Audi A4 2.0T FSI Multitronic Test Drive Review

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In a perfect world, I would own an Audi A4 2.0T Multitronic and it would be sitting in my parking lot everyday, just like the picture above. But the world is not perfect, but a good compromise would be a test drive so I can bring to you my thoughts on the latest B7 Audi A4 2.0T Multitronic, powered by the 2.0 litre TFSI engine of the Volkswagen Golf GTI fame. I managed to do quite a comprehensive test drive, covering traffic jams, parking lots, dry straights, dry bends, wet straights, wet windy roads, day and night. Check out the test drive report after the jump.

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Audi is one of the few German manufacturers who uses front wheel drive, as compared to BMW and Mercedes Benz who use mainly RWD platforms. The Audi A4 first made it’s world debut in 1995 with the B5, sharing a platform with the 4th gen Volkswagen Passat. It came with a wide variety of engine options, from a 1.6 litre petrol to the largest 2.8 litre V6 30V petrol. There were also 1.9 and 2.5 litre turbodiesel engines. Then in the year 2000 came the 2nd generation based on the B6 platform, which also introduced a cabriolet body form in addition to the previously available sedan and estate bodies. With the B6, Audi introduced Multitronic, a CVT gearbox which replaced the Tiptronic automatic transmission on front wheel drive models. The models equipped with Quattro all-wheel drive continued using the Tiptronic automatic transmission.

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The Audi A4 2.0T Multitronic is the next generation B7, which is actually a reengineered B6 chassis. The test car came in red, and I found that it’s design had plenty of road presence. Perhaps it’s also partly due to the fact that there are much less A4s on the road as compared to the E90 BMW 3-series. The front carries Audi’s new single shield grille from the Nuvolari concept, flanked by two Xenon HID projector headlamps. Move on to the sides of the car and it’s muscular stance is accentuated by it’s high shoulder lines and flared wheel arches. The fat-looking rear is typical Audi, but this time the brake lamps extend onto the bootlid. The brake lamps look like two eagle heads looking at the four overlapping rings in the middle of the boot. The design of the front headlamps somewhat echo the same shape, though the eagle’s necks have been elongated. It looks like curves have replaced straight lines with Audi’s new design direction. Oh, and looks are deceiving, open the boot lid and you’ll find a bigger boot space than you’d expect. More on that later. The big wheels fill up the wheel arches with minimal gap!

The car is a front engined, front wheel drive car and has it’s engine mounted longitudinally, which explains why the A4 has Direct Shift Gearbox (DSG), or rather S-Tronic in Audi lingo is missing from it’s line-up. Borg-Warner has not developed a DSG transmission for longitudinal engine bay layouts yet. The newly released A3, based on the Golf Mk5 chassis uses a transverse engine layout, so it benefits from the ability to have DSG/S-Tronic. So the front-wheel drive Audi A4 makes do with Audi’s Multitronic CVT transmission that comes with manual shift function with 7 pre-set virtual gears. You can control manual shifting via pushing the gear lever up and down, or via paddle shifts on the steering wheel. Not that I am complaining about the unavailability of DSG, the Multitronic paired with the good low end torque of the 2.0 TFSI engine is excellent.

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The Audi A4 2.0T Multitronic’s 2.0 litre FSI Turbo engine should be no stranger to most of you. It is the same engine featured in the Volkswagen Golf GTI. Just look at the torque curve above, max torque of 280Nm peaks at a low 1,800rpm and remains constant all the way up to 5,000rpm, where it begins to dip. Very broad powerband. Peak horsepower is 200hp at 5,100rpm. For a turbocharged engine, it has a very high compression ratio of 10.5:1, thanks to it’s FSI direct injection. At idle, you can hear the clattering noise that was once associated with diesel engines, but now has become the norm for any direct injection engine, no matter diesel or petrol. 0-100km/h takes 7.3 seconds, and top speed is 235km/h. I did not test either claims, due to lack of equipment and road.

