Premium sedans are rapidly becoming the automotive equivalent of upmarket MP3 players: The manufacturers who make 'em are embroiled in a battle of quick-fire model cycles strongly reminiscent of Apple's release of relentlessly updated iPod variants. Indeed, it increasingly feels that the paint barely gets a chance to dry on a new model or a major refresh before a slightly improved version hits the market.
Exhibit "A" being, of course, Audi's new A4, arriving barely three years after the previous-generation model had a heavy reworking, which involved new sheetmetal and a completely different front end. Now, in response to the new Mercedes C-class and still fresh E90 BMW 3-series (which itself gets called in for a nip-and-tuck early next year), Audi is launching a completely new A4.
This is understandable, of course. The bigger, better, and generally all-around improved new A4 is just what Ingolstadt needs to advance its plans for world domination. Your view of Audi's current fortunes is likely to be heavily influenced by the side of the Atlantic on which you sit. In Europe, this is still a brand very much on the up, forging ahead and increasing sales while BMW and Merc struggle to retain their numbers, on track to hit the corporate target of building one million cars this year. In the USA, things are gloomier. The States have been overtaken by both the UK and China as Audi's largest export markets, with the slipping Dollar/Euro exchange rate set to eat into profit margins further. Audi's beleaguered Stateside dealers will be hoping the new A4 is the shot in the arm the brand desperately needs.
It certainly looks the part. The previous-generation A4's mid-life nosejob bequeathed it some awkward, front-heavy proportions. Clever re-engineering of the new car has enabled the front axle-line to be moved forward, improving its stance and look, while the design team has also given it what we're assured is a "tight, sporty" aesthetic. You don't have to look far to see design cues from the outgoing RS4 model: even base A4s will get slightly flared wheelarches and chunky-looking bumpers. The styling language is similar to that of the recently introduced A5 coupe, but the sedan's doors and flatter flanks arguably look better in the metal than those of the somewhat tubby two-door. Another neat A5 detail is the fitment of ultra-bright LED running lights, which are integrated beneath the main headlamp units.
The interior is predictably impressive. Audi has long since stolen the march on cabin quality against obvious rivals, and on first impression it's hard to argue against the A4's claim to have the set the benchmark for cars in this segment. The dashboard incorporates organic, flowing lines - obviously similar to those of the A5. The switchgear operates with a reassuring solidity and every surface is finished in the sort of high quality materials that make the 3-series and even the C-class feel plasticky. It's big, too; nearly a foot longer than the car it replaces and five inches longer than a C-class, with most of the extra space going to rear seat passengers. You wouldn't confuse it with a limousine any time soon, but at least this A4 is finally able to give a lift to more than one friend without having to make excuses for crushed knees.
A good start, then. But this is a segment where driving dynamics are hugely important, and all the soft-feel plastics in the world aren't going to save the A4 if it can't deliver on the road.
Audi claims to have paid considerable attention to sharpening up the driving experience of this A4 versus its predecessor. Like its coupe sibling, the sedan sticks with Audi's odd mechanical layout of longitudinal engine mounting, despite the fact that most of the world's consumption of A4's will be front-wheel drive. This means a propeller shaft takes the drive from the back of the gearbox to a differential mounted ahead of the front axle-line. Top-spec versions will continue to come with Audi's quattro four-wheel drive system (which also takes drive backwards from the transmission), and which now also has been programmed to send more torque to the rear axle than the front in a 40/60 percent front/rear split.
Until the V8-powered S4 touches down later in 2008, the 3.2-liter FSI V6 will be the most powerful engine available, a slightly reworked version of the V6 motor that powered the facelifted version of the old car. Audi reckons it's good for 262 hp at 6500 rpm and 243 lb-ft of torque - both slightly up from the old engine - which translates into a 6.2 second 0-62 mph time and an electronically limited top speed of 155 mph. Quattro drive is standard on the 3.2, with buyers able to choose between a six-speed auto and a six-speed manual transmission. Audi is also working on a longitudinal version of its DSG twin-clutch gearbox, which will likely become the most popular transmission choice when it appears down the line.
