The intent of this post is to begin a technical discussion between RS4 owners. Thoughts to date?
Lets discuss the what, where, why, and how's of ownership so far.
What are technical issues to date? Thoughts on pedal position, clutch throw, seat position via a vis your physical size, handling at the limit, experience with your service technician, etc. If you've owned analogous performance cars how do our RS4's compare? What technical feedback would you offer Audi engineering and why? Could lead to an interesting thread.

 

well, let me contribute to this thread with a long winded tale. the car has been great from a performance standpoint. everything it's cracked up to be. worth the money, no doubt about it. powerful, well balanced and refined. no complaints in that regard.

i've had a couple squirrley electronics issues (EPC light, service engine light) which was traced to a vacuum hose that went out that caused the "in-exhaust" valve to flap. then i had the Audi of America techs put 40 miles on my car to diagnose that problem which is b*llsh!t [:@] now i have to pursue this issue directly with audi customer service because (of course) the people the dealer contacted at Audi of America say there's nothing they can do about it. so from western region, i have to waste my time and contact someone in Michigan to try to get this resolved (i'm asking for 40 miles to be credited to my lease. not about the money, about the principle). on top of that, even though they put 40 miles on my car, they failed to diagnose and fix the second problem, which is an exhaust/suspension rattling noise which i also originally indicated. so now it has to go back again, presumably to get even more miles put on it for "diagnosing", but that's if i can ever get the dealer service department to return my calls.

i fedex'd a letter to the owner of the dealer and the western region director of Audi of America and finally got a call from the service manager. maybe things will get better but i'm not holding my breath. so far the dealer and audi corporate experience along with the overall ownership experience has been the worst of any car i have ever owned: bmw, mercedes-benz, nissan (was bad but not this bad), subaru (also not this bad) and even land rover (quality was bad but dealer was A+). i might add that land rover came in at the bottom of the JD Power IQS study in 2006.

speaking of which, i just got my JD Power survey and plan to share my experiences with them accordingly. any new car has some problems but it's how the dealer and the manufacturer deal with the issue that sets apart the likes of nissan, subaru and audi from mercedes-benz and lexus. maybe i should have waited for the IS500... i dunno....

sorry for the venting but aside from the driving experience of the car itself, i haven't been a happy camper. it's probably just my car assembly and my dealer and my regional AofA management that sucks. [&o]

 

In general delighted with the car. Performance, build quality, gadgets etc. However put the car into the dealer for something minor to be told Audi are monitoring clutch performance and on road testing my car ( March 2006, 2,500mls ) have found my clutch is slipping.
Audi want to upgrade and replace the clutch. Two weeks later I got my car back. My concern is that Audi dealerships do not have the technical expertise to carry out serious work on these cars yet. Dealership have confirmed my next service will be free to get me to go back there with my car. Experienced similar dealership problems with my previous car, Subaru Impreza wrx ppp. Seems we treat cars like family some dealerships treat them like s**t.

 

Friggin Awesome... Well, I just picked up the 2007 RS4 yesterday and I've been grinning since. No car gives me this feeling and I own a 911 Carrera. The car feels like a boxer in a tuxedo, like ready to battle anything with unflinching confidence all dressed up and everywhere to go. I'm still getting used to the raw power and my shifting sequencing -- I admit that while I did not stall, I did come close. I haven't taken the plug out yet because I'm going to wait until my break in period is reached at 1000 miles, **** 920 miles to go. I can't wait. I'm going to take it up near a mountain highway and let it go. I have a feeling that it will light me up. So far though, the power band literally starts at 1500 rpm and doesn't let go. The throw is crip and smooth at the same time. The handling is crisp but not jarring --- point and it will get there without rattling your teeth. I also have a S4 and it definitely feels different inside and out. The tonal range is deeper and thoatier. The tires dig and don't let go. The power is more commanding -- sorta like "I ain't going to take no for an answer b**&^!" power. If the S4 is a right hook, the RS4 is a k.o. uppercut. It commands resepct and it's well deserved because you know, without a doubt, that you could kick the S%$# out of anything with four doors and four wheels -- can you say "So long Saloon?" Well anyhow, I'll keep you guys up to date on my "life" with my new audi.