I took the Audi A4 out on a spin through some windy roads in the dry. There was understeer, and if you put down too much throttle when the car is pointing anywhere but straight, there will be some wheel spin but the car’s ESP stability control kicks in, with the orange ESP light flashing on the meter panel. Torque steer is apparent when you gun the throttle. As usual with a front wheel drive there is under steer during hard cornering, but as most of us grow up driving front wheel drive cars it is our second nature to know how to control it. Body roll is noticeable during hard cornering but nothing alarming. The suspension was what I expected from the car, not anything too sporty and harsh, though there is an optional stiffer Sports suspension package for the Audi A4 in world markets. Ride was comfortable, though I don’t know how this compares to it’s C-class and 3-series rivals as I haven’t tested them before. It was very quiet from the inside too, engine sound is muffled sufficiently and there is no rolling tyre noise. The car is much louder from the outside. If you want an Audi that gives you a much better driving experience in terms of handling, get the A4 Quattro instead with the 40:60 rear-biased all wheel drive system.

Video: Audi A4 – Drive-by 1

Video: Audi A4 – Drive-by 2

Video: Audi A4 – Engine bay

Video: Audi A4 – Multi-function LCD

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So you see, handling is not why I am all ga-ga over this car and want it in my porch. The 2.0 litre FSI Turbo engine is awesome. For a 2.0 turbo, there is just so much torque everywhere, and having a CVT transmission allows you to use all that torque efficiently. Going up Genting with a full load of 4 passengers was a breeze, the Audi was passing car after car without a sweat without having to gun the throttle in any scenario. There is virtually no turbo lag at all, this and the N54 in the new BMW 335i is the future of turbocharged engines. Now I am itchy to try the Volkswagen Golf GTI, as the engine would seem even more powerful in a lighter hatchback. The engine totally lifted up my standards on what a car engine should behave like.

I say 4 passengers is full load because that’s pretty much the limit if you want to fit people in the car comfortably. Things become slightly crampy when a third person joins the folks in the rear bench, but when I say crampy it’s relative to the amount of comfort one would expect from a luxury German marque. It’s far from something as bad as 5 people in a Kancil. Time to consider something larger if you have a third kid coming along. Despite having an average sized interior, the boot is HUGE. 460 litres according to spec sheets, a tad bit smaller than the Honda City’s 500 litres but still huge. Under the boot, you will find a full sized spare.

a4test_smallgear.jpgThe Multitronic gearbox has 7 preset virtual gears, which came in handy on my way down from Genting. I could of course engage Sports mode and let the CVT automatically do all the necessary engine braking for me, but I thought this was the best time to try out the manual shifting. The journey down ran on 2nd, 3rd and 4th gears. Gears shift up automatically when you approach the redline to prevent engine damage. The paddle shifts are built really well, comparable to the ones on the Porsche 911 Turbo. If you do not want to use the paddles, you can also use the gear lever. Simply push up and down to shift. Shifts are almost instant, since this is a CVT and not a Tiptronic slushbox.

I found the slight lag that the transmission had when rolling off from a start kinda irritating. I missed quite a few chances to cross a busy junction because of that. I’m not sure if this is an issue with my test unit or something common on all Audi A4s. But once the car is rolling, there is no noticeable lag with the throttle response. Creeping during actions like parking the car is a tad bit too slow for my liking though, especially on reverse. Combined with a slightly jumpy throttle and equally jumpy braking (due to the big, bad brakes which really bite!) this might end up a little jerky and uncomfortable if you aren’t that skilled with throttle control. But after a while you’ll get used to operating the paddle finely enough to prevent the jerky movments.

