3.0TDI or wait for S4?

[AGW82]

I'm in a bit of a dilemma and looking for some opinions..? My current A4 is almost at the point I can swap it, but my quandry is this... Should I get a fully loaded 3.0TDI or should I wait for the S4 and likely have to take a slightly lower spec in options. I'm currently doing 20,000 miles a year, mainly motorway.. I'm just looking for something that will put a little bit of fun back into drivng and will have plenty of power when I need it.. (I also have a real hankering for Sepang blue which is an S exclusive colour) :D

Potential 3.0TDI spec below:



A4 Avant S-Line 3.0TDI Quattro
Glacier White Metallic Paint
19" V Spoke Alloys
Black Leather/Alcantara
Technology Pack
Light & Vision Pack
Driver Assistance Pack
Bang & Olufsen 3D Sound System
Privacy Glass
Door mirrors - with memory and auto dimming function. Electrically folding, adjustable and heated
Electrically adjustable front seats with memory function for the driver's side
Flat bottomed 3-spoke leather trimmed high multi-function steering wheel with chrome clip (and paddles for automatic transmissions)
Heated Front Seats
Adaptive sport suspension with damping control
Hill Hold Assist
4 Year Warranty

[markp306]

I'm no expert on these variants, but I'm not certain an S4 is going to gain you any advantage for 20,000 motorway miles. If you were located around my way you would just be sat in jams anyway, so would want a good 'toys' spec to keep you amused. :-)

Are you going to be running this privately? Running costs might need a look.

[AGW82]

It will be private, but I take a car allowance so technically the companies paying..

About 70% of my driving is motorway, I'm lucky enough to choose when I travel so can avoid peek traffic most of the time.. The other 30% is country roads..

My current diesel is terrible in terms of mpg for motorway and especially the country roads.. 40mpg if I'm lucky on a run, mid 30's on the country roads.. So I don't feel I'm really getting any benefit from running a diesel.. I'm not naive enough to believe any of the claimed mpg figures, but I think the V6 engine figures for the diesel are usually closer than the 2.0 tdi. If I could average mid 30's in an S4 that would be workable.. Plus it should be more exciting on the country roads if and when the mood takes me.

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[AGW82]

I was really hoping they would do the bi-tdi engine from the A6 and offer it as an option in the S4.

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[MarkTM]

I don't do half the mileage in my C6 A6 3.0 as you do but have to say that in 3yrs of ownership it's never delivered less than 40mpg/720 miles to the tank. The DIS2 is sitting at 39.1

That said I've an 80l tank and drive quite sedately having 50+mpg on long runs, so it all comes down to driving style.

My profile pic car I used when doing high miles (20-35kpa) and took the car allowance money, on top of that they still paid me 18ppm on top, and since it was LPG converted an £18 fill could take me 350 miles, so mileage claims paid for tax/insurance and all servicing on top of the fuel :)

In your case, as you've indicated some 'spirited' driving, I'd be going for the S4

[AGW82]

Thanks for the reply Mark :) in my heart I'm hoping to hold out for the S4. But other factors might force my hand to the diesel, mainly the fact that the S4 wouldn't be delivered until next summer at the earliest and my current car is 3 years old in April next year, so I'd have to run without a warranty for a few months in a car that's covered 70k plus miles. I'm sure it would be ok, but it would be just my luck for something expensive to break..

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[Scott K]

Good deals on an A6 biturbo if it's not too big for you. Doesn't handle as well as the S4 but really nice drive and can shift when you want.

[AGW82]

Thanks Scott, I've seen the A6 deals and they are good, should be getting over £10k off list on a BiTDI.. I've done the C7 A6 before though and whilst it was a great car, I found it a bit on the large side and not as agile as I'd like. I like some of the new tech in the A4 as well, especially the virtual cockpit, Android auto integration, and the proper heated windscreen :) (at least they caught up with Ford eventually..)

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[Scott K]

The heated windscreen was a weird one. You could get it on some A3 models and A8s but nothing else. Good of it is available on all models now.

[AGW82]

Hopefully so, they are a God send in winter, my wife used to have a Mondeo and it was definitely the cars saving grace on frosty mornings..

