What Car is one of the biggest mags in the uk, more 'mainstream/conservative/practical', and arguably less of a performance enthusiasts magazine

their review echos some of the others, but is more positive - looking at all the reviews, the consensus is great engines, good interior with the exception of the rear seat (which I sat in at Geneva, and it is cramped but not quite as bad as the magazines suggest), well built, but handling not up there with the bmw

being realistic, the 3 series is meant to be the best handling car in its class by a wide margin. I think the a5 is am improvement, but not quite there - realistically did anyone expect anything else

regarding styling, I've seen it in the flesh and think it's stunning, so dont understand the reviews

as for engines, I've gone for the diesel for the same reason as what car - almost as fast as the s5, cheaper, and fuel economy almost twice as good

there is one issue regarding ride. the uk audi site quoes a sport model with 20mm lower ride height, bigger wheels &amp; sports seats. but the s-line moel has all kinds of s-line goodies (steering wheel, badging, etc), as well as the seats &amp; the wheels, but only 5 or 10mm lower suspension, and costs more. I don't understand the lack of consistency<ul><li><a href="http://www.whatcar.co.uk/car-review-summary.aspx?RT=2733">http://www.whatcar.co.uk/car-review-summary.aspx?RT=2733</a</li></ul>

As Audi will probably tune UK cars slightly for UK roads, this also means the UK cars might handle better (on UK roads) than the European spec cars driven in Italy by the press. (The UK has notoriously pot-holed and twisty roads).

For the US, you would probably want the German 'autobahn cruising' setup?

I was hoping that the 'feel' would be on par (or close to it) with the 3 Series. This is an all new platform and Audi has had years to try and get this right. We know that Audi can do it, evidence to the recent RS4 that is praised for it's 'neutral' handling...

That might be nice...

the A4 "Touring" package goes for $35k which is a great alternative to the standard cosmetic enhanced S-Line.

Even though I've lived with a highly modified A4 out of warranty for the last six years, and never had any big problems (though it is in the shop now getting the sunroof fixed, which is not going to be fun!), a well-engineered performance package with a warranty is great peace of mind.