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The interior is up to what I’d expect of an Audi, with grey and silver trim. Plastics feel and gap between panels are top notch! Both front seats are electrically adjustable with 4 memory controls. The seat can go front and back, and incline of both the backrest and the seat are adjustable. I found the seating position very suitable, with the center armrest in just the right position and big enough for both the driver and front passengers’ elbows. However, I found myself having no arm rest for my right arm when I am driving using the left hand. Since I am tall, the seat was pushed pretty far back, so my elbow is actually at the B-pillar area. I tried resting my arm on the door, but the shoulder lines were too tall for that. The seats were comfortable, but I found that since they were not of the optional sports seat variant they did not provide enough support during hard corners. If you buy an A4 and expect to do alot of crazy cornering, ask Euromobil if they can get you the sports seat option. The rear bench also has an armrest, which comes with two cupholders integrated in a pop-out design. The front only has one cupholder.

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The dashboard is lit up with a nice red colour, with the meter panel design comprising of 4 meters flanking a central LCD panel. The LCD panel provides a variety of information including remaining kilometers based on fuel remaining in the fuel tank, temperature, gear position, etc. The sound system is an integrated Bose system featuring 6 speakers and unless you’re a real audiophile I doubt you’ll be touching it in any case. I love it. Very good for a standard audio system. There was sufficient amount of bass so you won’t consider adding a standalone subwoofer to the system. The Bose head unit has front slot-loading 6-CD changer. All the buttons of the ICE system and the air conditioning system looks the same, so at first glance it may be abit confusing to you but once you’ve played around with it abit you’ll to develop a mental map of where each button is. All the buttons and dials feel solid and of high quality.

The HID lights are auto-levelling, which means the angles adjust higher or lower automatically according to terrain. This prevents you from blinding oncoming motorists on uphill or downhill roads. They also come on automatically when it is dark if you leave the headlamp settings on auto mode. You also can turn them on manually if you want. Like the headlamps, wipers also have an automatic setting where wiper speed varies according to how heavy the rain is. I’m not sure how Audi detects all of this, but it works. Ambient lights come on automatically when you get into the car and exit. Warning bell if you leave the headlamps on. Warning buzzer when you forget to wear your seatbelt. Auto dimming rear view mirror. Dual-zone air conditioning. These little bits of intelligence and comfort are what separates a luxury marque from the bread and butter car manufacturers.

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Side airbags integrated into power seats, and side curtain airbags for side impact protection to the head.

Safety features are ESP – which I activated more than a few times due to the large amounts of torque available, ABS anti-lock brakes, 6 airbags, and active headrests. Fortunately I did not have a chance to try out the airbags function. The Audi A4 has a 70 litre fuel tank, which would cost RM134.40 to fill up at our current RM1.92 RON97 fuel prices. The Audi A4 needs a minimum of RON95, with RON98 being recommended. So I filled her up with RM2.15 Shell V-Power. The Audi A4 2.0T FSI Multitronic retails for RM275,000. Check out Euromobil Sdn Bhd for enquiries and test drives. Enjoy the photos I’ve posted below.

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Another shot of the Audi A4 in red. This baby is so photogenic. Click to enlarge.

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Rear lamps which reminds me of an eagle’s head.

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Center dashboard console layout. The integrated headunit is a Bose 6-CD front loading changer.

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Pretty big glove compartment not just for show – has lighting as well.

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Click to enlarge.

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A huge 460 litre boot.

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Spare tyre compartment reveals a full sized spare. Compartment cover stays up conveniently via hook.

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Comfy leather seats. Rear bench has 3 headrests.

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Rear windows have built in sunshades.

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Nice butt. Twin exhaust pipes.

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One of the twin exhaust pipes. Would be nicer with some chrome tip though!

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Turbo on the left side of the engine bay…

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… earns the car it’s 2.0T badge.

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New single frame grill corporate nose.

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Push the gear lever towards the left of the D position or press any of the two paddle shifts to activate manual mode. Gear indicator appears on the LCD panel.

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LCD delivers a variety of useful information including ICE CD and track number, temperature, remaining mileage on fuel tank, gear position. The mileage computer calculates remaining kilometers according to driving pattern, so expect the number to go up and down according to how you drive.

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The in-car entertainment is provided by Bose, which pretty much rocks.

