ibu11et

This is interesting that the E&T setting is set by either doing it intentionally or by putting the car in S mode via the shifter. I would prefer if they operated independently of one another for gas mileage purposes.

I imagine that Dynamic Engine mode advances the timing slightly and ups the boost a smidge. I think Dynamic transmission mode holds the current gear longer in order to keep the car more responsive.

Separating those two would allow for better gas mileage and still keep the response we are craving.

markcincinnati

I agree -- but even though I believe I am correct in my "assumption," it would be interesting to have someone from Audi give us an absolutely definitive answer.

I remain, often wrong, never uncertain -- is the thing.

superswiss

This is probably the most confusing part about Drive Select. Toggling between D/S only affects the transmission and engine setting. S is the same as setting engine/transmission to Dynamic and D is the same as setting engine/transmission to Auto/Comfort. The engine and transmission strangely only have two modes. Auto and Comfort are the same. You can see this on p.135 in the owner's manual. Both Comfort and Auto set the engine/transmission to balanced and Dynamic sets it to sporty.

You need to think of Drive Select as predefined profiles. If you select one of the profiles, it adjusts the corresponding subsystems. Selecting Dynamic puts the transmission in S. Selecting Auto or Comfort puts it in D. But in addition the transmission allows you to change its mode w/o having to change the Drive Select profile. On some cars like the R8 and TT RS you can do the same with the exhaust. There is a button that lets you toggle the exhaust between Comfort/Auto and Dynamic w/o having to change the whole Drive Select profile just to change the sound of the car.

BMW and Merc go even further. They let you control each component independently with buttons on the console in addition to having "Drive Select" profiles that let you change multiple settings at once.

I personally like the ability to control the transmission independently of the overall Drive Select mode, because I mostly have my car setup the way I want in Individual for regular driving, but then if I feel a bit more adventures, I can simple flip the engine/transmission to Dynamic by toggling to S. All this is also important to understand if you tend to use M mode. There is a difference between going to M from D vs going to M from S. You will have a sharper throttle response and crisper shifts if you go from S to M and a more relaxed throttle response and less crisp shifts if you go from D to M.

EDIT: BTW, the R8 (I think only the EU trim, though) makes the latter a lot clearer by how it displays it in the Virtual Cockpit. Below you can see how it displays M<current gear>S if you went to M from S. I wish they would do this on all models and in the U.S. as well.

markcincinnati

It seems that my conclusion that there is only Comfort and Dynamic is pretty close to reality -- but then, what is the purpose of Auto? I assumed Auto defaulted to Comfort, but that Comfort meant ONLY comfort, that Auto meant Comfort OR Dynamic was actually at least possible.

There is no "gradual" change in the modes, Auto, however, so I thought, allowed for either Comfort OR Dynamic whereas Comfort means comfort and Dynamic means Dynamic. I love the "M" under "D" mode and "M" under "S" mode concept with the display of the M, the gear and the mode S, in the graphic, above.

njspeedfreak

This. I have the S5. When driving on the highway in S mode it never goes into 8th gear *UNLESS* I put into cruise control. As soon as I do that it upshifts to 8th.

This probably explains why people are having different experiences with this. You need to report the behavior with and without cruise control enabled.

BTW - You can use ODB11 (or similar tools) to enable the gear display while in D and S modes - this is how I noticed the connection between the CC setting and the top gear.

superswiss

If you look at the table on p.135 I referenced in my post, you'll notice that most components do indeed have three modes. Steering, suspension etc. do have distinct characteristics in Auto different from Comfort. How Auto behaves depends on the component. For some components Auto may mean that it gradually changes from Comfort to Dynamic depending on your current driving style, but for other components Auto isn't just a gradual transition.

A good example is the optional Dynamic Steering. In Comfort mode the steering ratio changes from 9:1 to 18:1 depending on vehicle speed and other sensor inputs and is accompanied by decreased power steering assist, but still comfortable/light to turn even at highway speeds. Even though the steering remains light in Comfort, by making the ratio more indirect results in exceptional straight line tracking. In Auto mode, the steering ratio changes similar as in Comfort mode, however, the power steering assist is decreased more aggressively as speed increases, but starts out as light as Comfort mode for easy maneuvering at low speeds. However, Dynamic mode behaves completely different. In Dynamic mode, the steering ratio gets locked in at 14.1:1 at all times and power steering assist is less at low speeds and aggressively decreases as the speed increases. So the Dynamic Steering is one component that has three very distinctive modes.

Audi doesn't really document anywhere afik, what Auto means exactly for each component. They generally describe it as the mode meant for daily driving that best adapts to various driving conditions and styles. However, as described, the engine and transmission don't have an Auto mode. Comfort mode is already adaptive as the transmission is by design adaptive. If you start driving more spirited in Comfort mode, the transmission automatically starts to hold gears longer etc. That also happens in Dynamic mode, however, the base line in the Dynamic mode is more sporty to begin with. You don't necessarily have to drive aggressive in Dynamic in order for the transmission to hold gears longer, but it won't redline unless you push it hard, so the automatic transmission being adaptive to the current driving situation in the first place kinda makes it a different animal.

markcincinnati

When I tap the brake pedal, the ACC disengages and the car stays in 8th gear. It is my recollection that I have never actually turned the cruise control to the OFF position since I bought the car, even when I don't actually use it. I wonder if I took the extra step of actually turning the ACC off, if there would be any difference in the upshift to 8th.

