Every possible luxury and technology, preferably in a reasonably practical packaging with relatively compact outer dimensions. This is the recipe of a premium D segmenter in a nutshell. A recipe that many lease car drivers enjoy. With the emergence of Volvo as a serious challenger of the established, mostly German order, the premium brands have to push more than ever to remain in the spotlight. Reason for Audi to give the A4 a facelift after a relatively short period. Time for a meeting.
A pretty drastic facelift, that is, because both the nose and the rear of the Avant change more than is the case with some generational changes. The Audi is a much-for-little version with a petrol engine of 184 or 190 hp and costs around € 52,000. As a Launch Edition Sport, the Avant in combination with the 190 hp 40 TFSI engine costs € 51,690 and including options, the total price under the line is € 63,717. Seat heating, leather upholstery or electric seat adjustment is not included and adaptive dampers or a tow bar are also missing.
Switch
The 2.0-liter turbo engine in the 40 TFSI is brimming with torque at the bottom. 320 Nm while the tachometer needle is barely above idle means very easy acceleration and thanks to the generous amount of insulation, there is mainly peace on board the A4. Very nice. The S-Tronic dual clutch gearbox also makes a splash in the pouch by keeping the rpm extremely low. That also has a downside: the transmission goes so far that even the 2.0 TFSI is sometimes pushed below its ideal working area and in D the automatic only switches back after the necessary encouragement. In addition, the box does not have the flexibility of a fully automatic machine when driving off.
Sport
The sports suspension of the A4 makes it a lot less comfortable, while there is no real dynamism. Thanks to the wide SportContacts, the Avant can turn the corner at a pace that no sensible person will find wanting. Due to the poor communication of the chassis and especially the steering, this does not provide real steering pleasure. You simply never know exactly where you stand. Moreover: once the front tires give up their battle with the asphalt, the nose suddenly takes a very enthusiastic step towards the outside of the corner. It would not seem like a sensible investment to sacrifice comfort for that now. We know from experience that the standard chassis actually drives better and that fits much better with the excellent insulation. The A4 is quiet anyway, because the wind is kept out remarkably effectively.
495 liters
Audi can advertise that there is 495 liters in the A4 Avant fits and also in the back seat you are fractionally better as an adult. At the very front, the finish and material use are on the same level as the C-class, only
in a much tighter design. The digital screens look incredibly beautiful and although the word “cozy” does not apply, very little can be said about the look of the interior. Unfortunately, this does not apply to the MMI system. Previously, you got a central hotkey button that made MMI one of the most user-friendly systems. Unfortunately, that button did not survive the facelift. Now everything has to be done via a touchscreen or with voice control. The latter does not always work in one go, and understanding a touchscreen menu while driving a firmly suspended car is not a resounding success. It’s all going well with Audi with two touchscreens, but from an ergonomic point of view this is a decline compared to before the update and that of course cannot be the intention.