Blindingly fast and practical?
10/18/2003
Greg A. Godsell
The Audi S4 Avant sitting in front of me is a screaming yellow station wagon. At first glance, there is virtually nothing about this car that says station wagon. A recent evaluation of the Jetta wagon found that it screamed compact wagon. Not this car. Somehow the lines of the car, the color, and the wheels/tires make you see past that.
The S4 is not a big car. Climb in and sit in the heavily bolstered leather seats. The high beltline outside, the wraparound center console... it's a pretty snug fit for me.... but I'm 6'-4". The rear seat looks pretty small. Two car seats would be snug. The cargo area is pretty good size, but this is not a large wagon at all.
From the driver's seat, the whole wagon thing just doesn't figure in to anything. When you turn the key you are rewarded with serious engine rumble : V-8 rumble. At this point you really couldn't care less about anything other than your butt in the seat, your foot on the pedals, the macho sounding engine note, and the road in front of you. If you aren't, look elsewhere.
This car is very drivable. It doesn't feel as high-strung as a Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution, yet it conveys confidence when driven aggressively. Take the steering for example, at low speeds it almost feels overboosted, like you would expect in a luxury car... but really lay into it, and it seems to tighten up when it needs to.
The shifter is smooth and accurate. The throttle response seems endless. The suspension is well balanced. The S4 is one of those cars that no matter what we did to it, it seemed like it had more to offer. Curves, jack-rabbit starts, high-speed maneuvers didn't seem to phase this car. 120+ MPH? Could have been 20 MPH. Never felt like I found the upper limit on this car on the roads.
It's fast. Seriously fast. In fact, behind the wheel, it's got me wondering about the whole performance attitude in the market right now. Is having $45K to plunk down on this car enough to warrant getting this much power at your hands? Oh wait... I think it's gone to my head.
The Audi S4 is hands down, a price/performance standout. But that brings me back to the wagon thing. It's a cool wagon. Looks cool, sounds cool. Who the heck is going to buy this? Maybe the guy who can't get his hands on the sedan? Someone who needs to placate his spouse? Either way, the sleeper factor is even higher with the wagon back-end. Once you start the car and drive, you won't care what's behind you, only what's in front.