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Paul Tan

After dabbling for years in the IT industry, Paul Tan initially began this site as a general blog covering various topics of personal interest. With an increasing number of readers paying rapt attention to the motoring stories, one thing led to another and the rest, as they say, is history.

 

Comments

  • suanie (Member) on Aug 27, 2006 at 10:14 am

    i love this car!

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 0
  • cbljkkj (Member) on Aug 27, 2006 at 1:00 pm

    The turbine is about the size of an L5 turbine!! Well, good for turbine efficiency though.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • cnc (Member) on Aug 27, 2006 at 1:06 pm

    This post will probably drive the Audi market, I am falling in love with it. Good post and decent car indeed.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • tbcheese (Member) on Aug 27, 2006 at 2:53 pm

    Its a very well written review taking into consideration what consumers would look for rather than just POWAAAAA!

    But I'm surprised at the torque steer though. Since the engine is mounted longitudinally in the middle I thought there wouldn't be much torque steer if any.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • acbc (Member) on Aug 27, 2006 at 5:01 pm

    Nice review Paul but I still prefer a Quattro.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 2 Thumb down 0
  • DAN (Member) on Aug 27, 2006 at 5:54 pm

    nice car.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • Joe Ooi (Member) on Aug 27, 2006 at 7:03 pm

    Good quality car!

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • e-nabilll (Member) on Aug 27, 2006 at 8:03 pm

    i tink the quatro is jus too expensive to bring it here…the torque steer is expected la…lots of torque n front drive wat u expect…i tink this car is fr luxury rather than a sporty excutive like 3 series,c-class,alfa 156…i really luc to see the VW Passat here…everywer u read the reviews it says awesome…

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  • Paul Tan on Aug 27, 2006 at 8:13 pm

    e-nabill: actually the quattro is selling here for RM290,000, just RM15,000 more.

    http://paultan.org/archives/2006/08/22/audi-cbu-c…

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  • motorhead (Member) on Aug 27, 2006 at 8:49 pm

    in & out look so solid.. torque curve looks very interesting, not like our campro…donno how it can keep max torque constant at 1800-5000rpm?? but it is useful for smooth & powerful ride at any speed, macam mana they bikin aaa?? see, how good their technology is…. engineer suma terror nih!!…

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • SatriaGuy (Member) on Aug 27, 2006 at 8:52 pm

    The 2.0TFSI is a nice cruiser but there is too much bodyroll for a stiff chassis. Don't bother with the Quattro version. It's too heavy for the engine.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • armandd (Member) on Aug 27, 2006 at 10:02 pm

    audi leads, it never follows.. heheh. paul, don't u think the car's front overhang is a bit too long?

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • e-nabilll (Member) on Aug 27, 2006 at 10:59 pm

    u notice how the engine sits in the engine bay…way too forward…maybe thats y the weight distribution is not spot on…if u notice the 3 series engine…it sits lower and alot more backward…almost touching the firewall….it looks gorgeous la…ive seen the a4 1.8t on the road few times…looks nice …bt msian buyers are used to 3series/c-class fan club…its hard to see audi gaining that much popularity..

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  • Paul Tan on Aug 27, 2006 at 11:20 pm

    armandd: i dont mind long front overhangs, some might, design preference only.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • AudiTheBomb (Member) on Aug 27, 2006 at 11:23 pm

    My dad owns an A4 TFSI , he was actuallying thinking of either a 320 or a C200k .BUt after testing all the 3 cars, he chose the A4 and i guess he has never been more pleased with it . In terms of power acceleration i guess the Audi comes out top. . . Never been more pleased with an audi . . .3 Audis and still counting . . .cant wait till the q7 and q5 comes . . .

    CHEERS !

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  • tiredguy (Member) on Aug 27, 2006 at 11:41 pm

    Jeremy Clarkson of Top Gear review the RS4 is compared to M3 he said that the RS4's engine is quite possibly the best engine ever made and that the next M3 . ill go for this baby anyday than a Bimmer. To many on the road already, makes Audi stands out.

