also found switching the ESP off makes no odds.

However, I'm thrilled to know that the SS+ option solves the problem because I'm sure that can be retro-fitted.

After all, its only uprated springs and dampers isn't it?

Probably cost a fortune compared to the option price, but I'll be getting this done in due course.

I'd advise every one to go for the option that being the case.

Personally, the stiffer the ride the better.

[RussianM3_dude]

I read that even with SS the ride is quiet accepatable.

[ARSEY4]

I read that even with SS the ride is quiet accepatable.

Your not making sense chap, did you want to say that the ride with ss is "quite un acceptable" or did you you want to say that the car is quiet and very acceptable.

[RussianM3_dude]

No, that even with sport suspension the ride is acceptable, as in the suspension is not too harsh.

[quattrokid1]

I wonder if the next RS4 will have the 7 speed DSG or S-tronic as its now called?

If BMW and Merc have their paddley shift boxes then surely Audi wont be left out when the DSG box was a revolution in terms of gearbox technology.Audi are currently developing a DSG box suitable for longitudinal engine layout so maybe the forthcoming RS6 willl have a 7 speed dual clutch set up develpoed from the Bugatti Veyron?

But I think that a proper sports car SHOULD have a manual gearbox so the driver has to input something into the equation instead of a black box under the dash controlling every single aspect of the car except the drivers pressure on the go faster pedal.
It may change cogs in milli seconds but whats the point of this on a Sunday morning drive to get the papers and the multiple thousand pound cost on the price of the car!!

[ChrisRS4]

Despite the fact them I'm an Audi fan, I often question the relativety of a comparison like this. The RS4 is a limited production run, more akin to the M3 CSL. Would it not be more relevent to compare the S4 to the M3, and the RS4 to the CSL?

[b7sedan]

Despite the fact them I'm an Audi fan, I often question the relativety of a comparison like this. The RS4 is a limited production run, more akin to the M3 CSL. Would it not be more relevent to compare the S4 to the M3, and the RS4 to the CSL?

Not really, the csl is a light weight stripped down no nonsense car. The Rs4 is a very fast capable 4 dorr saloon that can be used everyday and in everday conditions.

[DoctorD]

Great views and comments from Steve. I met Steve outside Notts opc earlier this year and at the time I had a boxster and was thinking about a Z4 m coupe after I had seen pics of Steves coupe in Evo and on the web with CSLs on and blow me he pulls up outside Notts opc in it. I had a chat and it as you can see from the content above he puts us normal petrol heads to shame with regard ti his knowledge. Didnt get the coupe in the end Steve, got an Rs4 instead?

I remember! Good to see you on here - it's a small world.

[DoctorD]

I would therefore deduce (based on your own statements) that in terms of appearance (inside & out), gear change, steering etc, all things that the general buyer can identify with, the RS4 seems to me to be the overall choice. Add to that the likey rarity over the ubiquitous M3 and the wet weather ability, to me, the RS4 would appear to be the better buy.

It's really difficult to deduce a winner because it depends on who's shoes your are wearing. I bought an RS4 Avant on Friday and I did so to be my daily driver.

Now I have an order in for a new M3, but will now skip the M3 and just wait for the E92 CSL later next year. The RS4 is the better car to live with on a daily basis, of that there is no doubt. I was quite tired when I drove the new M3 in Marbella and I always found it more soothing to jump into the RS4 rather than the M3.

However if my priority had been for a weekend driver, then I would have chosen the M3. I watched my videos again last night and it's obvious when you see and hear them in motion that the M3 has some specific advantages over the RS4.

But also as you say it depends on the driver. I have 20 or so years of racing behind me, enjoy sliding cars and like a slightly 'edgy' car that I can adjust with the throttle, but not everyone has that kind of experience or interest and may quite rightly prefer the more approachable and friendly RS4.

At the end of the article when we concluded that the M3 'just' won, we were drawing that conclusion from a scale of 1-10 in terms of EVO-ness, so implicit in that view is the car which gives the most thrills to the experienced enthusiast. A slight shift in the basis of that assessment would have seen the RS4 walk away with the accolade. Hopefully when you read the article you would have seen an absence of sensationalism and could have drawn your own conclusion about which car best suited 'your' needs. That's what Richard was certainly trying to achieve.

[DoctorD]

Despite the fact them I'm an Audi fan, I often question the relativety of a comparison like this. The RS4 is a limited production run, more akin to the M3 CSL. Would it not be more relevent to compare the S4 to the M3, and the RS4 to the CSL?

The CSL and RS4 are worlds apart. To compare them would be disingeneous and create a conclusion that would too easily be mis-interpreted. For pure driving thrills and track-based performance the CSL would dominate, and for ease of ownership and living with daily the RS4 would be totally dominant. Despite being based on saloon cars they set out to achieve totally different aims.

I am not sure the size of the production run makes any real difference - the CSL was made in tiny numbers compared to the RS4 anyway. BMW designed the M3 to compare with firstly the RS4 and secondly the 997. Since that was their aim, it seems reasonable to assess how well they succeeded. It's also likely that buyers of either car would consider all of them at one time or another, it's just a shame that Audi chose to discontinue the RS4 at such an important time for their brands credibility (i.e. they should be 'making hay').

[PP]

...just a shame that Audi chose to discontinue the RS4 at such an important time for their brands credibility (i.e. they should be 'making hay').

Quitting while you are way ahead is not such a bad plan, and probably helps with residuals and therefore Brand image.

[jbtco]

I have just completed the first 1500 miles on my new RS4 having changed from a BMW Z4MC (which followed 2 E46 M3s). I changed for family & work reasons. Having spent the last 500miles or so on the wonderful roads of the far north west of Scotland I agree with DoctorD. The ZMC was the more fun and great as a weekend car but certainly at my level of skill the RS4 is probably more useable particularly in the wet.