mmp151

I'm ordering my S4 this weekend and I wanted to get folks thoughts on the following two options? What value do they add? Does it change the the drive experience that much?

1. S Sport package

• Red brake calipers
• Sport adaptive damping suspension
• Sport rear differential

2. Dynamic Steering

plat27265

I say yes, to 1 and 2, if you like driving in a sporty manner once in a while. It changes the car's character giving it different flavours. If you are a driver who just commutes from point A to B and don't give any hoot as to the benefits of a sport suspension or does not know the car's sporty persona other than it is an upscale and more powerful A4 then Items 1 and 2 are not for you.

A lot of used S4 buyers will want to look for at least the S-Sport Package with the Sport Diff. Having Adaptive Suspension and Dynamic Steering just complements Audi Drive Select and rounds it up for that feature. Having these features in your car will make it more desirable for used car buyers who are looking for them. And, they could be rare features.

Glisse

Not too sure about Dynamic steering myself. Every B9 I have driven has had it fitted, and am waiting to be able to drive an S4 with standard steering some time in the next few days, and will make a decision then. The Dynamic steering is very direct, and probably adds a sense of agility. But I don't like variable rate steering in general, as it is not always predictable how the car will behave on turn in. By example, on the S5 I drove recently, I was going through some sweepers at a reasonable clip, came to a very tight right hander which required heavy braking and about 50% speed reduction. The steering lightened, the ratio tightened up, and I over-clipped the apex as a result. I don't like that sort of inconsistency, perhaps you get used to it. It is certainly better than the version in the C7 models.

The S adaptive suspension works very well, and Sports differential is a "mandatory" option in my book. I did prefer the Dynamic setting for both - the front end feels very locked in and precise. I was surprised how much of this was lost in Comfort mode. Don't forget the adaptive suspension is not a binary Comfort/Dynamic MMI adjustment, it is constantly adjusting several times a second.

jsilas

The new S4 can't be built yet on the Audi USA site - where are you placing your order and viewing the options sets?

White Comet

This sucks, I can't get the adaptive suspension unless going for the top trim....

CHIO

On the build that we are doing i did Prestige All options except dynamic steering!

superswiss

I have the dynamic steering on my RS5 and its the second best thing about the car after the sport differential. The two in combination are amazing IMO. I have heard the concerns about the variable ratio, but I just can't concur with them after actually living with it for over three years. It was a bit funky at the beginning, but a software update fixed pretty much all the quirks. The dynamic steering is overall much more sporty and direct. The ratios are only variable in comfort and auto mode. In dynamic mode the ratio stays fixed, but remains more direct than the standard steering. So if you go for a drive in the canyons or the track where speed changes quickly and often, you would put the steering in dynamic mode to make it predictable in that environment. For DD you'll keep the variable ratios. But even for DD, your muscle memory and brain will actually learn how the steering behaves. It feels very natural after a while, but you do need to give it some time to adapt to it. At this point I miss it in cars that don't have it.

Glisse

Superswiss, thanks for the feedback on Dynamic steering. I have driven an RS5 with Dynamic steering on the same roads as the B9 S5, and my perception was the RS5 was linear in Dynamic mode, but the S5 was not. I'll try it again. Your point on adapting and learning over a period of time is well made.

mmp151

Dealers are taking orders without pricing being available. I'm at the dealership as we speak finalizing my order and it'll be submitted to the Audi Order bank first think on Monday. The dealer guaranteed I'll receive my car with the their first batch of S4s. Can't wait guys!

Sebast007

Awesome! So, what does your S4 build sheet looks like?