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  • ingolstadt (Member) on Aug 27, 2006 at 11:53 pm

    The layout of the engines is due Audi had to cater for Quattro models, hence the engine was pushed outwards, and on top of the front axle, thus creating yet another nose heavy car. Speaking of nose heavy, its just that being compared to a 3series, compared to Civics, Volvos, Accords, (FWDs) Audi is still better at handling. :)

    Hot it might be, not so when 159 reaches our shores.

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  • topgunthang (Member) on Aug 28, 2006 at 12:36 am

    it really is a good car and a great review. but i think too similar to vw jetta. only main thing that seperates them is the badge and availability of the quattro system which are defining strengths of the audi badge. choose this to stand out. pick the bmw 2.5 or 3.0 to please yourself.

    paul, any chance of in car videos? without getting into too much trouble?

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  • eric (Member) on Aug 28, 2006 at 1:12 am

    huhuh.. was that you in genting on friday?

    saw a hawt red a4 in the bus parking lot with a bunch of people taking pics. hahaha

    thought there was going to be a review.. hehe

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • craziqbal (Member) on Aug 28, 2006 at 1:12 am

    what does "7 virtual gears" mean??

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • tbcheese (Member) on Aug 28, 2006 at 1:31 am

    The reason I didn't expect torque steer is because the engine is mounted longitudinally. Torque steer is caused by uneven shaft lengths so with a longitudinal engine it should be even or at least almost even lengths.

    The front overhang is because Audis are essentially FWD cars so the engine sits in front of the front axle. With the longest engine being a V8 the overhang is necessary. Speaking of this, they're rumoured to be working on a new powertrain packaging that would move the engine back a bit to satisfy new pedestrian safety regs. The overhang would stay but weight distribution would be better.

    Jeremy Clarkson tends to call any new good car he reviews as the best in the world so its best taken with a pinch of salt hehe.

    Motorhead, I think all turbo-ed torque curves looks like that.

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  • Dabido (Member) on Aug 28, 2006 at 1:50 am

    I heard it comes with scarey things in the boot!!! :-)

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  • tbcheese (Member) on Aug 28, 2006 at 2:00 am

    Craziqbal,

    The multitronic box doesn't have any fixed gears as its a continously variable transmission (CVT). So when you put it in tiptronic mode there are 7 positions for the conical sets to simulate 7 gear ratios. The disadvantage of CVT is the rubberbanding effect when you set off from standstill. You press the gas pedal and it revs up the engine and yet you're not moving because it wants to ensure the engine runs at optimal revs. It can cause people to miss tight gaps to exit junctions. Even worse are the belt driven types where the belt stretches a bit making it slower still.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 0
  • raz_R (Member) on Aug 28, 2006 at 4:11 am

    the engine is placed as far as possible from the cabin to give better leg room

    but satisfies the handling :/

    nonetheless, audies are awesome

    the rarity makes it special here :D

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  • ingolstadt (Member) on Aug 28, 2006 at 4:50 am

    topgunthang said,

    August 27, 2006 @ 4:36 pm

    it really is a good car and a great review. but i think too similar to vw jetta. only main thing that seperates them is the badge and availability of the quattro system which are defining strengths of the audi badge.

    _____________________________________________________

    topgunthang, i think you need to do a much better research. One more thing, Audis are not just Quattros :)

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • Paul Tan on Aug 28, 2006 at 4:52 am

    topgunthang: the new VW jetta is not the same chassis as this a4, it's using the golf/a3 chassis instead. engine is mounted transversely.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • karheng (Member) on Aug 28, 2006 at 4:57 am

    FIRST OF ALL, HOW DID YOU GET THIS BABY INTO YOUR PORCH? ENVIOUS~~~~ BOOO…hahahaa…

    U lucky fella. I simply adore this car, the current A4 and the A6. They are beautiful machines and if there's a word to describe it, it'll be gorgeous with a big G!

