A4Scott

On my A4 I've got the dynamic steering (part of the sport plus package) and I have to say I notice zero difference between Dynamic, Auto, and Comfort in terms of steering ratio. I was under the impression that going slower, for example in a parking lot, if I have the dynamic steering set to auto or comfort I should not have to turn the steering wheel as far as in dynamic mode to make a tight turn (with dynamic mode having a constant ratio). For me, it seems exactly the same - it's about two rotations lock to lock regardless of what mode I'm in. For comparable turns I seem to turn the steering wheel the same amount. Am I misunderstanding how this should work? May also post this in the S4 forum as more people probably have dynamic steering there.

irenesbob

Where are you located? Here in the US a special dynamic steering is not part of the Premium Plus, even with the Sport package which I have. Only the Auto, Comfort and Dynamic settings in the MMI and this changes only the feel or effort, not the ratio.

A4Scott

I am in the US. It is part of the Sport Plus package (manual transmission only). Other posts (by superswiss, I believe) have indicated that it should behave like the following:

Dynamic Steering:

Comfort: Ratio changes with speed from 9:1 to 18:1, speed sensitive high level of assist
Auto: Ratio changes with speed from 9:1 to 18:1, speed sensitive moderate level of assist
Dynamic: Ratio fixed at 14.3:1, speed sensitive low level of assist.

Standard Steering:

Comfort: Ratio:15.9:1, speed sensitive high level of assist
Auto: Ratio: 15.9:1, speed sensitive moderate level of assist
Dynamic: Ratio: 15:9:1, speed sensitive low level of assist

This would indicate with dynamic steering I should see a ratio difference between dynamic mode and comfort/auto mode, but in my experience, at least at low speeds, it is the same.

That being said, Audi's information portal doesn't mention the ratio being different depending on mode (dynamic/comfort/auto) -- https://www.audi-technology-portal.d...namic-steering

"At low vehicle speeds – in city traffic and when maneuvering – dynamic steering is very direct; two turns of the steering wheel is all it takes to go from one lock to the other. The power assist is also high, making it very easy to maneuver the car into a parking space. On interurban roads, the system gradually becomes less direct and provides less power assist. At fast highway speeds, an indirect steering ratio and low level of power assist smooth out choppy movements of the steering wheel to facilitate effortless tracking."

irenesbob

Interesting! I even drove a stick with Sport Plus before getting my car and didn't notice anything about the steering. The owner manual does state there is a speed dependent ratio change. On the page after the dynamic steering section (page 128?) it shows various settings within the MMI with one for normal steering and one for dynamic steering . In that they show direct vs indirect as apart of dynamic steering - what does that mean? Is direct/indirect the Audi way to say the steering ratio is different?
Your post caused me to learn something I did not know, but now I am confused. I hope you get the answer you desire.

FlyLikeWoosh

I experience the difference typically when I'm on the highway. it takes almost half the movement of turning the wheel to change lanes than it does when I'm driving city. In other words my Dynamic Steering is working fine. Maybe you should have Audi check it out if you're not experiencing the same.

2018 Audi A4 Premium Plus with Sports Plus Manual Trans

superswiss

Yes, I was the one who posted that information about the dynamic steering in the past and I've been an advocate of it as well. Still am, but to be honest I've never tried it in an A4, so I don't know if it's different there. From your description it almost sounds like it is different or somehow even though Audi says it's part of the package, that it's actually not. Does your Drive Select Individual Mode screen in the MMI say "Steering" or "Dynamic steering". You should definitely feel a difference. In my RS5 when stationary it takes about 1.5 turns lock to lock in Comfort/Auto, and about 2 in Dynamic and its very apparent that I have to work the steering more if I tried to park the car in Dynamic mode vs. Comfort/Auto.

To the direct/indirect question above, yes that speaks to the ratio. In Comfort and Auto mode the steering is overall more indirect to improve straight line tracking and in Dynamic its more direct for quicker turns. However, when parking or at very slow speeds, it's actually opposite. Then it's very direct in Comfort and Auto mode for easy parking and maneuvering and more indirect in Dynamic mode, because the ratio stays fixed. The ratios posted above are for the B8.5 RS5 to be clear, I believe the B9 has slightly different ratios and A/S models may be slightly different as well.

A4Scott

Thanks. Yeah it definitely shows "dynamic steering" in the drive select menu. I believe it's the same dynamic steering that is on the S4 but I'm not sure if it is the same as is on the RS5. I certainly did not do any scientific testing as I tried it before seeing your write up on the differences and didn't know what I was supposed to be seeing/feeling. I'll try it again this afternoon to see if I notice anything different.

Thanks. I don't drive much on the highway, but will pay attention next time I do. I would have expected the opposite given Audi's description, "At fast highway speeds, an indirect steering ratio and low level of power assist smooth out choppy movements of the steering wheel to facilitate effortless tracking." I had interpreted "indirect" as meaning it takes more steering input to make the car turn (i.e. turn the wheel more) - is this understanding correct?

superswiss

Yes, this is the correct understanding. Sorry, I actually mixed up the lock to lock turns above. It's 1.5 in Comfort/Auto (more direct at slow speeds or stationary) and 2 in Dynamic mode. At highway speeds in Comfort/Auto the steering is more indirect (higher ratio) so that minor wiggles on the steering wheel don't cause a change in direction resulting in easier and more stable straight line tracking. It also reduces the amount of road surface impacts that are disturbing the steering making it overall more comfortable to drive.

Also, I should point out that in S and RS models with the sport differential it also feels different because the sport differential helps rotating the car. For example I mostly drive with the Dynamic steering in Auto and the Sport differential in Dynamic, which from the steering perspective is more indirect, but the sport differential then makes the car more eager to turn. I find this the best combination for daily driving as I still get the easy maneuvering direct steering at parking lot speeds, but at higher speeds it stays more agile thanks to the sport differential. More ways to customize I guess.

A4Scott

Interesting. I totally would have gone for the S4 and probably the sport diff, but was wanting to have "one more" manual A4 I'm pretty sure it's probably working fine in my car but being an engineer I like to understand what's going on when I change settings in my car that affect the way it drives and in the case of dynamic steering it's not clear to me yet that anything is happening with the ratio as a result of that change. I'll keep looking till I figure it out All this being said I do like the steering feel on this car. It is overall noticeably more direct than on other cars I've had (most of the time I've left it in dynamic mode).

FlyLikeWoosh

Yeah I usually keep it in Dynamic as well. I have the APR stage 1 tune with it and that paired with dynamic mode will really show the cars capabilities.

2018 Audi A4 Premium Plus with Sports Plus Manual Trans