Stoney

I spied our friend-slash-Porsche-Salesman Bob Stewart, standing out front of the local Audi dealership, Stevens Creek. A customer was just leaving in his BWM 530. Rear end was tolerable, but the front was ugly as a bedsore. And, no apparent resemblance to the outgoing 5 series.

A new S4 Avant, silver, was sitting front-and-center by the street. Bob was bored, so we grabbed the keys and a license plate.

First impressions: the S-grille makes me smile (but I'm biased, see my sig pic), but the Avus wheels have gone downhill. The spokes are no longer in a plane, but slope inward (towards the brakes). Other bevels of the wheel don't look very appealing to me. And the paint job seems plasticky. Ronal should stop bragging about these wheels.

The sport seats are definitely nice, better even for my wide size than my A6 sport seats. Driving position was comfortable (I'm 6'2"), but there wasn't much legroom left behind me. Shoulder room was more than the outgoing 5 series but less than my A6.... defnitely enough for a wide former butterfly champion.

The clutch felt grabby and light at first, but actually was near ideal for me once I got used to it. I like low effort but easy modulation, and this clutch seemed that way to me.

Stick shift sets nicely lined up with 3rd-4th, making it easy to find all the gears with a modest press of the **** either way.

Torque was definitely a step up from my A6 4.2. Ride is firmer yet smoother, by a large margin. If the tires had more than 96 miles on them, I'd have felt comfortable taking cloverleafs at high speed with almost no seat time.

I could enjoy this car, quite easily. Perhaps it will be my wife's next car? We'll see. (Mine may be the Nuvolari, if we can swing it.)

When we returned, a black Lamborghini was in the lot. Apparently it was a Murcielago (not the Gallardo as I had thought). It may have been the car of one customer who seemed to be picking up a second car for his S.O.. This was probably the new "baby" Lambo, but all it said on the badges was 6.2 liter (IIRC). I liked the relatively conservative lines compared to the spaceship macho toys I'm used to seeing from that firm.

Too bad my wife decided to stay home and nap this afternoon....

StoneMan

Sounds like a hell of a time. I've thought about the new S, myself at times

chairman

and agree with your assessment. I was favorably impressed with almost all aspects of the car. I tried to hold back since the car had 34 miles on the clock, but that seemed like a superhuman feat. I came back with a grin from ear to ear. My 15 y.o. daughter didn't like the shifting, but what does she know? Or could it be I am not as good as I once was? I think I need a refresher course...maybe I can drive it again tomorrow night.

My wife and I drove 2 new 530's today, one with Sport Package and Active Steering and one without. The cars impressed me with their build quality and their execution. For me the jury is still out on the "restyling".

We saw one in Black with Gray and one with Black and Black. They were stunning. This car wears black very well.

The Silver non-sport model we drove had the optional ($1800) stereo and it was very nice, what I would expect to have been standard. The Blue sport equiped car had the standard stereo, what a let down. (I guess I am too critical)

The "sport" car's steering felt lighter than we expected after driving a non-sport car first. The car is comfortable, but I am not impressed with the I-Drive. I think it is distracting, it is easy to use once you get the hang of it (or have your daughter show you how "oh dad!"). It may make the "short list" for my wife's next car (if I can swing the S4, that is!). We'll see.

mpuzach

I saw that car last week. Does that thing sound sweet or what?

tujuh7

Saw one today (new 530i)....OMG...I almost mistake it for a Mazda...it's Fugly.....

larrycr

I wonder if the wheel change fixes the problem with the wheels rubbing on the guide rail in car washes? The wheels on the B5 S4 extend past the plane of the tires and are in serious jeopardy when they get up against something.

LCR
2002 A6 4.2
2001 S4 Avant