A personl review of my new A4

[tomtom20]

Hello fellow A4 lovers out there..

Just found this forum after I had taken delivery of my new A4. What a wealth of information it is and wished I'd googled such before making a choice on the car, as frankly there is more information here than you get from Audi themselves!

This is somewhat a review, and my personal opinion of the car. Mine is a 2.0TDi SE in Quartz Grey. I optioned the Audi hill hold assist, tyre pressure monitor and cruise control and the multitronic auto transmission. I have been driving before this a Rover 75 2.0 V6 (which like the Audi was a company car and have bought the Rover as my private car from the company)

So how is the Audi? I must admit I am impressed with the quality, both of the switch gear inside and the finish/fit of exterior parts. The doors close with a lovely clunk too. You cannot feel the gear changes, it feels as if there is one gear with unlimited speed which makes for very smooth driving. You do feel the bumps a little more than the rover, and it is not as quiet in the cabin - But nothing really wrong with that and it feels more agile.

It is also very light and airy inside and everything feels 'just where it should be' and I especially like the digital speedo. My only complaint is the Radio through the MMI. Say you want to go to a station that is somewhat down the list, one must scroll to it, not simple press a numbered pre-set memory button, but that is technology for you and I guess avoids having more buttons than is otherwise needed. I am somewhat disappointed at the lack of 'cubby' holes to store things. I also think the large cup holders in the centre console look somewhat ugly. Without the need for a handbrake, they could have had a sliding cover over that so when not being used looked sleek.

I think Audi have a cheek to charge extra for almost everything such as the interior light pack, just so you get a few more lights. Surly they could have provided as standard a clove box light, as every car I have owned has had one. Talking of lights, many have complained about the fact Audi took away the L.E.D daytime running lights from the SE and you can no longer option it. To be honest, the Halogen D.R.L's don't look that bad. Sure, they do not stand out or have a 'brow' that the L.E.D ones do in the light cluster, but if you stand about 15 feet in front of the vehicle they are very bright and still make the car have a presence on the road and get a few looks!

The SD card slot for music is very good, however I use Windows Media Player to store and playback my tracks. Simply Syncing the SD card with that and copying over the play lists does not mean they are in the order you have them, nor in the play lists you have them on W.M.P. It took some time to figure out, but I have created folders on the computer, and named them as 'types' such as Rock, Dance etc and within these put associated music files. In order to keep them in order, I prefixed each track with a number 1,2,3 and so on. This means the Audi will cut off the number prefix, but keep the tracks in that order, and the folders I can then select depending what mood I am in. Note if you have a folder tree more than 4 deep it will only 'see' the first 4 in the car. But really a great boon, no need to carry CD's in the car and for cheap SD cards have a look at www.mymemory.co.uk they are based in Jersey, free postage and you save big compared to the high street. Don't get more than 2GB, as this is the maximum the car can read from.

Anyone who thinks that the tyre pressure monitor is a good option, I think are mad. I must admit I had no idea about what it was, thinking it would tell me the pressures in each wheel. What it does is simply alert you should a tyre loose a few PSI. So yes, it is ok if a slow puncture or for lazy people who don’t check tyre pressures. But in real world driving I like to check the pressures weekly, and I shall have to continue doing so.

I like the small things, such as the wipers being kept out of sight (something I have not had on a car since a Montego I owned) I like the auto dimming rear view mirror and the large external side mirrors. I don't like the fact you can't really judge where the front side arches are, making it tricky when going though width restrictions on roads. I am sure with time it is something you will get used to. I like the huge boot, and the tie down points complete with load net. I think the rear seat armrest is a little 'cheap' looking with the nylon pull handle on it but is very large, and rear seats are comfortable and hold you well.

As standard alloy wheels go, the ones fitted on the SE look nice. It is also good they are 17inch (Rover was 16inch) I suspect new tyres will cost a bomb though, only time will tell how they wear. The auto lights on feature is great, going through a tunnel and they come on, back into daylight go off and you will never be caught leaving your lights on and draining the battery.

I enjoy the fact that at the moment at least, there are very few new A4's about on the road. I have only seen about 3, and the other day a fellow A4 driver let me out of a side turning. Made me smile. I've not had chance to try the cruise control, but for long journey's is a must. So that is my views on the car.

Would be nice to see what others feel they like or don't about it, or wish it had.

I will try and post some decent photos of it next weekend but for now, thanks for taking the time to read this rather long post and pleased to find a community where nothing is too small to talk about, with much to be learnt.

[Smudge973]

Thanks very much - great to read a real review.

I should be getting my tdi w/c 14th of July - It's like being a child again at Christmas - Can't wait.

Be good to see some pictures...

Regards
Andy!

[tomtom20]

I know what you mean Andy there is nothing like getting a new car, all the bits to play with the smell of the interior and the fact it's all yours and not been used by someone else before.

Reason for delay in pictures is am away this weekend and next can take it somewhere decent and not just a cluttered street to take photos.

[Satch]

Thanks for the great reveiw. I too have the hill hold assist button but to be honest I think it's a waste of time. I never use it.
There are a few little touches they should have as standard like a lock on the glove compartment.
I love the way the boot opens.
I agree about the halogen DRL's, I saw a new A4 with halogens coming up behind me on the motorway today and you definatley new it was an A4.
LED's would still have been better though.

[BMWBig6]

Great review, can't wait to see the photos!

[tomtom20]

In reply to Satch, I agree the Hill Hold Assist is slightly a gimmick. After all, without it you can drive away without pressing the electomechanical parking brake button (try saying that when you've had a few) - But I have found I get in, press the button 'n' forget.

If you do a lot of driving in hilly areas comming to a stop at traffic lights and not having to pull on a handbrake just makes driving that little bit easier. Although I do find myself going to reach for a phantom handbrake that does not exisit lol.

I'm cool with no locking glove box - I wonder why they are still called 'Clove Boxes' (previous car did not have a clove box lock) what gets me is no light! It is a deep glove box and at night you can't see s**t - But have a solution. I am going to get one of those sick on L.E.D lights that you press and they come on. Because they are L.E.D they don't use much battery and are cheap. To see what I mean click this link http://www.amazon.co.uk/Stick-Click-.../dp/B0013LJUBU

[moptisam2]

Picking up mine this morning.

I have opted for no model/engine designation on the back, because

a) I know what it is

b) on my present A4 they catch dust and are difficult to clean properly

c) as there are only a few on the road (I think I have seen just one) it will make people wonder what it is!

People may remember the other thread about the DAB radio and how Audi said someone could only have the DAB with Sat Nav. I have ordered DAB, but not Sat Nav, so I'll be reporting, in the DAB thread, as to whether it is there or not.

[Samurai1466]

Nice review post tomtom... Welcome to the forum!