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[MarkTM]

Yep I had a Mondeo with heated front screen and it was brilliant, however I moved to a place that rarely gets frost. :Blush2:

[AGW82]

Well the sensible side won out in the end (and the fact I'm too impatient), so the order's in..



A4 Avant 3.0TDI Quattro S Line 272

Glacier White (2Y)



19" 5-V Spoke Alloy Wheels (PQI)


Adaptive Sport Suspension (1BQ)


Black Fine Nappa Leather (N3M)(EI)


Heated Windscreen (4GR)


Parking System Plus (7X2)


Heated Front Seats (4A3)


Technology Pack (WB4)


Light & Vision Pack (WB7, 9S8)


Bang & Olufsen 3D Sound System (9VS)


Driver Assistence Pack (PCN)


Privacy Glass (VW6)


Flat Bottom Stearing Wheel (2PF)


Door Mirrors Folding, Dimming, Memory (6XL)


Electric Seats with Memory (PV3)


AdBlue tank 24 litres (FK2)


Hill Hold Assist (UH2)


4 Year Warranty (EA6)



Should be taking delivery late March :D

[Scott K]

That's a nice spec. Does the technology pack include the virtual cockpit?

[mark@mdmtechnik]

Nice spec.

Personally I would go for the 3.0TDI as much as I do love the S4. I know that with the current 3.0TFSI engine in the S4 you only really get mid 20's in terms of MPG, I don't think there is any way of reaching mid 30's with one.


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[AGW82]

That's a nice spec. Does the technology pack include the virtual cockpit?
Thanks

The virtual cockpit is part of the light and vision pack oddly enough..

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[AGW82]

Nice spec.

Personally I would go for the 3.0TDI as much as I do love the S4. I know that with the current 3.0TFSI engine in the S4 you only really get mid 20's in terms of MPG, I don't think there is any way of reaching mid 30's with one.


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I know, it was probably a pipe dream to think I'd get mid 30's from the new S4 engine..

Maybe next time if I'm doing less miles [emoji2]

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[AGW82]

So the dealer came back to me today to say the heated windscreen is not currently available, so he can put the order on the system but it won't get a build slot until the heated windscreen becomes avilable... :( I had half expected this anyway, as the brochure does say available early 2016, which is Audi being as ambiguous and non commital as always..

I've told him to put it on the system as it is for now, and we'll see if it gets a build slot in the next couple of weeks... Otherwise I might have to consider taking it off if I want the car any time soon...

[MarkTM]

Still good to hear that a heated screen's coming.

[AGW82]

Dealer phoned agian yesterday and said the heated windscreen is currently delayed indefinitely, and that the info had come straight from the factory. Apparently Audi are also removing it from the brochure for the time being.. :( He also said there was a major issue with the Black Optics for the new A4, and anyone selecting those options was having builds pushed into 2017... :yikes:

I'm somewhat sceptical about the information but in light of the fact I have no other source, I've removed the heated windscreen from my order.. Quite ironic that this morning the car was frozen solid...

I now have a slot of build week 6, so should be here late February, obviously I'll wait for the new plate before collecting..

[skdotcom]

I'm in the same position, looking at an A4 3.0 tdi avant or an S4. This may sound petty but whats putting me off the 3.0tdi is that it's not got a double exhaust, ie one on the left and one on on the right. The pictures look like a twin exhaust both on the left. I like to see some styling differences between the v6 diesel and the everyday 2.0!
Great deals on the S5 sportback at the moment, nearly 20% off through CarWOW, although the interior will look dated on this compared to the new A4. I think I'm gonna sit tight til the S4 is out and then compare.

[Gazwould]

Nooooooo , what happened to Sepang blue , white is tar spot city and hideous with bad weather road grime .



29607

[AGW82]

Nooooooo , what happened to Sepang blue , white is tar spot city and hideous with bad weather road grime .



29607
Sepang was a special edition colour for the last of the B8's, otherwise I'd have had it in a heartbeat, it's my favourite colour.. I did think about having it as a custom colour, but that would have been a £2k option, and would have pushed the build out.. The colour pallet is quite muted again on the new A4. I still expect Sepang to be a standard colour on the new S and RS models.

