car magazine on the new s4

[David Eaton <David.Eaton@COMPUTERLAND.CO.NZ>]

"car" magazine has just run a comparison of the new s4 against the m3
and the c43 amg.

perhaps surprisingly the s4 tops the lot with the tester (georg kacher)
loving it's torque, throttle response (!), forgiving and neutral
handling, high roadholding limits and build.  the m3 failed to impress
due to it's poor build, tail happy handling (especially in the wet) and
poor transmission (he tested the 'smg' sequential model which he hated).

finally a test which acknowledges what i've said ever since driving the
m3, great for a track, poor for the road in everyday conditions
(handling and build quality).

time for you americans to ring your dealers, and put a bit of pressure
on...

dave
'95 rs2
'90 ur-q

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excerpts from car....

veridct
 " the m3 still scores in the suspension, steering and engine
departments, but it isn't especially made by current standards and it's
no longer the value for money it once was... all this relegates the bmw
to last place, despite its diploma in power oversteer.

"the mercedes is 2nd, though it might have been third had the m3 been
fitted with the standard 6-speed box.  there are two things wrong with
the c43: it's too thirsty, and its electronic watchdogs are too
puritanical for their own good.  its high price is against it, too, even
given the generous specification.

when we changed cars during the test, people would fight over the audi
and the benz, never for the bmw...

"this leaves the audi.  it's a bit worrying, really: another new audi,
another winner. but this time it's especially good news, because it
shows that the team from ingolstadt has put driver involvement back to
the top of its priority list.  this car is like a drug; in the s4, fast
driving becomes second nature, and the more you relish the speed, the
more you want to push the limits of the cars adhesion and your own
courage.  unlike the safe and secure c43 at one extreme and the
hell-raising m3 at the other, the s4 is as forgiving as it is inspiring.
 it opens up a new dimension of ground-covering ability.

"true, it doesn't ride too well, and the transmission needs work, but in
the end the mid-size audi with a giant turbo heart steams straight to
the top.  it gets ahead through a hefty dose of technology; germans
might say 'vorsprung durch technik'.  would make a good advertsiing
slogan, that.

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