On the road, it's clear that Audi's emphasis on dynamics and - that word again - sportiness has resulted in a tighter driving experience when compared with the old car. The thick-rimmed steering wheel produces quicker results, with keen turn-in, tenacious grip, and a strong resistance to understeer well beyond the point that would have taken an old A4 into the scenery. Transitional responses are good, too, and the A4 is happy to dart between locks and make quick directional changes in a manner that belies its size and bulk. Brakes are some of the best of any standard Audi sedan: they're still over-servoed compared with the competition, but the pedal is easy to modulate and the force of retardation is as high as you'd hope for something so quick. No evidence of fade under a moderately intense mountain road workout, either.
Audi also makes a lot of noise about what is being branded as "Audi Drive Select," another of those buttons on the dashboard that's intended to let the pilot tighten up the driving experience when the mood bites. As with rival's similar systems, this means firmer or softer settings for the electronic dampers, with the more aggressive mode also sharpening the throttle response, adding some extra resistance to the power steering, and - with the auto transmission - engaging a quicker-shifting map.
This type of system has become par for the top-spec sports-sedan course. What's different is that, in addition to "Comfort," "Dynamic," and "Automatic," ADS also incorporates a fourth setting - "Individual" - which, as the name suggests, allows the driver to program their own set of preferences. Hence it's possible to choose light steering and firm dampers or an aggressive throttle map but smoother gearchanges.
Not that all these changes and driver aids have radically altered the way this A4 drives compared with its predecessor. It's slightly better in every regard; grippier, more alert, more tenacious as the limit approaches - but it still drives as Audis always have. The steering lacks the sort of feel that the driver of a BMW 3-series gets, and it's noticeably more numb than the sensitive helm of the new C-class, too. Our test car was riding on 19-inch wheels and with the firmer suspension settings that come with European "S-Line" trim, and the ride quality felt marginal over the bumpier roads of the Sardinian drive route, even with the electronic dampers left in their softest mode.
Fortunately, the 3.2-liter V6 motor is a peach, as happy to be thrashed mercilessly as it is to be trundled around town. With peak power delivered at 6500 rpm and the limiter calling time at 6750 rpm, it's not the highest-revving of motors, but FSI direct injection helps it to combine gutsy low-down performance with an enthusiasm to be wound towards the red line, with excursions into the top half of the tachometer range accompanied by a pleasantly zingy soundtrack. Subjectively, it feels every bit as quick as the BMW 328i or Mercedes C300 - it ought to, as it has 38 and 40 more horses, respectively - although the Audi's slightly slow-witted manual gearbox can't match the scalpel-sharp BMW's for speed or accuracy.
European buyers will also get to choose a 1.8-liter turbocharged direct-injection four-cylinder gasoline engine, which will be available with either 120 hp or 158 hp, plus the usual host of turbodiesels (which may, if Audi execs are to believed, arrive Stateside in mid-2009): a 2.0-liter four-pot with 118 hp, 141 hp, or 180 hp and two V6s in 2.7-liter and 3.0-liter displacements. Other motors, including the familiar 200 hp 2.0T FSI four-cylinder, will arrive shortly after the launch, with the Avant station wagon turning up later in 2008. And in the far future, once production of the forthcoming RS6 has finished, there will also be another RS4.
Audi hasn't moved the game on by a great deal with the new A4. To be honest, it probably didn't have to do anything more radical than it has. In Europe the narrowing gap between the A4 and its rivals means an evolutionary approach was undoubtedly the most rational one to adopt. As for who should be most worried, BMW or Mercedes, that's a tougher call. The new A4 isn't as dynamically sharp as the new 3-series, but it does feel like a car that will be easier and more comfortable to live with on a day-to-day basis. And it's forward-looking styling certainly gives it a more modern feel than the slightly staid C-class. It's just hard not to feel a bit disappointed that, with bubbling corporate confidence and the world at its feet (in Europe at least), Audi hasn't treated us to something a bit more radical. And ironically, what may be good enough for Europe might not be quite enough for America.