I have a white car now, it's not too bad with tar, just needs a regular clay and tar remover, then a good polish and wax..


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[AGW82]

I'm in the same position, looking at an A4 3.0 tdi avant or an S4. This may sound petty but whats putting me off the 3.0tdi is that it's not got a double exhaust, ie one on the left and one on on the right. The pictures look like a twin exhaust both on the left. I like to see some styling differences between the v6 diesel and the everyday 2.0!
Great deals on the S5 sportback at the moment, nearly 20% off through CarWOW, although the interior will look dated on this compared to the new A4. I think I'm gonna sit tight til the S4 is out and then compare.
I know what your saying, I was expecting single exhausts each side for the 3.0 tdi but audi seem to have gone the BMW way. It is a bit disappointing but not the end of the world..

It also looks like they might release the S4 saloon first and then the avant later. The only reason I say that is both the German and UK sites only show the saloon, and all the press pictures were of saloons, and I need an Avant.

There has also been talk they might switch to and S-Tronic box later in the lifecycle..

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[eoin27]

Its because of the Adblue tank apparently....

edit: the twin exhaust on the left in the diesels is because of the adblue tank. The 2.0TFSI has a single branch on each side.

[AGW82]

Its because of the Adblue tank apparently....

edit: the twin exhaust on the left in the diesels is because of the adblue tank. The 2.0TFSI has a single branch on each side.

Interesting, I guess they have more room to play with on the A6 which is why they can maintain the dual branch exhaust even with the Adblue tank..

[MarkTM]

Unlike my profile pic car and (probs any other V8) they all have only have one downpipe/cat.

Any V6 I've owned just has a single zaust pipe and a branch off from the main pipe. In the case of any Ultra am guessing the main pipe ' s on the fuel filler side and the branch is after the ad blu gubbins if it has dual exits.

[AGW82]

Unlike my profile pic car and (probs any other V8) they all have only have one downpipe/cat.

Any V6 I've owned just has a single zaust pipe and a branch off from the main pipe. In the case of any Ultra am guessing the main pipe ' s on the fuel filler side and the branch is after the ad blu gubbins if it has dual exits.

I think the fuel filler is still on the drivers side as it is on the B8. So do you think they've taken the exhaust over to the other side of the car after the Adblue injection system? If that was the case then they should have been able to do dual branch as per V6 TDI's of old, so this could purely be a design decision that Audi have made, so all Diesels have Single or Dual pipes on one side, and the petrol versions have one each side (except the 1.4TFSI).

[MarkTM]

Any car with only one DPF/cat will/should have a single pipe.

Am guessing that any car that requires ad blu would have to have that injected to cover total emissions and not just one side.

So unless they've rigged a rather elaborate system on t'other side to the fuel/ad blu filler it's a safe bet that ad blu injection would be on the filler side before the zaust branches.

An ultra owner should be able to confirm.

IIRC ad blu cannot damage paintwork?

[AGW82]

IIRC ad blu cannot damage paintwork?

This is from VW's web site:

AdBlue® damages surfaces such as painted vehicle parts, plastic, items of clothing and carpets.

AdBlue: Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) : Volkswagen UK (http://www.volkswagen.co.uk/technology/diesel/adblue)

[AGW82]

Audi's order tracking system is working well... :confused: I know the car won't get built until next week as it's on build week 6, but the tracking system has always shown the 1st Feb, which is build week 5.. Unsurprisingly the order hasn't moved on all week.. You'd have hoped if they were going to provide the service it would at least be accurate...

29808

[AGW82]

Apparently the car is built and is just going through quality control...

The dealer has suggested there are issues tracking new A4 orders through the MyAudi system, as I'm not the first to have problems. He said he's not had people complain that have ordered other cars in the range..

A friend of mine ordered a Q3 at the same time I placed my order, and she has been able to track her order through properly without issue..

If I'm lucky it will be on a boat by the end of the week :biglaugh: so should be here in plenty of time for March 1st.