s4auug

Those of you who use an S4 as a daily driver, can you share any opinions/feedback on the following:

1. Overall comfort when in the car for 1 hour plus
2. Enjoyment of the interior (again as daily driver) and ergonomics
3. Any regrets
4. Any maintenance concerns
5. Any annoyances?


I have a g37 and am bored of the car. I get bored quickly and trying to upgrade to a keeper.

Zed 2.0

It's an excellent daily driver. No real annoyances other than brake squeal in cold weather, which is fixable with a set of ceramic pads. I'd suggest finding a dealer that will let you take one out for an hour or so since your impressions will vary. I went through 4 cars in 6 years before finding the S4, which I plan to keep for the forseeable future.

s4auug

lol - sounds like me :-). What were your past rides?

Zed 2.0

B5 A4, Legacy GT, 135 and then the S4. With a '75 2002 and a S2000 thrown in for good measure as second cars. The S4 is by far the best of the bunch.

zulujams

I was getting bored with VW and didn't like the way they are heading for their Passat, plus I wanted more power and features. I find the driver's seat to be a little smaller than what I'm used to, but at 6'3" I have the headroom and legroom that I need that is lacking in many domestic and Japanese cars. I'm comfortable and love the layout inside and the looks outside. I can't speak to maintenance yet as I bought used and have not hit the 15K maintenance yet.

You should definitely test drive an S4, and read through the threads in this forum. You'll find lots of info. Ask away with questions.

m444

The S4 is a great daily driver if you want 4 doors.


1. Overall comfort on long drives is very good
2. Most of interior and ergonomics is fine - minor annoyances (like not returning to radio presets on MMI & center console stepped catch)
3. Wish I ordered prestige with ADS, rear sunscreen & Ti pkg
4. No maintenance issues - added SC heat exhanger protection screen
5. Annoyances....gas mileage goes low, when driving agressively... duh....

DrGP

The S4 is extremely comfortable. Interior ergonomics are great. Exhaust sound is quite muffled(too muffled for my taste). Suspension is very compliant even with the 19" tires.

I hate the silver plastic trim around the instrument panel. It only looks decent if you have the Alum trim(I have the CF trim). But I painted mine Satin Black and to me it just looks right. Others have had this painted gloss black and there is CF trim available from Matt@oCarbon.

In an effort to keep my lease payment down, I did not get the nav or B&O radio. Most of the younger guys think those 2 options are a necessity. I'm happy without them.

There is always a big debate whether to get the standard Alcantara seats, which many love, or spring for the Nappa leather. Both are great and you can't go wrong with either.

Major annoyance is the weak sounding exhaust. Aftermarket exhausts are available

Here's the great thing about the S4. It has a dual personality. It can be driven very conservatively and you would never be cognizant of what is under the hood. BUT, when you want to get on it, the performance of the car is amazing. All weather car as well. Do not get one without the sport differential.

Most of the maintenance issue have been rectified. however i and others have had to have the IC radiators replaced from stone damage. Not covered under warranty. Cost me $450. There is a fairly cheap and easy DIY screen that can be fabricated and installed to help protect the IC radiators.

plivac

1. Overall comfort when in the car for 1 hour plus

excellent - sporty with good back support, but comfy too if you have (ADS)

2. Enjoyment of the interior (again as daily driver) and ergonomics

excellent - better ergonomics than 3 or C series - would like slightly wider island between seats,and it would be great to get an MMI upgrade

3. Any regrets

no backup camera - got it of the lot since only one with ADS

4. Any maintenance concerns

not really

5. Any annoyances?

cheap plastic on doors - will wear out and buzz eventually

its not a B8 RS4

helix139

I came from an 08 Bullitt Mustang and honestly I couldn't ask for a better daily driver than my S4. In answer to your question:

1. Perfectly comfortable. I LOVE the seats in this car. Very supportive with excellent bolstering, but not constrictive or harsh. I've taken it on a road trip and a couple day trips, too, and it's just a great car to ride in.

2. Ergonomics are great. I love the MMI **** placement behind the shifter, the placement of ADS buttons to allow easy access with my hand on the shifter.

3. No regrets. I got exactly what I wanted.

4. No maintenance concerns. Got AudiCare thrown in for free and I do my own oil changes at 5k in between. Only problem I had was a creaking clutch that was repaired under warranty

5. My only annoyances were minor. It took a bit to get used to turning the MMI **** left to go down on a menu and right to go up, as the clickwheel on iPods was the opposite. I also wish it had A2DP, voice control over music, etc., and a larger hard drive to import music on. No huge deal though as I have a 32GB SD card and room for another if I need it, and could always get a hard drive to plug into the AMI. I also found the stock shifter to be a bit vague and have a long throw. JHM short shifter fixed that right up.

396ci

I've been through a few(3) cars during a 5 year stretch before I picked up the S4. I'm definetly keeping this one for atleast 3 to 4 years.

Comfort: Excellent. I prefer the 20-way seats from the E60 535i I previously had, but these are decent enough.
Ergonomics: Excellent as well. Window switches are just where they should be, not too close, not too far away. the MMI control buttons seem daunting at first, but are way better layed out than other ****-controller interfaces IMO.
Regrets: like the other poster, I should have just gotten the prestige for the intelligent key and rear shades.
Maintainance concerns: none
annoyances: S-tronic TCU and engine ECU logic... I think I would be happy with the ADS dynamic's shift points without the ramped up throttle feedback being so sensitive. Comfort shifts way too early.