mfrish

I'm going to be taking the plunge on a 2015 or 2016 S4 with MMI later this year when my Hyundai Genesis lease expires. Can't come too soon for me. Good riddance.

Just had a couple of questions for current owners:

1) What are your little annoyances with the 2015 or 2016 S4? I have a ton with the Genesis.
2) Does the S4 allow you to keep it in a particular drive mode even when the car is turned off and restarted? Or do you have to select the drive mode everytime you turn the car back on?
3) Do you have to turn on the heated seats everytime you turn on the car, or do they store the last setting from when you turned it off?
4) If you're listening to something through bluetooth, and you turn the car off, does it start in bluetooth mode when you turn the car back on?
5) Most listings I see on Carmax and Ebay make no mention of the sport differential, probably because the sellers don't know that it's a big deal. Is there any good way to determine whether an S4 includes it?


Thanks in advance for your help.

DrGP

1) First of ll this is a great car. all cars have their idiosyncrasies, But the Germans seem to have a better handle on how to build a car than the Koreans
2) Not sure, since I drive a 6MT. I do know that my Sport Dif (2011 model) settings revert back to auto when I shut the car off. But with an Audi, there are so many settings that you can modify with a simple Vag Com tool or Carista or Obleven device, that I would be surprised if you could not change it to the way you want it if it doesn't come that way from the factory
3)Heated seats will sty on unless you turn them off.
4) Not sure about the Bluetooth, My car does not have it from the factory. But I do have it by using a tune2air adapter.
5) Best way to determine if the car has a spoert dif is to crawl under the car and look. However, You can usual's tell by looking on the console or dash on left side under radio. Look for buttons that read"Comfort, Auto/Dynamic/Individual" or Drive select. Like this

https://www.bing.com/images/search?v...=23&ajaxhist=0

https://www.bing.com/images/search?v...104&ajaxhist=0

https://www.bing.com/images/search?v...=58&ajaxhist=0

which is what it would look like if the car did not have NAV

superswiss

The answers are a bit different for the MYs OP is looking at. The above is for the B8.

2) The last drive mode settings along with climate control, seat position etc is stored on the individual key fob and restored back to what they were the last time the fob was used. So multiple drivers can have their own settings. The only exception is the S-tronic doesn't stay in Sport mode to encourage more fuel efficient driving and to give you time to warm up the car before going back to Sport mode. It's a simple flick on the shifter to get back in Sport mode.

3) The driver side seat heater stays on, but the passenger side turns off. It might be tied to the occupancy sensor in the passenger seat which also turns off the passenger side airbag if nobody is actually sitting in the seat.

4) Yes, it stays on the last audio source.

5) The presence of the Drive Select button does not automatically mean the car has the Sport Differential. Drive Select became standard in 2014. So the easiest way to tell is going into the MMI and pull up the Individual mode settings and see what components are listed there. That will also tell you if the car has the standard steering or the Dynamic steering (not to be confused with Dynamic mode). You can always call up AoA with the VIN and they'll give you the list of options.

Here's an example from a car that has the Dynamic steering and the Sport differential. If the car doesn't have the Dynamic steering, then it just says Steering there.

LighthouseJ

So you asked about 2015-16 S4. I have a 2014, which is a B8.5 too, so I think answers from a '14 owner is also valid.

1) None really. I've come from a 2007 A4 and it's really fixing the flaws of an A4 (power, drive settings, transmission choices, fit and finish, etc...) as minimal as they may be.
2) This answer has two parts based on what you mean by "drive mode". (a) There's "drive select", which lets you change between comfort, dynamic, individual, etc... That gets saved like all other settings. (b) if you mean the S-tronic Drive/Sport and Manual modes, then I'm not sure. I haven't parked it in another mode besides Drive so I don't know from experience and the car manual does not specify, but I would assume it starts in Drive.
3) Never tried to use my heated seats. I've only had my S4 a few weeks now and it's summer time still.
4) I only use Bluetooth to make calls, so never listened to audiobooks or anything else (yet)
5) You should lurk these forums more to find out. Usually you're told that you can either (a) look in the MMI for a car adjustment regarding the differential setting, and/or (b) look under the car for the actual parts.

mfrish

Thanks everyone for the responses. That helps alot. Now I just have to find the right one.

AForePlayin'03

I have a 2014 B8.5 also and I tested this today. I parked in S but when I came back and started the car, it was in D.

huskyz

Here are a few annoyances just for the funn of it. I do like the car a lot overall.

1) For ME, the (leather) seats are problematic
2) Window controls are too touchy/fast for easy, precise adjustment while in flight... i.e. "just right" in partially open positions... without hassle and head turning. I have come to wish for a dash indicator or "detented" control like on some audio equipment.

3) My old Saab has two sun visors per side enabling concurrent deployment to front and side windows. This is a nice, cheap feature that should be standard on thoughtfully built cars. I miss them here.

4) It should be easier to just leave the radio on with the car stopped, especially with the door ajar. My guess is there is an incantation that will accomplish this. I just haven't found it yet. In 50+ years of driving I haven't had to. The stupid warning keeps dinging and/or I sometimes mistakenly restart the engine. I'm learning to sometimes dislike the push button start/stop implementation...butt sometimes I love it.

5) I'll stop for now...butt the electronics/computer et al era is constantly "evolving" and it's likely I'll never learn to love them in any car. I think we're enduring a sometimes difficult transition period to the autonomous car and human brain implant.

Butt I do love the S4 at times...and the list of "likes" is much longer. Good luck to you. Hope you find a good one. I'm considering an upgrade in 2019-20, still dreaming of an S4-6 Avant...