Blodger

Greetings all,

Been lurking (and learning) for a while now, and finally decided to out myself.
I don't actually own an Audi yet, but am dreaming about it on a daily basis, and I have a few questions which I hope some of you might help with, and further settle my mind.
Background - we've had a history of Subarus in our driveway, and I am a huge fan of manual gearbox + all wheel drive. I am leaning towards an A4 quattro "Progressive" (mid-line trim in Canada) with Comfort seats option, and other than that I think it has and does everything I could wish for. I think of it a little bit as "the WRX for grown-ups", hahah. Quick enough for me, and way quieter inside - my main complaint of Subarus.

I've read the 'quattro Ultra' thread backwards and forwards - and albeit without having driven one yet, I am pretty sure that I (a) could live with (b) won't ever notice this.

My biggest question I haven't been able to figure out - does the A4 manual gearbox have any sort of "automatic hill-hold' function on the brakes when starting off? Yes I know there is "a button for the parking brake" and that is not what I mean at all.
Subarus have had this since about 2010 or so, and it's fantastic - on any sort of incline the brakes don't actually release until about 1.5s after your foot comes off the pedal, more than enough time to give it some gas and start letting the clutch out. Yes I could drive a stick without this, but it makes it much easier still. Once you've tried it you won't want to do without.

Other question -purchasing in Canada (southern Ontario) - currently I have my heart set on Gotland Green with the dark brown (Nougat?) leather - I think that would look very classy. There are a few 6-speed A4s around here on dealer lots, but they seem to all have taken a page from Henry Ford, and only come in black [sighs]. Any comments on buying off the lot vs ordering one to spec? I did the latter with my last Subie (I want: this trim + this colour + this transmission) and never regretted it other than the two months it took for the car to finally appear - for anyone who's done this on an A4, what are your experiences or recommendations?

Thanks muchly!

B

VM

I ordered one, so did others in Canada. Dealer changed an inventory car in the pipeline to match my order; the car arrived in the GTA 9 weeks after the order was made, but I got lucky because it made it onto a ship it should not have been on and so it left Emden like 10 days early. Frankly, especially given the small Canadian market and therefore the limited inventory, if you want something unusual (e.g. me wanting a Technik without the evil awful S-Line sport package and with a grey interior), ordering is the way to go.

Get the order guide, review it CAREFULLY (there are little details, e.g. about headliner colours, etc. that are subtle and different across countries), then talk to your dealership. Note that Audi Canada will honour lease rates/residuals/incentives/etc at the time of order if they are better than the incentives/residuals/etc at the time the car arrives (I believe Audi US will not).

One other thing: I believe manual and DSG cars are separate models as far as the Audi ordering/allocation/etc systems are concerned, so they can't change an existing inventory order for a DSG car to meet your specs but rather have to change a manual car or wait for the next allocation for a manual car.

(if you don't have a dealer/sales guy yet and you want the contact info for the fellow I bought my car from, PM me)

Mikalandzelo

Hey man,
I literary just joined the forums to answer your question (also lurker).
I own a b9 with a m/t. It definitely does have an automatic hill hold function. However, it only lasts a couple of seconds in my experience, so it does not function like a permanent brake while you are on a hill. I have not specifically tested for this, but it is what I have noticed while driving the car.

Blodger

Thanks guys, much appreciated.
@Mikalandzelo, yes that's exactly what I meant, and sounds very similar to how Subaru does it. It only holds the car for an extra second or so after you lift off the brake pedal - just long enough to get on the throttle. It's very slick, and mine works facing uphill or down (equally handy for reversing out of the driveway). Glad to see Audi is on board with this.
@VM - good to know. Yeah I probably will end up ordering one if(?)/when(!) I'm finally ready to take the leap - this will be a little 'step up' for me, and so I think will be well worth it to get one exactly how I want it.

MDAudi

YES, there is a "hill hold" feature with the manual transmission. I don't know exactly how long it holds, but certainly long enough for anyone with passable skill with a stick shift.

ptmdsharp

On the Audi USA website, you can order up a manual A4 in green so they're making them in the manual and sport plus. (Earlier this summer, the online configurator only showed Daytona gray for sport plus) I hope that bodes well for you in Canada. I think green and blue are both nice and you're right, they're fairly rare. Good luck

blassus

I, too, own a B9 manual and love it. As others have said, it has a “Hill hold” feature, but if you’re concerned it won’t hold for long enough, you can engage the parking brake, which will automatically release when you set off.