    Damn i wish I was able to test drive this car as well. I didn't really bother reading what you blogged because the pictures already made me want to scroll down more and more to see more of this car. Too bad young people such as us can't afford it.

    By the way Paul, have u ever driven the Forrester 2.0 XT? Looking for some reviews on it.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • motorhead (Member) on Aug 28, 2006 at 5:45 am

    tbcheese,

    Ooo.. like that aar?.. gud la.. but still don understand how it can has max torque at range 1800-5000rpm… very long la.. mcm mn dia punya system?.. syokla main minyak mcm ni, high speed, low speed, suma power… ahh. nevermindlah.. the important is, memang hebat!!!.. siapa manyak luit bole beli… wo mea you quen..

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • tbcheese (Member) on Aug 28, 2006 at 10:57 am

    Sorry to say I don't know how it works. Got any mechanical/automotive engineers here?

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • raul_apit (Member) on Aug 28, 2006 at 2:59 pm

    waa… i wan one!!

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • chun (Member) on Aug 28, 2006 at 6:03 pm

    I guess the amazing torque for the engine is due to the fact it has a very high compression ratio for a turbo engine. Check out a brief article on the engine here.
    http://www.audiworld.com/news/05/060705b/content….
    FYI, The 2.0T FSI was engine of the year for 2005 and engine of the year for 2006 in the 1.8-2.0 category.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • motorhead (Member) on Aug 28, 2006 at 8:33 pm

    The amzing is, its max torque remain constant at 1800 to 5000rpm… how dei doit?? usually max torque only achievable at certain short range of rpm!!! (spockets & gears in the engine have certain specific ratio, produce max output at certain cycle)… I think only AUDI's engineer can answer or won't answer, so it stays as their secret….

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  • syauqi (Member) on Aug 28, 2006 at 8:38 pm

    what a sweet hot baby..

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • topgunthang (Member) on Aug 28, 2006 at 9:40 pm

    hehe. i didnt know that it wasnt diff chassis. i know it comes as front wheel drive but i just feel an audi should be quattro if want to compare to bmw. otherwise no comparison. but no doubt, its more bang for the buck if your into power.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • soporific (Member) on Aug 28, 2006 at 10:01 pm

    hello just some points to make.

    1. the quattro is NOT too heavy for the engine. from deadstart, it actually beats the tfsi but that's because of the lag with the transmission. still, it shows that it can go, and go pretty damn fast, faster on the average, since, we get lots of rain, and you'll only want to speed thru that in an A/4WD.

    2. between 320i, c200k (sure it wasnt 180k or 230k?) and the a4 tfsi. of course, i'll pick the tfsi, but then, it also costs more and is more comparable to the 325i, especially now that they have ckd. havent driven the 325i b4 but from the 330i, i can say that i'd prefer the beemer.

    3. agreed tho on the road presence due to rarity of audis. but then, that's being a bit too brandconscious, isnt it?

    4. main selling point for an audi to me, will always be its interior. would just love to wakeup every morning and get into that car.

    5. it does torquesteer though. i dont know about the mounting etc., but it does… ever. so. slightly.

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  • motberg (Member) on Aug 28, 2006 at 10:22 pm

    Paul Tan said,

    August 27, 2006 @ 12:13 pm

    e-nabill: actually the quattro is selling here for RM290,000, just RM15,000 more.

    I like the way you say it… it's just RM15,000 more… like it's only a little more mah… hahaha… but then again, if I can afford a RM290k car, what is RM15k rite? *wink*

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  • szw (Member) on Aug 28, 2006 at 11:02 pm

    its a beauty

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  • pycazu (Member) on Aug 29, 2006 at 12:13 am

    Awesome review too!

    Wooohhh…. :O''''''

    My mouth already watering to see such beautiful torque curve and gorgeous car!! It's a pleasure to peddle the accerator to overtake others, especially those C/S class or 3/5 series… They care about everything of what a human need in car at every small details..