I'll try this and report back.

Also, I am now wondering if the ACC is actually NOT on if the RED alert (NOT the triangle -- NOT Pre-sense) would still come on when the assured clear distance was not being kept.

In this case, it would seem prudent to NEVER turn it off, even if you aren't using the ACC for automatic go and stop and to maintain speed.

I am positive that since the very first time I turned the ACC on (the day I picked up the car), I have never turned it off. In fact when I change my VC to show "what is active" the phrase "ACC on Standby" is always displayed. I assumed that just meant I wasn't currently using the ACC for the autonomous function of go and stop. Perhaps if I PUSH the ACC lever (thus turning ACC off, I assume), there will be a change in the 8th gear behavior.

My wife's car does NOT have ACC, it has "regular" cruise control, which, to my knowledge has NEVER been turned on (she'd soon die). Maybe her's would go to 8th gear if the regular cruise control was turned on (and the gear was indicating S mode)?

More tests.

markcincinnati

Tested: When the mode is "S" and ACC is NOT engaged, the S4 will, indeed, NOT upshift to 8th.

This leads me to ask this question: If a "safe" place actually could be found that would allow the S4 to be floored (no cruise set) for an indefinite period of time -- and also assuming the car has not had the top speed reset by virtue of the GT all-season tire option -- would the car reach the terminal velocity of 155MPH in S or D, or both, but due to the 7th gear restriction of S mode, S would accelerate to 155MPH quicker?

I have come to deploy (and enjoy) S mode over D mode so completely, I had never noticed (nor had I even thought of it) that S wouldn't shift to 8th, simply because I use S mode 99% of the time and I use ACC 90% of the time. When I don't use ACC, I am not in circumstances where 8th gear would ever come into play, therefore I had not noticed that S, sans ACC, did allow 8th gear to be reached.

Live and learn.

Of course, what this means is that for those folks who don't have DAP, they'll have to use S mode for all of their driving up until they hit the Interstate or other roads and/or highways where sustained speeds of 50 or higher MPH are possible, then they can flick the lever to change to D which will permit the final gear to be selected.

Prediction -- DAP will be made available in P+, then it will become standard equipment across all models (with the possible exception of Premium models, which will NOT impact the S4 in any case.) I "assume" these changes may come as early as 2019 MY -- perhaps coming in stages, P+ first as an option, and Prestige as standard, then perhaps in mid-year (a running change) standard equipment in the P+'s. I believe the constraints to complete availability (besides marketing) is the availability of the componentry involved to implement DAP. My dealer told me that DAP equipped cars are often the subject of "discriminating" thieves, the componentry is in such high demand (and the supply chain hasn't caught up yet).

The new A8 will add what appears to be "unlimited" duration Traffic Jam Assist (via the addition of a laser scanner), this feature apparently suffices to allow Audi marketing to tout the A8 as a "level 3" automation vehicle (I am unclear if this makes it the first or second vehicle to make this claim -- presumably Tesla would be the other).

One would assume this level of automation hardware and software will not be ONLY offered on the A8 for long -- I would think the new A6 (next MY) would offer it either from day one or as a "late availability feature/option," then the Q's will get it and -- again, one would assume -- then the A4 and A5 family would get it (perhaps coincidental with the Q's).

The level of exclusivity would probably not last long considering how many vehicles (even below the premium class) are either offering as standard or optional some version of DAP already. Audi needs to disseminate Level 3 automation to all of their models considering that "everybody" will be offering essentially DAP not just in Infinitis, but then in Nissans, not just in Lexus, but also in Toyotas, etc.

Then, my 2018 DAP that is almost always "turned on" (at least the ACC) will seem "quaint" -- and the next generation of the cars will "default" to the various DAP features being "always on" (like auto stop/start) but perhaps with the ability to turn them off (like auto stop/start).

My predictions, of course, are often wrong, but never uncertain.

superswiss

I don't know specifically about the S4, but Audi states specifically on some models that top speed cannot be reached in top gear. That's the case for the RS5 for example. 174 mph can only be reached in 6th gear. 7th gear does not produce enough wheel torque.

I doubt DAP will become standard anytime soon.

The new Audi A8 is indeed the first production Level 3 car. Tesla is only Level 2, believe it or not. That's part of the danger with them calling it Autopilot. Unfortunatley, it will be a while before the A8 is actually sold with the system active. They can't sell it anywhere until the legislation is in place. They are currently working on it in Germany. The first A8s won't have the AI feature.

njspeedfreak

Or do what I do. Leave it in S, then once up to speed engage the cruise control and let the car shift into 8th. This way as soon as you disengage CC for any reason the car is in 7th gear again and ready for a quicker throttle response.

I like what Audi has done here, they figure if you have CC on you don't really need the trans/engine to be in sport mode since you are planning on maintaining a constant speed.