tomato1

I'm very interested in buying a CPO 2017 A4 Sedan (build date 3/30/16) but can't seem to get Solid confirmation from the local dealers, VOA customer service etc if in fact it does have a Torsen all wheel drive system and Not the new Ultra.

Could the Quattro experts please chime in...

twlai

the new Ultra AWD will be for the manual transmission only. Yours will have the torsen AWD.

hans007

from what i've read the quattro ultra is only on manuals, the allroad and q5. the a5, a5 sportbacks and a4 sedans DSGs are all torsen / full time awd

Ryan Otto

The only US car with the new quattro right now is the A4 allroad. Not sure why you would be against the new system, it works perfectly in my car. I can tell you I have absolutely no clue when the car decides to use all four wheels. It is seamless. Plus, if you like all time all wheel drive there is a setting that allows you to "lock" the system so it works exactly like the traditional torsen system in off-road or poor weather conditions.

srolle

superswiss

It will have neither. It has the newer self-locking center differential with toque vectoring aka selective wheel torque control. As said, Quattro Ultra is going to be in the manual transmission A4. The old torsen doesn't allow for torque vectoring, that's a feature made possible by the newer Audi developed self-locking differentials starting with the crown-gear center differential in the B8 RS5.

From page 134 in the user manual:

adg44

It is a self locking center differential. Torsen is just the brand name. It will torque vector via the ESC system. The differentials are open so this is how it adjusts torque left to right.

As stated, manual A4/A5 will have quattro ultra, as well as the 2017 allroad and 2018 Q5 2.0T.

rsilvers129

Not exactly even when locked, because the Torsen can put 60% torque to the rear for rear-bias. The Ultra is never rear-biased.

The question is-does that matter? If they do brake-based torque vectoring on the Ultra, then they could in theory dial out some understeer. It would be nice if Car & Driver and Motor Trend did a comparison test. I have not been able to find any good reviews. I think it is possible that there is no significant difference in feel, but I am skeptical.

James Cole

Interested in knowing how to lock the system...

stanj

When you drive at normal highway speeds through a stream of water crossing the roadway, which can happen after rain, the rear wheels will never see any action because the time to lock the Ultra takes longer than for the front wheels to swim. It's no savior against aquaplaning but having your car being pushed through is certainly better than giving inertia the final say. Won't happen in an old fashioned Torsen car.