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  • tiredguy (Member) on Aug 29, 2006 at 2:31 am

    motohead or someone please explain what this mean? no other car in the world can sustain max torque at those RPM ranges?

    —-

    motorhead said,

    August 28, 2006 @ 12:33 pm

    The amzing is, its max torque remain constant at 1800 to 5000rpm… how dei doit?? usually max torque only achievable at certain short range of rpm!!! (spockets & gears in the engine have certain specific ratio, produce max output at certain cycle)… I think only AUDI’s engineer can answer or won’t answer, so it stays as their secret….

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • KingKong (Member) on Aug 29, 2006 at 2:35 am

    typical Audi design with superb ugly interior.

    look at the dashboard!!! i can get the design in chinese cars.

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  • malayman (Member) on Aug 29, 2006 at 6:27 am

    paul..in a perfect world i think u would really want an audi a8 in your porch…a write up on that would be nice…hhee

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  • Whopper (Member) on Aug 29, 2006 at 5:39 pm

    Paul,

    You must be the most luckiest person on earth to get to test drive the Audi A4 2.0T. You must have been grinning from ear to ear during the test drive eh ? Had a hard time returning back the test car unit as well eh ?

    Great review!! I throughly enjoyed reading it. Love this pics and movies you posted. Keep it up .

    BTW if you need a part timer test driver, just let me know eh ? :-)

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • motorhead (Member) on Aug 29, 2006 at 6:35 pm

    tiredguy,

    look at the max torque graph (the blue line).. I never saw something like this, it stay maximum & flat from 1800 to 5000rpm… I oso donno how they can do this, to understand more, pls compare with other engines torque, such as our campro.. u can search about campro in this blog… u can see other engines only can achieve max torque at certain level of rpm, before start droping… I seldom see something stays max & flat at such long gap of rpm….

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  • TheGunner (Member) on Aug 29, 2006 at 7:10 pm

    I have test driven the Quattro version of the B7 A4 and was absolutely amazed by the car's handling prowess. The surge in acceleration was relentless. Felt much more fun than a 3-series.

    Would like to pit the car against the Subaru Legacy. Both run on powerful 2.0 engines with AWD drivetrain, though I am not sure if the Legacy has turbo.

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  • malayman (Member) on Aug 29, 2006 at 7:19 pm

    hmm…maybe the engine could produce a lot more torque but they decided to restrict it to lengthen the life of parts and for handling purposes?? so they restrict the ecu at that rpm range? 280 of torque is a whoale lot of torque…maybe too much might hurt consumption or handling?

    just a shot in the dark..i also dnt get it really….

    any audi guys here wanna shed some light on this?

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  • ShaolinTiger (Member) on Aug 29, 2006 at 8:14 pm

    Decent car, ridiculous price.

    It's a mid range car in UK, it's priced as a super luxury here, which it definately IS NOT.

    I wonder did they suck your dick to make you write such nice things about this mediocre car ;)

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  • motorhead (Member) on Aug 29, 2006 at 11:05 pm

    Yeah, u r rite malayman, they probably can produce higher torque, instead of keep it constant at long gap.. but may be they have their own purpose…

    x fahamlah, but nevermindlah, bukannya bole beli pun…

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  • tbcheese (Member) on Aug 30, 2006 at 12:19 am

    The turbocharged engine itself is theoretically capable of generating a great deal more power, but is mainly limited by the torque capacity of the gearbox. As a result, the engine reaches this torque capacity limit very early in its operating speed range, and is then electronically limited to this level of torque throughout the rest of the speed range. This gives the engine a very 'flat' overall torque curve, which results in impressive levels of torque from low speeds, and excellent 'driveability' characteristics.

    This is something I saw here (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rover_T-Series_engine). So I guess it could be limited. The one in the S3 makes 350Nm of torque.

