The A in A4

What we like:

Much more fun to drive that you would imagine

What we dislike:

Basic model is pricey but lacks options

What’s also new with the A4 is that now they’ve gone 1.4l TFSI. This new four pot comes with Audi’s established direct injection and valvelift systems paired to a turbocharger which forces out 150 hp and 250 Nm of torque.

Because at the moment the A4 only comes here in front-wheel drive guise, it doesn’t take much to find out that the car loves to spin its front wheels at the lights if you floor it with abandon once the lights go green. On the plus side, it does have a lot of punch. It feels more like a properly turbo’d 1.6l engine and doesn’t ever feel out of breath through its entire rev range unlike some 3 cylinder offerings.

What it is limited to though is less than 6,000 revs. Although there aren’t a lot of revs to play with the car is willing to take you through the entire 5,800 should you so desire and delivers speed in a progressive way once the initial turbo lag goes away.

It doesn’t feel like a VW unit if that’s what you’re wondering. In fact power delivery is much more linear and not surging like in a VW, which adds to the slightly more laid back character of the A4. That’s not to say that it won’t play; in fact the A4 is much more dynamic than it used to be with the new suspension set up with five-link axles and a pretty taut chassis that’s also lightweight as is the Audi way.

Understeer is kept down to a minimum as is body roll, and the car progressively oversteers in a predictable manner that is easy to read and compensate for when you throw it in quicker. The only gripe is that the car still feels a bit on the soft side because it’s meant to be comfortable rather than sporty given the fixed dampers so it’s still that much shy of the excellent BMW 318i in this respect.

But overall it’s much more agile and balanced than I initially expected, and I wait eagerly to see what the quattro specced car will do.

Elsewhere the A4 when used to do things a bit less illegal is quiet, comfortable and all around pretty easy to use every day. Sure it could come with a few more bells and whistles, and perhaps worth switching out, but I’m not going to complain if I had one to drive around in everyday.

Credits: Story and Photos by Alvan Sio