First Drive: 2009 Audi A4
Story and photos by John LeBlanc
Bowmanville, Ont. - With one-in-two Audis sold in Canada an A4, one doesn’t have to have a degree in economics to understand how important the premium compact sports sedan and wagon are to the German automaker here.
Since the first A4 debuted in Europe in 1972 (then known as the Audi 80), Audi says over eight million examples have been sold worldwide. And since 1997, 50,000 of Audi’s premium compact sports sedans and wagons have found homes in Canada.
In lieu of this perennial popularity, when compared to the phalanx of fresh designs and models coming from Audi’s Ingolstadt headquarters in southern Germany over the past eight years, Audi’s bread and butter was getting awfully stale. In fact, last year’s A4 was essentially the same Audi’s been selling in Canada since 2000.
For 2009, the A4 is “all-new.” Really.
Automakers throw the term “all-new” around like Toronto Blue Jays’ ace pitcher Roy “Doc” Halladay on the mound. But in the case of Audi’s 2009 five-passenger A4 four-door sedan and wagon (branded the chicer sounding “Avant” in Audispeak), “all-new” really is “all-new. Audi aficionados, though, may see the parts of the A4’s sum vaguely reminiscent.
Already familiar with Audi’s stunningly beautiful A5/S5 coupe? Then you have the preface to the A4’s new chassis and design language. Wider, with a longer wheelbase and length than the last generation A4, the ’09s are essentially four- and five-door versions of the coupe.
Reassuring lineup.
As in the last A4, a 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder and a 3.2L six can be found under the hood.
This year’s 2.0T gets upgraded with variable lift (except on the exhaust side), with a modest bump of 11 horsepower, to 211. That’s nice and all. But more importantly, there’s a big dollop of torque: up 51 pound-feet to 258—or 13 more than the 243 found in this year’s A4 3.2 V6. The six—only available in the sedan, though—does get a 10 hp increase to 265.
On sale first in Canadian Audi showrooms by mid-September will be $41,200 2.0T Quattro sedans and $XX,XXX wagons, and 3.2 Quattro sedans priced at $50,900. Initially, all will come with six-speed manumatic Tiptronic transmissions.
A base model, front-wheel-drive/continuously-variable-transmission 2.0T sedan, not yet priced, returns “early” next year. While six-speed manual 2.0T Quattro sedans and wagons, starting at $39,700, come onboard next spring.
Inevitably, Audi will roll out the even sportier S4 and RS4 versions in the coming model years.
OK, so what is really new for ‘09?
Even through the new ’09 A4 sedan and wagon’s exterior styling carry on Audi’s current design language, and its front cabin is a near clone of the A5/S5 coupe, there’s still plenty of fresh ideas and features compared to the last generation A4.
For instance: there’s an optional blind-spot warning system. It flashes a cluster of flashing LEDs on each of the side-mirror housings to get inattentive driver’s attention that there might be a car in the lane next to you. (Or one can just use one mirrors properly and turn one’s head and check over one’s shoulder, right?)
There’s also a radar-based adaptive cruise control that can be adjusted to how the driver is using the car’s brakes and throttle.
Maybe the most functional new piece of high-tech in the ’09 A4 is what Audi calls, Drive Select.
Like other automakers’ automatic systems, Drive Select controls the suspension damping, steering, engine/throttle mapping and transmission shifting with three pre-programmed levels: Comfort, Auto, and Dynamic. But where Audi goes one step further is offering the ability to adjust each of these functions independently and then save the settings. Cool.
Rear passengers treated almost as well as the those up front.
Occupants in the new A4’s front two seats will feel a certain sense of familiarity if they’ve ever sat in the A5/S5 coupe (in fact, as far as I could tell, the front dash and layout is same as in the coupe.)
Also familiar: fit and finish is excellent, there’s plenty of room, an easy-to-use dash design and real aluminum trim. But the big news, literally, is for the three occupants in the back.