 

Congratulations JRS4. Quite a review from a 911 owner. Since I asked, let me offer my impressions so far. Pedal placement is below average, too far right, heel toe is not possible for me, the yaw of the drivers seat is off, my seat is at least 2 to 3 degrees off center to the left. The clutch throw is too long and the resistance too soft. The dead pedal is as big as a cinder block, why? I am still disappointed the Euro spec steering wheel and seats were not available for the US market. Performance for me is above average, I love the high RPM's, the aesthetics, both inside and out, are stellar and as compared to the E55 and new M5 the RS4 stacks up well
(I'm lucky to be able to drive the others as friends have them). There, that said, I feel better.
I'm very curious how the performance will change when the +1500 mile software is loaded. I can't find much info other than the limiter is raised from 124 mph to 155 and supposedly there is improved throttle mapping, we'll see. As far as comparison I just left the Jaguar XJR, that car was simply fantastic, 3900 pounds and supercharged, very fast (within 2/10 of the E55) and very driveable, highly recommended, a true sleeper that averaged 18.5 mpg city 23.5 hwy. Overall I'm very happy with the Audi, very good car, the analogy I give other car guys is the John Travolta Uma Thurman scene in Pulp Fiction about the "$5.00 dollar vanilla shake", its a darn good shake, it had to be tasted, I had to have a RS4, but it's still vanilla. For me, it hasn't captured my heart, my true love is my Lotus Exige, in my mind there is no other driving experience like it.

 

I picked up a "used" RS4 a couple of weeks ago - the 1st owner drove it for 2K miles, then decided he didn't want it. His loss....my gain! Unfortunately, it did not have an owner's manual. I checked with my local dealer, & they gave me the Audi website where I can order it. Of course, it's currently on back-order. I tried ebay & other sites trying to find one, but no luck. Anyway....is there anything maintenance-wise I need to know about? The car has 2700 miles on it now. I read the posts about the oil, but no idiot lights yet on my car. The dealer said we get full maintenance for 4 years/50K miles -- is that correct? Also, haven't used the "S" button, & the nav system seems complicated. I'm sure it will make more sense once I get the owners manual.

 

100% bliss after 2 weeks of ownership. Everything is as expected, while the SOUND wildly EXCEEDS EXPECTATIONS. I rigged the muffler valves to stay open and the sound is incredible. A very impressive car that's a blast to drive with all the creature comforts to boot.

 

What a great car. I have driven all sorts and the RS4 is the all around winner. S600 Benz is great for backseat viewers and top end, GB mustang (gladney brothers) was impressive but way to stiff, WS6 T.A. was probably faster 0-60 yet the *** end was light as a feather, R/T Durango (AWD) w/ many mods was incredible for an SUV built in 2000 but simply wasn't fast enough after 30MPH, Dodge Viper '94 pure race car and enough torque to rip your head off but not a daily driver, BMW Z3 V/6 fast, fun but too small, GT Mustang w/ mods, sounded good and fun to drive but not confident when in a pinch. The list goes on and on. Even been behind the wheel of an '03 911 Turbo-awesome car and very fast but...I didn't like the brakes as much as I thought I would and the *** end took some getting used to when cornering at high speeds due to the rear engine. The RS4 has it all in one. Looks, speed, agility, brakes, dependabiltity, gadgets, technology etc etc...awesome! There are hints of oversteer and sometimes the ride can get a little stiff but I always counter that with "that is the way a real sports car/super car is supposed to feel". I like the car when in S mode AND when it is not. It is like driving 2 different machines-both have their strong points. If you want quick response, extra boost and great rear end noise...enable the S button. If you want to cruize with a spurt of throttle every now and then and don't want a super jerky ride while at the same time enjoy the rattle and hum of the engine...disengage the S mode. I do wish the car had a digital speedo, iPod hook up that interfaced with the stereo. My nav system sometimes wants to start telling me what to do on its own @ start up(anyone else have this happen at least once a week) and the noise silencers in the wheel well grab a hold of pine needles and never let go dammit...LOL! My friend had a good idea and I thought it was kinda cool, have the shifter with a light built into it showing the gears on display at night and iluminate the gear you are in brighter than all the rest. I proposed instead of that to have the gear you are in pop up on the screen in front of you. Just a thought. Others have written how the car feels like it is going 40 @ 60 and 60 at 90...couldn't agree more. This thing was def built for top end. I have reached 135 and it never stopped climbing, WOW! Kinda like the V12 benz. I have video of guys in Germany doing 189 in the RS4 on the autobahn with no mods and the governor deleted-Freak'n bad***! Could go on and on but that about covers it. This car is all I have been looking for and then some.

 

Still don't have an owner's manual, so haven't used the S button (sigh). Someone told to push & hold it, & I've tried that. Does the car need to be in neutral, off, emergency brake engaged, or so other thing that I don't know about. Sure would appreciate it if anyone could enlighten me. Thanks!

 

Nothing tricky about it the Sport button, just press it any time the key is on. You realize though that it does only two things: quicken the throttle map, and open the muffler flaps. personally, I don't particularly like the quickened throttle, nor do I like the fact that the button defaults to "off" every time the key is turned off. So what I did was disable the muffler flaps by removing and plugging both vacuum hoses. Now I never have to press the S button, and the car roars to life unrestricted.