Q7/A4/R8/TTS - Audi Driving Experience - check your spam inbox
 

Just did the Audi driving experience in Princeton NJ yesterday. I currently have a 2.0T Q5.

3 hours total, light food and drinks, promo video, tech overview and driving! Toms Audi sunglasses and case gift at end. Very professional and overall a blast.

3 driving experiences:
High performance auto-cross (40 min)
Street-style autocross (40 min)
Street caravan around town - test Q7/A4 - one lap each around town

The weather held up and we got to do autocross with the following:

R8 V10
R8 V8
TTS
Q7 Prestige will all options and 21" wheels
A4 S line
BMW X5
Merc GLE
3 series
C Class sedan

Two track set-ups:

High performance for the R8/TTS - 90 degree turns and slalom
Street style loop/slalom to compare Q7/A4 with competitors

Auto-cross system:
Free-for-all where you can switch cars in pit lane
Orange cones go, yellow cones brake
Audi driving instructors directing traffic and green flag go
go through course and don't knock over any cones

Impressions:
R8 V10 - HOLY SH*T. I wept. Once in a lifetime opportunity to hoon around in a 2.6 sec 0-60 beast. Corners and brakes on a dime and accelerations were violent and euphoric. Just wow.

TTS - I started in this for my first lap to get a lay of the track. Quick and nimble, but went into the R8 and any memories of the TTS were instantly erased.

Q7 - Went in the Q7 next. Very impressed. You start out in a left hand turn and so straight into a 90 left/straight/90 right/straight section and the handling was phenomenal. I couldn't believe you could do that in a SUV this size. I literally got the world's best test drive because I pushed it around the course and it felt so planted and secure. Your local dealer would have a heart attack if you did any of the shenanigans we did on the course. The 333 v6 tore up the track and rocketed out of the turns. I'm sold.

X5 - this is on my consideration list and the fact you could try these back to back was an eye opener. So much body roll I thought I was going to roll over. Sluggish and overall, I did not feel safe in it.

A4 - They get a lot out of the new 4 cl. Punchy acceleration and tight steering. Very impressed with the new 4 cl versus the 2.0T in my Q5.

3 Series - Slow and the steering was not responsive. Both BMW's had horrendous tire squeal around the course.

Merc GLE - did not try but my friend said it was in between the Q7 and X5

I did it last year at MetLife stadium, everything was setup in the parking lot.

For that setup if was the following:

Autocross:
A3 vs MB CLA250 and BMW 225i
A6 vs MB E300 and BMW 535l

High Speed:
RS5 and R8 V8

Feature track which I skipped and was my last event.

I wish they had the R8 V10 at mine as that is want I really wanted to drive. But I will say I did love the RS5.

This event is not coming Washington State =(

These events are cool. But keep in mind that if you've done any type of track event before, it will be underwhelming. Except for the V10 R8 rides that is :)

In Plano TX we only got to drive the Q7 and the A4 on city streets. It was underwhelming. I've done the SRT experience and it was much more fun. But it was free and I did get a pair od sunglasses out of it.