    As an aside there are rumours of a new 5-cylinder for the TT. Welcome back quattro :D

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  • tbcheese (Member) on Aug 30, 2006 at 1:01 am

    http://jalopnik.com/cars/novelties/canadian-caval…

    small penises makes people do stupid things

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  • motorhead (Member) on Aug 30, 2006 at 1:23 am

    ok tbcheese, yeah thx, theres must be an electronic device control the torque, & keep it flat… i will learn more how it work in the future…

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  • topgunthang (Member) on Aug 30, 2006 at 6:52 am

    well…..cant blame the dash…..its lifted straight out from a entry level car. the golf. and for a car at this price, avoid front wheel drive. i think this car would drive up sales of the golf gti and the lexus IS250.

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  • raybrig85 (Member) on Aug 31, 2006 at 4:39 am

    nice frm u paul…congrats…this is one of my fav car…yup…the dashboard not so great…but audi likes it and not change it much frm d previous model…i shld wait for 159 1st…

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  • heybadigol (Member) on Sep 01, 2006 at 3:26 am

    So nice. See that you went with a group of girls, eh? Saw the "review" by Fireangel. Damn, that's a big boot – I was referring to the car, not Fireangel =))

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  • Bob (Member) on Sep 02, 2006 at 10:40 pm

    The 2.0 TFSI engine is superb in all respects. I should know I drive one every day in A6 configuration. The torque is very useful and overtaking becomes very confident and quick. The engine is smooth and quiet at 140kmh in 6th and 3000 rpm. In normal or aggressive driving you will be hard pressed to go over 4500 rpm. Once a older version 530i tried to race with me from 40km/h rolling start and I never saw him at all over 1km stretch. The next thing is the engine loves to rev and is very responsive. Mine is in manual form which makes it even more pleasurable to drive, espsecially on highways. Yes front wheel drive engines are difficult to steer but you need to know when to correct.

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  • Cire (Member) on Sep 16, 2006 at 7:17 am

    Audi is here to stay.

    For your info, clubaudimalaysia was formed by a group of Audi enthusiast and have been actively pursuing the fun, exhilirations, and excitement of driving Audis. cheers.

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  • Johny.Rico (Member) on Nov 28, 2006 at 8:20 am

    It's great car. The main advantage is engine. You know, we, in Europe, can really well make this engines, with turbo. Good torque in big range. Who didn't experienced, don't get it..(it is right???:-))

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  • Johny.Rico (Member) on Nov 28, 2006 at 8:22 am

    Great car.

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  • ericchew (Member) on Jun 28, 2007 at 7:07 am

    Nice review. Been driving the car for 3 months now and your comments are very similar to my experience with the car. I tested the 3 series and MB C230 and decided on the A4. Fantastic performance, alot of practical and nice features, new auto tecnology(ie. FSI, CVT…) and most importantly fun to drive and also look real good.

    Audi is making heads turn…do check out the new A5 at http://microsites.audi.com/audia5/html/index.php

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  • Mazda 3 MPS on Apr 20, 2010 at 4:28 pm

    the best A4 ever

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  • Today saw this car on highway penang-alor setar im driving satria 1.6 mivec stock condition try to overtake this car but the driver think his car so expensive and shouldn’t give me to overtake him. Then i drop to 4th and over take him on left lane because this car dont want to move left. It took a while to overtake him but i have enough distance on left to pass him…and then came back to right lane. This audi the come and cucuk me. Ok didn’t gv him a chance, quite some time when the way clear both side i move to left and keep to 3rd gear around 5k rpm, then let him side by side with me then i floor the throthle and in a couple of second my mivec engaged (5.2k) rpm so my car still ahead from him. 2-3 time test him like that…then when the highway quite clear both side, i try to speed up till 5th and my top speed limited until around 220kmh. But from back i felt this audi still have top speed beyond me….then i just move to left for him passed me.

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  • Eungoo on Mar 01, 2013 at 2:25 pm

    Are there different horse power model on b7 a4 front wheel model?

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  • Farid Al lulu on Apr 01, 2014 at 2:59 pm

    what does all Gear indicator flash means when all
    P R N D S bright when car is running
    in my car,Audi A4 2005, 2.0 Sedan

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