Audi A4 2008 review

That in itself speaks more to the demographic Audi has targeted with its new A4 than anything as passe as an assessment of how the thing goes.

The marque's all-important rival to BMW's 3 Series and the Mercedes-Benz C-Class looks good — quite striking, actually. Feels good, too.

Even smells all right. And, by the measure of prestige Germans, the entry price isn't savage.

If this were any other car in the segment, the fact that its brave new platform delivers only a marginally improved ride than its erratic predecessor would be grim news.

So would the fact that the steering is still in want of feel and that the car from Ingolstadt continues to flail about next to those from Stuttgart and (especially) Munich in the dynamics department.

If that's apparent even on the cursory introductory drive, you're also inclined to think none of this will much trouble those drawn to the A4.

It delivers in every tactile, feel-good respect that Audi's steadily growing crowd of clients have every right to expect. The design is captivating. Interiors are in a class of their own. And it's appreciably bigger and more generous to rear passengers than the car it replaces.

So thoroughly does the A4 fulfil its brief that the marque's stated intention of overhauling BMW in Australia by 2015 seems not so much claret-infused bluster as a sober forecast.

Put it this way: if you owned a B7 generation A4, you'll like the B8 version more. If you're a reflexive Merc or Bimmer buyer — or a newcomer to the German prestige oeuvre who doesn't want to be a cliche — the A4 is the sort of thing to gladden an image consultant's heart.

The new A4 rides on the marque's MDS platform, in which Audi's traditional nose heaviness has been somewhat offset by moving the axle line forward relative to the engine and repositioning the steering system, as per the A5 coupe.

Only so much can be done when the front wheels do some or — as is the case with three of the four variants to be first released — all of the driving and steering.

Disappointingly, only one version for now is imbued with quattro all-wheel-drive. Outrageously, you have to spend nearly $90,000 — as opposed to almost $60K in the previous range — to get quattro.

Most A4s are front-wheel-drive only and though superior by bum-dragging standards, the $30K car featured on page five of today's edition is noticably sharper.

So much for a “very emotional dynamic experience”. But then, that's not really why you're in a four-ring showroom, is it?

The A4 has been launched in three direct injection engined variants, one of them diesel with a further oiler to arrive next month.

The 2.0 TDI, which carries over the Volkswagen Group's tried and true 105kW/320Nm four-cylinder turbo diesel driven through a continuously variable transmission (CVT), costs from $54,900.

Coming next month, the 2.7 TDI, with 140kW/400Nm V6 driven via a CVT, begins from $67,900. Later in the year there'll be a version running the superb 3.0 TDI V6.

The diesels are book-ended by the petrol cars. The entry level with the perky 1.8 turbo four-cylinder (as used in a $30,990 Skoda Octavia) is $50,900 as a six-speed manual (it's the only stick shift model) and $53,900 with CVT.

The 3.2 FSI V6 — with the latest version rear-biased, torque sensing quattro and upgraded six-speed tiptronic automatic — is $88,500 and exceeds $100K if you so much as dabble with the options list.

Wagon versions of the 1.8 and 2.0 TDI are due in August.

Like the two-door A5, the sedan has an imposing appearance not adequately reflected in photos.

Those distinctive daytime running lights — 14 miniature LEDs clustered around the headlamps — are an arresting signature.

Obviously bigger within, the interior also remains world-leading, shading Lexus's IS 250, easily surpassing the C-Class and leaving the spartan 3 Series for dead. The A4 is a nice place to spend time.

Among the raft of optional and expensive extras, Active Drive — a switchable system that affects damper settings and the steering ratio — seems to have some sort of useful application. You're afforded the choice of the “comfort”, “auto” or “dynamic” and the variation noticeably alters the tempo of proceedings.

There'll be a rush to the 1.8 TFSI with CVT. It's a lovely, torquey, rorty engine. But we'd go for the 2.0 TDI, which achieves a strong claimed economy figure (5.8 litres per 100km), adequate performance and was better tied down on the road.

The petrol V6 makes a wonderful sound, but the forthcoming $89,500 3.0 TDI promises to be the best of the range, one to at least challenge Benz's superb C320 CDI, easily the best prestige German car under $100K.

But where's a circa $65K 2.0 TFSI quattro version? That might be an A4 that's as good to drive to the restaurant as it looks parked outside.

SNAPSHOT

AUDI A4 1.8 TFSI

Price: $50,900 manual, $53,900 auto

Engine: 1.8L/4-cylinder turbo petrol, 118kW/250Nm

Transmission: 6-speed man or CVT

Economy: 7.1L/100km (claimed)