Re: S4 vs. V8

[Eliot Lim <eliot@u.washington.edu>]

On Sat, 19 Nov 1994, Gary Webster wrote:

> I test drove an A6Q this week and was not
> particularly impressed.  

do tell more!

>There are a lot of niceties on my car that I
> would have to give up on the A6. 

such as?

> Plan B is to find a low mileage S4 or
> V8.  (The S6 is not an option because the Peoples Republic of Mass
> has banned them for emission reasons.)

wow, that's terrible.. 
 
> What I would like from the group is some feedback on the two as far as
> reliability, handling, performance, resale value, feature comparisons,
> etc.  

most used v8s that you are going to find are going to be 1990's with
automatic trans.. 5 speeders and later years are going to be much
harder to find.

anyway, in terms of performance and handling there is no contest..
the s4 is much faster than the slush v8, slightly faster than the
5 speed, though i have not driven this particular kind.

the handling is also helped by the 5 cylinder being much lighter
than the v8, the much stiffer body and regular discs instead of
the failed internal caliper brakes.  the suspension is also
stiffer with wider tires *and* wheels.

however used s4's are hard to find and cost almost double that of
a 1990 v8, so in a way this is an apples to orange comparison.

i don't think that the v8 is a bad car.. it can hold its own against
some of the more esteemed competition.  the handling and roadholding
is very *usable* and *accessible* compared to some cars which need
a clear track and a professional driver to extract.  "formula one
inspired" cars are very easily disposed off in the curves..

equipment levels are slightly higher but in my mind this should never
be a major factor.  the v8 engine is also smoother and sounds better
than the 5.. sounds like a refined version of american hot rods.

my v8 has some 70K odd miles and the last 20-30K has been extremely
reliable with just one or two visits to the dealer.  the mechanic
tells me that the car will last 300K miles if i ever wanted to 
keep it that long.  

my opinion is that the v8 is a much better buy but the s4 is quite
clearly a better car.  i would say that the most significant advantage
of the s4 is the stiffer body, which leads to greater handling
precision, allows stiffer suspension without ride deterioration and
lower overall noise levels.

it might be simple to decide based on whether you want to kick a
clutch pedal or not.. the v8's mercedes style shifter gate is
particularly good for semi-automatic operation but suffers from quite
a bit of slush-loss.  i don't care too much for kicking a clutch pedal
in heavy traffic, which is why i'm hanging on to my slush v8.

CR beat them up good for the gate design, despite it being a total
clone of benz's.. now that lexus has seen the light let's sit back and
watch those asinine hypocrytes pour out the praise.

> GKW - 89 200TQ

the other thing i would consider doing is to breathe some new life
into your 200Q.. put IA mods in it...


eliot