Using the parlance of real estate brokers, the last A4’s rear accommodations were, let’s say, cozy. But for ‘09, rear-seat legroom has grown almost 25 mm, to 894 mm. This easily leaps frogs the Audi past the BMW 3 Series and Mercedes-Benz C Class. Throw in an increase in rear headroom of 8.0 mm, and the new A4 may be a more cost effective solution compared to the slightly-one-size-up A6 3.2 Quattro sedan that starts at $59,900.
The A4 2.0T Avant wagon offers a stylish alternative to a luxury crossover. The rear door opens to 1.89m and is available with auto opening and closing. With the rear seats in place, the cargo bay is a metre wide and a metre long and can hold 490 litres of stuff. Fold the 60:50 split rear seat and it enlarges to 1,430 litres.
So why do you need the V6?
During our preview drive in 2.0T and 3.2 Quattro/Tiptronic A4s on the public roads surrounding Mosport raceway, what stood out dramatically was the lack of difference in straight line performance and feel between the 2.0T and 3.2 models.
Audi’s 0-100 km/h numbers support this: the four gets the job done in 6.7 seconds, while the six is only 0.2 seconds faster. Plus, the 2.0T sips about 20 per cent less fuel in town than the 3.2: 10.1 versus 12.1 L/100 km.
Is this the best handling A4 yet?
By using the new A5/S5’s platform as a start, the A4’s front axle moves forward, now in front of the clutch. This also causes a the wheelbase to stretch over 15 mm (to 2,809), and optimizes weight distribution (55.5 per cent of the new A4’s weight is over the front wheels.)
The A4 also utilizes the A5/S5’s rear trapezoidal-link rear suspension. At both ends of the car, the main pieces are aluminum. To further improve the A4’s driving dynamics, the new Quattro delivers to the rear wheels a 40/60 front-to-back torque split.
The result on the road?
The new A4’s quiet cabin, controlled ride and lively handling make the car a delight from the driver’s seat. With this “all-new” chassis, the A4 turns into corners ever so neatly, with the car’s back end following obediently along. Comprehensively, the combination of ride and handling is a big step up from any previous A4, even the high-performance RS4.
New A4 continues Audi’s resurgence.
Whether in sedan or wagon format, the newest A4 is stylish, stable, well-built, solid, and fun to drive. It’s a state-of-the-art combination of elegant looks mixed with practicality and a sporty driving appeal. But there are a couple of questions one will need to answer before signing on the A4’s dotted line.
I wonder why anyone would bother with the 3.2 V6 model? The 2.0T is lighter, has appreciatively more torque, is more fuel efficient, substantially less expensive, and yet delivers the same amount of driving fun.
Maybe Audi plans, at some point, on replacing the ho-hum gas V6 with its wonderful 3.0L TDI clean diesel that’s going into its Q7 SUV later this year.
The second, and final question has to do with the new-for-2009 A4’s upsizing and available new features: why would you bother with an A6?
Preview: 2009 Audi A4 2.0T Quattro/3.2 Quattro
Pricing: 2.0T/3.2, $41,200/$50,900
Type of vehicle: Compact sports sedan and wagon
Engines: 2.0T I4/3.2 V6
Power/Torque: 211/265 hp/258/243 lb.-ft.
Transmissions: Six-speed manual/manumatic
Fuel consumption: (L/100 km): 10.1/12.1 city, 7.4/7.7 hwy.
Competition: Acura TSX/TL, Cadillac CTS4, BMW 3 Series, Infiniti G Series, Mercedes-Benz C Class, Saab 9-3, Volvo S60
REVIEW SUMMARY
Here are the salient points and overall rating of this new model, as established by our reviewer:
SUMMARY - 8.5 out of 10
PROS
- Beautiful inside and out
- Ample rear-seat accommodations
- Newfound high-tech features
- Potentially, the best-handling A4 yet
CONS
- V6 model a questionable value