Gibber

Is there any way to set the default setting to Dynamic Mode? Every time I start the car it starts out in comfort mode so I have to switch it to Dynamic Mode. I enjoy waking up the neighbors as I rumble down the road.

superswiss

Drive select stays in the mode you last left it in, however, the transmission doesn't stay in Sport mode between cycling the engine. All you have to do is flick the gear selector down once to put it back into Sport. This behavior can't be changed and is there to provide better fuel economy.

mhblaw

...as said, if in dynamic mode and if you shift to S and back to D, the exhaust cut out will stay open, but you will have the lower rpm shift points.

superswiss

To elaborate on this some more. The transmission mode is largely independent of the drive select mode. Regardless of your current drive select mode, you can always put the transmission in Sport mode to get the sharper throttle response, louder exhaust, faster shifts etc. The only difference is that in dynamic mode, the exhaust valves stay open once they are open, regardless of the current transmission mode. That's why you can go back to D and still enjoy the louder exhaust.

Personally, I rarely drive in full Dynamic mode. I find it unsuitable for daily driving, especially the steering. So, I keep drive select in Individual most of the time with steering, cruise control in Comfort, Engine/Transmission in Auto and Sport diff in Dynamic. Then I simply play with the transmission mode depending on how I feel. D Auto, D Manual, S Auto or S Manual. Only if I go canyon carving or drive on some twisty backroads do I actually switch to full Dynamic.

MichaelB_1969

I've also found that if you are in Individual Drive Select Mode with the transmission mode in Drive, then you cycle through the Drive Select Modes with the button, the exhaust flaps will open in Dynamic, and then if I press the button again, the flaps will stay open so that I get the louder exhaust with Drive Select in Individual, and transmission in D. This may be dependent on your engine noise setting to be in Dynamic in Individual. However, if I simply start the car in Individual mode, the flaps will only open when I go to Sport transmission mode. I have to cycle through the Drive Select modes as described above to get the flaps to stay open in Individual and Drive.

Weird.

Anyways, I almost exclusively drive the car in manual mode, which is the exact opposite of how I drove the 2013 S4.

The reason is because none of the modes seem to be just right. When the transmission is in Drive mode, I feel as though the shift points are way too low. I like the shift points in Dynamic, BUT the downshifts are too aggressive for daily driving. On a track they would be perfect though.

So for me there is really no great auto mode. No matter, I love driving this car in manual mode. My routine is to keep it in individual mode where I have the tranny and diff set to Dynamic, the steering and shifting set to Auto. Then I shift to Sport transmission mode, and manual mode, and I'm off.

snagitseven

Just to add, when the shift lever is in "S" or "D", both the engine throttle mapping (amount of pedal travel relative to gas provided) and the gear mapping are affected. As noted previously, S or D shifter mode will override whatever is set in the MMI for the two aforementioned mappings but won't affect the other ADS settings, i.e. steering, etc.

superswiss

The transmission in the RS5 is clearly tuned for performance. There is nothing wrong with driving this car in manual mode most of the time. The auto modes are there for convenience and I think they work well if used for their intended purpose.

D: Smooth and relaxed driving, city and in-town driving and heavy traffic.
S: Track, High-speed passing, ripping up an onramp and all w/o having to worry about hitting the rev limiter.
Manual: All other times.

MichaelB_1969

Well said. Agree on S being handy for not having to worry about bouncing off the rev limiter.

Would be nice to have a visual cue (or series of them) as you approach redline actually, as it comes very quickly and power delivery is so strong and smooth over 8,000 rpm. My Elise had an indicator light but its placement below the tach made it sorta useless. The Ferrari 458 Italia shows them above the steering wheel hub and they're fairly bright, which is nice.

And yes, S is great for spirited driving in general.

wieRS5

Agree, D mode is way too lazy, when you drive through town, it will be in 6 or 7th gear very fast (it upshifts at 1,5K rpm), and then if you need some torque, you have none if you press the pedal softly. Then if you press the pedal firmly, it downshifts 3-4 gears........way too much, so not driveable for people who are used to sporty cars with manual stick.

The S mode is indeed great for performance driving, but too aggresive in town (it upshifts at 5-8K rpm)

Manual it is, or you set the "hidden" Efficiency mode (via VCDS), this is perfect trought town, since it upshifts at 3K rpm.

superswiss

You may need to drive in D more often. I keep the engine/transmission in Auto for daily driving and the shift points are pretty much in tune with how I drive at this point. It only upshifts at 1.5k if I drive like a grandma. Otherwise it upshifts as high as redline if I lean into the throttle. Agreed, that once I settle down it quickly hunts for 7th gear. If I need instant torque around town, I quickly switch to manual, get on the throttle and at the same time downshift 2 gears with a quick double flick of the paddle to go down two gears while its blipping the throttle. I go back to D as soon as I no longer need the torque.