Well, I finally managed to decide on a new DD. I also considered an E90 M3 and an Audi RS4.
What pushed me to the S4 was the fact that I live at altitude, so the naturally aspirated motors in the M3 and RS4 felt weak and anemic. I also wanted the newer technology that the S4 had.
The interior, like all Audis, is simply beautiful. Very nicely made, carbon fiber inserts on the dash, door panels and center console. The seats are black leather with black alcantara inserts. Very comfy! Car came with a banging B&O stereo, probably one of the best I've ever heard, including the aftermarket ones I put in previous cars that cost thousands of dollars.
The MMI system is far more intuitive than BMW's iDrive and the Nav is easy to figure out. The car can play DVD's, CD, MP3's, and has two SD card slots for 64GB, plus has a 10GB internal hard drive.
The 3 liter supercharged 6 cylinder is a gem. Unlike previous Audi turbo motors, throttle response is crisp, low end torque plentiful and it pulls hard to its 7k rpm redline. The 6MT shifts crisply and the clutch engages positively.
The car has the torque vectoring rear diff, but I haven't hammered on the car hard enough to feel the effects of it yet.
Brakes are strong and linear, with good initial bite and modulation.
Gas mileage is surprisingly good, I've seen over 30mpg on my daily commute. The car can be flash tuned and a smaller pulley fitted that give it a well over 100hp increase.
So far, I'm very impressed with the car. I'm unhappy that Audi decided not to bring the Avant version over, the extra space/utility would be much appreciated. I also think the way they designed the roof rack attachments is horrible. I spent over an hour last night getting everything lined up properly on my Thule rack to get it to work....
