rs4 drive

[Dave Eaton]

i had my 1st opportunity to drive an rs4 the other day.

pricing:

i've wanted to drive an rs4 for some time, but supply here in new zealand
has been extremely limited, even a year after production ended, with cars
not on forecourts long and, more to the point for me, the prices still very
high.  low km rs4's are still commanding 90% of their new price (the one 1
drove had 25k kms on the clock, and a sticker of nz150k - $65k usd versus
$165k nzd new).  i have very little interest in the car at this sort of
money as i'd want someone to fund the majority of the depreciation, not me.
as an example of audi's improved fortunes here in nz, i picked up my rs2 for
$120k nzd, 18 months from new, where the new price was $160k nzd.  so the
rs4 is performing much better in the market (at least initially) than the
older car.

look and feel

walk around the rs4 and it is clear that it means business.  the wheels are
large with tyres painted on, the fenders have very large flares, and the car
looks "hunkered" down, ready for action.  alongside the rs4, my car looks
taller, more rounded, more bluff, and you can't help but notice the ride
height.  however, the rs2 shape is very sexy from some angles (3/4 rear),
the wheels are beautiful, and the rs4 doesn't improve on this in any
particular way.  from the front, the older car is probably more
intimidating, but is also unquestionably uglier.

the impressions are confirmed from the inside, where the newer car continues
to put it over the older one.  the only possible exception is the seats - i
find the recaro's in the rs2 wonderful, while those in the rs4 were flatter
and less comfortable.  i didn't play with the range of adjustment, so am
unsure whether the situation could be improved.  the rs4 seems to "fit"
around you, the steering wheel is smaller and thicker than that of the rs2,
the ergonomics better.  the car feels smaller as well, and the leg room in
the back is more limited.  the standard of fit and finish is not any
different from the s4, but in this full leather car (as is my rs2), it is
better than the older car as well.  add in a full compliment of air bags
(front, side, corner etc), and this is an undoubtedly safer car than the old
warhorse.

driving the rs4.

make no mistake about it, this car is better in every way than the rs2.
better handling, better braking, better accelerating.  end of story.

the engine is a jewel.  however much audi progressively developed the turbo
in the i5 to it's peak in the s2 (aby), and then porsche took it further in
the rs2, the motor in the rs4 is in a completely different league.  the raw
figures (380hp vs 315hp) do not do the difference justice.  turbo lag?  not
above 2,000-2,300 rpm there isn't.  below that there is smooth power and a
residual of torque which the rs2 simply doesn't have.  the top-end of the
rs4 motor has all the urgency of the rs2 (above, say 4,500 rpm), but the
power in the newer car is more progressive, and deeper chested. due to the
different boost characteristics, the v6 gives much better throttle control
than the rs2 motor, and so you feel that you can "play" with the car on the
throttle more, like say a car with the older audi in-line 5 20v turbo's (rr,
3b).  just for fun i opened the car up on a long up-hill on-ramp where
2-lanes bled into 1.  the vehicle in the left lane was an rs legacy, and was
accelerating hard. by the end of the on-ramp i was at least 300m ahead of
the other car.  enormously addictive.

the engine is smoother than the i5, and more subdued until extended.  at
this point it takes on a nice, although muted, snarl.

the one downside of the engine is that it would probably be better with a
good auto transmission - there is inevitable throttle snatch as the boost
levels build so quickly without any way of the motor knowing the shift
points - in this car you need to work at throttle smoothness in order to
prevent snatch and shunt.  in the rs2 this is only an issue when the car is
on-boost.  due to the turbo lag, you can drive the car around all day below
3,000 rpm and it is as smooth (and powerful) as the 2.8l v6 80 model.

with the news that the new s4 due out at the end of the year will have a
320hp v8, it seems a shame that this wonderful engine will have such a short
production life.

a word about brakes.  i have the audi-specified rs2 brake upgrade -
basically the porsche 993tt front brakes (aka "big reds") with vented rear
rotors and upgraded pads.  much better brakes than the oem (porsche 968
derived) brakes.  my testing of the brakes took the form of repeated panic
stops from 130km/hr on the motorway.  the rs4 brakes are magnificent.  the
stopping power is simply the most impressive i have experienced.  the
initial grab is very strong and there is simply no fade.  with the modified
rs2 brakes, the initial grab is about the same, but from that point on the
retardation available with the rs4 is much better.  the ability to modulate
the brakes would probably give the edge to the porsche stoppers, but not by
much.

the 6-speed gearbox is noticeably lighter in action that that of the rs2,
with the throws also shorter, although not by much.  however, there is
vagueness across the gate that the strong detent springs of the rs2 doesn't
allow.  the clutch of the rs4 is lighter than that of the older car, with a
change point easier to modulate as well.  the car is a little higher geared
than the rs2, with 1st higher, and 6th also seems to be more of an overdrive
gear.

handling?  the dreaded audi "porpoising" which has blighted so many modern
audis, as audi has struggled to achieve ride comfort at the expense of
handling in front-heavy cars, is much better controlled.  btw, this tendency
is perhaps at its worst in the s6 as the latest car in my driveway attests.
the improvement apparent in the s4 is carried over to this car, and improved
still further.  ride comfort is better than the rs2 (which wouldn't be
hard), and you do not experience every manhole cover as a jolt through the
cabin.  roll stiffness is also improved over the rs2, the car corners flat,
with good (but not exceptional) turn-in.  i can't help but wonder if the car
is basically over-tyred, and whether a set of 225 covers (rather than the
oem 255's) would not improve turn-in, and certainly tracking.  the car did
not track well, and was not as stable as the rs2 in this regard.  the nose
of the car hunts out road camber, and the car follows suit. not a huge
problem with a fat-rimmed steering wheel in your hands, but noticeable
none-the-less.

the steering is more tactile than the rs2, helped no doubt by the smaller,
thicker wheel.  the wheel moves around more due to the tracking of the
wider-than-necessary tyres, but the level of detailed feedback is good,
although not the same as with the 20v ur-q, or the s3 for that matter.
however, the equipment does a much better job of steering the car than in
the rs2 which, while better than the other "s" cars of its era, is simply
not direct enough to impart the control desired when driving a
high-performance car.  the downside of this, as anyone with a 20v ur-quattro
would attest, is that this is not a classic motorway cruiser - you will feel
more comfortable with 2 hands on the wheel - whereas with the rs2, you can
relatively happily steer the car with a minimum of effort.  the rs4 is a car
you drive, it does not drive you.

overall impressions

the rs4 is an advance on the rs2 in every way.  as an owner and as a driver,
i'd prefer to have this vehicle in my driveway than the older car.  this is
not to detract in any way from the rs2.  it still wears a halo that the
newer car doesn't, due to the more limited numbers and the special
collaboration between audi and porsche.  however in the cold hard light of
science and engineering, the advances that audi (and cosworth) have made in
the new car render the car of 5 years before obsolete.  it is equally true
that the newer car cannot touch the special magic of  a porsche-engineered
and produced station wagon.  it is a considerable tribute to audi though
that they have produced a comprehensively better car without porsche.

i also have no doubt that there will be one sitting in my driveway at some
point in the future, and it will take the place of the rs2, if not the
ur-quattro as well.

dave
'95 rs2
'90 ur-q
'95 s6