cni2i

Hello everyone. I have owned my RS4 now for approximately 3 weeks now. So far, I love this car...from its aggressively subtle exterior looks to its well documented thrilling acceleration and impressive braking abilities.

The one gripe I do have about my RS4 is its handling...more specifically, its steering. I came from owning 2 BMW e46s. The steering feedback from my e46s was much more "sporty" than on my RS4! By sporty, I mean that the RS4 steering is almost over assisted...little feedback. I wouldn't go as far as saying it's like the feedback you get from a lexus ES...but you get my point. It's just too overly assisted. Any thoughts on this?

AofC_RR

If you pull the fuse to the servotronic steering that'll firm things up!

cni2i

Has anyone else noticed this? Can anything really be done about this? Again, I love my RS4, but just miss the stiffness of the BMW steering.

James P.

Not sure that much can be done. Rememeber, you switched from a rear-wheel drive car to an all-wheel drive car so having power to the front wheels will definitely make a difference to the steering feel...

GotRS?

It gets much less assistance at higher speed, but as said, it's not RWD and your arms will get tired pretty quick 'round town without that lower speed boost. Tire choice should make a difference, get something grippy.
Congrats on the car btw.

cni2i

Thank you James. I appreciate the honest reply. You're right. I have been driving RWD cars for the past 7 years or so. Again, I have absolutely no regrets going to the RS4. Just thought I shared my impressions.

Vijay

Interesting. Most reviews of the RS4's steering have praised it even above the M3. that being said, getting the slightly smaller and thicker Euro wheel and 275 tires will definitely give you more sterring feedback, effort and response.

cni2i

Really? Audi obviously know how to build nice sports cars...R8s and RS4s. A colleague of mine has an R8, so I have had the opportunity to drive it. I didn't push it or anything, but the steering feedback seemed more engaging. Maybe Audi engineers knew that the RS4 is a relatively heavier car, and thus added more "assist" to the steering?!

I remember that the BMW e46 330s in 2001 added more steering assist to those cars...after hearing a lot of complaints from consumers, BMW changed the steering feel back to "less assist" in their 2002+ models. Much better!

On changing the tires...has anyone staggered their tire setup in his RS4? Maybe leave the 255s in the front and 275s in the rear? Please advise.

India Whiskey Charlie

There is a lot more than "assist" that goes into the steering feel of cars. Weight distribution and location of the steering rack are two key factors before electronics and hydraulics come into play. The R8 is a mid engine and has its steering rack lower and more forward than that of the RS4. That contributes hugely to how direct a steering feels. The R8 steering does feel more direct, precise and more connected to the road. Having said that, I don't think the RS4 steering is over assisted, but it is not perfect either. It has an on/off "on center" feel and not as linear as I'd like it to be. Tire pressures also make a difference as the higher pressures you run the more assisted the steering feels. I run my front pressure at 38 psi and I feel comfortable with the way the steering feels.

Bottom line, no matter what you do, you will not get the typical BMW steering feel. Which, IMO, was best in the 6-cylinder E39 chassis. The E46 M3 didn't even come close. The newer E90/92 is far superior, though.

cni2i

Thanks for the insight. Yeah, I am not pretending that I know all the in's and outs about how the steering mechanism works...I can just speak from my personal experiences. I will check my tire pressures, and maybe try setting the front at 38psi. I am obviously not trying to duplicate BMW's steering feel, but just wanted to hear suggestions from other RS4 owners.