The eighth-generation Audi A4 can finally give BMW 3-Series and Mercedes Benz C-Class a run for their money.
It has taken 35 years for its bread-and-butter model to grow from a wayward adolescent into a mature executive.
The eighth-generation A4 is ready for showroom action among Audi's 30-strong Australian dealer network from early next month.
Many in the industry have been asking why it has taken so long for Audi to produce a product that can hold its own with BMW's 3-Series and the Mercedes-Benz C-Class.
This car is now primed to go the distance but whether it can ultimately score a TKO over the proven stars from Munich and Stuttgart is a moot point.
Sure, there is a lot to like about the car with its improved steering, handling, braking and ride. That said, up to 64 per cent of people who have bought an A4 say they do so primarily because of its design.
A great deal of plough-on understeer has been dialled out of the front-drive models, but the rear-drive opposition from Mercedes and BMW still has the edge.
The axle has been pushed further towards the front, reducing the overhang and allowing the firewall to be moved further back.
On first impressions at the wheel of an entry-level 1.8-litre turbocharged four-cylinder with the Multitronic transmission, the A4 offers strong on-road composure, fresh cabin ambience, comfort and excellent ergonomics.
The steering is much sharper than previous models, the brakes a little touchy in the city but felt better out on the open road.
There is decent rear seat room, which has been an issue in this class previously. You need to keep working on the throttle to keep the little unit on the boil.
This example was lavished with almost $7000 worth of options, blowing the price as driven to $60,400.
The extra boxes ticked were the Comfort Pack, which for $2600 you gain electric seats with lumbar support, tri-zone climate control airconditioning and Bluetooth preparation, although the adapter for the mobile phone is a separate purchase.
It also had metallic paint, a $1600 price hike across the range, and $1900 for larger 17-inch wheels.
All up, the A4 is a better performer, using under 7 litres/100km around town, which blew to 8.5 litres/100km when the little four-cylinder was worked hard.
Moving to the two-litre turbo-diesel, the driving experience was an entirely different affair.
For starters, the diesel, which weighs more than the petrol engine, is slower to turn into corners, a little blunter in the steering department but is otherwise an attractive package.
The two-litre delivers smooth torque, easily taking care of any hill in its path with a modicum of revs.
This car had almost $10,000 of extras, including the 17-inch wheels ($1900), the Xenon headlight package ($2100), rear park-assist sensors ($850), the Audi Side and Lane Assist ($2400) and the Comfort Pack ($2600), that lifted the price to $64,750.
Audi says the 1.8-litre will account for 70 per cent of sales while the two-litre diesel will attract only 10 per cent of the A4 volume.
However, the entry-level diesel is an attractive package for $54,900 without extras and there are concessions from Audi that a more realistic slice of the action could be anything up to 30 per cent of sales.
The cabin architecture and build quality assumes Audi's class-leading standard, although the aluminium look panel and console inserts, which Audi calls “micrometallic platinum inlays” may not wear all that well down the track.
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