Courtesy Car - A4 Avant

[prolfe]

Well my A3 finally went in for its first service this morning.

They gave me:

A4 Avant 1.9 TDI SE in Silver on a 07 plate with 4k on the clock.
(I knew it would be better to have an Audi, the worst I could get as a courtesy car is an A3)

Extras:

Just one: the Bose upgrade. I think that the acoustics in the Avant are pretty poor, either that or the Bose upgrade is not worth it.

My A3's Concert II with the standard speakers sounds much much better. The Bass in my A3 is deeper and more powerful, the volume can go louder than the Bose and the Treble is sharper. So overall I was not impressed and glad I did not specify that expensive option.

Driving:

Parking is easy enough for a big old estate, in saying that though the power steering feels very heavy at parking speeds. This is because this A4 does not have speed sensitive power steering like my A3.

Once you get going, which takes a while, the car feels a bit cumbersome. This I think is due to the standard suspension on the SE.

It has 235/45/17's with Dunlop's SportMaxx tyres.

50-70 in fourth takes about 8-9 seconds which is ok for a car that has this little power, 85kw.

This Avant will understeer when pushed but can be made to oversteer by de-accelerating around tight roundabouts.

Inside:

The seats are comfortable but not supporting enough. I have not been out for a long drive so cannot say if the initial short journey comfort will disappear.

The seat could do with going just a little bit lower as the steering wheel blocks out some of the dash information. This is my own preference as I have the seat low and the steering wheel at it's lowest.

The space in the front of the A4 is really good, it feels the same in my A3 as well.

The dash is laid out brilliantly, I really like the Silver inlay that goes from door to door all the way across the dash.

In the back it's massive, my son's car seat fits in easily, and in the boot there's plenty of room for a big pushchair.

The cabin materials are very good, there's the harder plastics lower down, and a softer plastic across the top of the dash and instrument panel. The colour of the materials is pretty good, but I do like it when they are black or very dark grey.

Well that's about it.

My summary would be:

A nice car but i would have the harder suspension and sports seats, so maybe the S-Line spec, the bigger 2.0 TDi engine and it would then be a absolute corker.

Want my car back now.

[mobitune]

Nice review

Not an A4 kinda person myself

[prolfe]

My car came back yesterday after her first service at Audi in Bedford.

They called me up to let me know it was ready and off I went.

The car was nice and clean although not all of the bugs were off the front of the car and there was a few places on the alloys that had been missed.

Does the car feel any different after the service?

No, and i wasn't expecting it to really, although it felt much better than the A4 i'd just given back, the steering especially.

they left a little printed compliments slip that told me "if there is anything missing then this is the guy that cleaned your car"

only joking

It did tell me that X person cleaned the car though.

I wonder what I'll get on the next service, hopefully the new A4 will be a demonstrator by then. hmmmmmm

[RickT]

nice little review

Rick

[prolfe]

My car went in again for them to diagnose and fix the Emissions Control Light.

I was given an 57 plate Audi A4 Saloon. It was the 2.0 Tdi S-Line in Silver with a manual gearbox.


Extras:

Sat Nav.

I thought the control and input of details was very easy and very good. you put the text in by turning and pressing a single button. the voice volume was completely controllable and was also speed dependant. The instructions were clear and informative. i was told that my house was on the left hand side of the road.

Driving:

The A4 Saloon felt a lot like my A3 to drive albeit a bigger wheelbase. The 140 TDI I was very disappointed with and was not how i remembered the 140 from the A3. It felt quite laboured once it got going. First gear was atrocious and second was not much better, lots of lag and no poke. I think this was possibly a bad egg in a basket of golden ones though.

The real big problem with the one I was driving was the power steering. I was horrendous. This is down to the fact that it was the standard power steering and not the Speed Sensitive power steering as found as standard on the A3, TT R8 and as an option on the A4. This is one option i would DEFINITELY have if I were to have an A4


Inside:

As the Avant review. The A4 Saloon felt as small as my A3, which is a good thing. I really liked the seats as they were supportive and had an extension to the bit under the knees. I prefer the climate control from my A3, just feels a bit classier. There seemed no more or less leg room i the back of the A4 compared to the A3 Sportback. I have a small child and could tell instantly how the back compared.


My summary would be:

If you're unsure if you need more room and therefore want an A4 over an A3 I would have a look at both and you'll be surprised at the room an the A3. Some could argue that a hatchback is more versatile than a saloon. Likewise, the A4 still feels like a small car but is in fact roomy. Make sure you upgrade the power steering though.

[paul b]

Next time can you insist on getting an A6 courtesy car? I will never get that sort of opportunity as I do everything myself to my car. But I do like the new A6.
Paul

[prolfe]

i'm gonna try and work my way round the models. Although some might not be possible:

"would you like a courtesy car Sir?"

"sure, i'm off to the coast this weekend, so have you got an R8?"

hehe

[paul b]

i'm gonna try and work my way round the models. Although some might not be possible:

"would you like a courtesy car Sir?"

"sure, i'm off to the coast this weekend, so have you got an R8?"

hehe

Gotta try your luck. Say it with a chuckle to the receptionist, then maybe they won't think your a muppet. Maybe you could ask for an ALMS R10 TDI, or am I just being stupid now?
Paul

[prolfe]

Probably, The A6 is a good shout though. Car is due back for it's 2nd service in 8000 miles.

[Ben]

i found that if i booked the car in WELL in advance and requested a specific car than they would reserve one, that is how i came to have an EOS for the day.