Not exactly a sexy 8 potter as the previous B7 S4? Yes, freak out all you want Audi fans, the new S4 is a 3.0 ltr V6 Supercharged monster. Ok, a little bit less of a monster, from a natural aspirated 4.2 ltr V8 orgasmic screaming engine producing 340hp, the new Supercharged 3.0 ltr V6 will now produce 'only' 333hp, 7 less than the previous, and a whole lot more mass to ferry around. Is it a step behind in performance? Well performance in many sense, are multi dimensional, going fast in one direction might reduce the capability in covering more distance, in this case, distance per dollar's the key concern here, as the new engine is a lot more lighter, the Supercharged engine produces more torque over a wider power band, and best of all it produces a combine fuel consumption of only 9.7 ltrs per 100km! (24.25 mpg), hell that's even better than my own 1.8T ! To put into perspective what that means, given an assumed 55 liter gas tank, a full tank would cost around RM140.25 ($40 USD), and it could theoretically cover a distance of 567km per tank for combine city and urban driving! All this from a 3.0 ltr V6 Supercharged engine producing 333hp? Is that freaking awesome or what?!
In fact looking down the equation, the 5.3 second 0-100km/h sprint from the B7 S4 was shaved down by a significatn 0.2 seconds to 5.1 sec, and the heavier Avant could do 5.2 sec as well to the century mark. Another more important aspect of acceleration (we don't really care much about 0-100km/h) is the 80-120km/h band, this is the most important acceleration for any car driver as we never go pedal to the metal from idling, but we do so when overtaking other cars, and it's important for cars to be able to accelerate quickly from 80-120km/h to safely maneuver back to the belonging lane, and in this aspect, the S4 does it lightning quick, 4.4 seconds is all it takes, showing how torquey this new engine is. It's a good sign to see Audi developing engines in the direction of applying for physical, real life driving usage than outright "Brochure Showdowns".Exterior wise, as always, staying true to its tradition, this 5th S4, 4th A4 derived S4 (Yes, confusing but the first S4 wasn't derived from an A4, infact A4 hadn't exist back then) stays true to the original S4 B5 with those polished wing mirrors, horizontal slabs for the grill, larger front intakes, lower ride height, all aluminum axle and control arms are all that distinguish this from the run off the mill A4s. The S4 is also equipped with adaptive damping, where the driver could choose between comfort, dynamic and sport and the car's dynamics will adapt accordingly, switching throttle sensitivity, suspension etc.
Of course FSi contributes alot to the fuel saving and better power output figures, but one thing Audi's are equipped now is the excellent S-Tronic gearbox, sound unfamiliar? How about DSG? Yes, the S4 will be equipped with a 7-speed S-Tronic transmission, or a 6 speed manual. And let's not forget the interior, where Audi had consistently being regarded as the industry leader. (Can't feel that with my 11 year old A4 thou). Check out the released pictures for the time being while we await Audi's full release; the new S4 will be in showrooms around March 2009.
