zerolight

Handling: It goes around corners supremely well. The steering has a nice weight to it, perhaps not as much feedback as some would like, but I’ve never felt myself pushing a car hard enough to notice the benefits of any additional feedback. Seems like it has good brakes too. I thought the A4 S Line handled well, but this is in a different league. The gearbox is exceptional – best I’ve used. I opted for the regular manual rather than DSG.

Comfort: It’s roomy. Massively so. I expected it to feel slightly more compact than the A4, but no. With the drivers seat positioned for me, the A4 kinda crushed my legs if I sat in the back. With the Golf it’s back to the acres of room that the Accord Type R provided. Most impressive as a family car. Loads of headroom too. Fantastic front seats. The steering feels very very smooth, the wheel is lovely in the hands too.

Performance: I have no idea how quick it is, but just pottering about under 4000 rpm and it already feels much quicker than the A4.

Audio: Better than the Audi. Sounds nice enough to my ears. I’m sure some may complain that it’s not made by B&O or Levinson, or something. But for me, it’s great. The iPod link works a treat – essentially VW’s version of the Dension IceLink with a very neat mount in the arm rest to connect the iPod to the Head Unit via the Line Level USB Dock connector.

Nice Touches: Air Con uses some sort of diffuser so that no matter how hard it’s blowing you don’t feel it blowing on your hands and face. Very nice. The dash board looks classy, and the purple instrument lighting provides a nice affect. There’s little red LEDs in the roof console that light up the gearbox.

Practicality: Cheap insurance. Great fuel consumption. Acres of space. Good boot. Fast Family Car. Costs only slightly more than the diesel Golfs. Excellent Residuals.

I’ve had the car almost two weeks now, and have put in around 200 miles. I thought I’d miss the ferocious performance of the WRX, but surprisingly I haven’t. The Audi’s class, luxury, and comfort have totally won me over. It’s also rather attractive to look at in the flesh, with that shocking red paint job, huge wheels, and sports pack. It’s most impressive in corners, especially given its size. It’s not neck snappingly fast, but it’s responsive enough to remain fun. The Greenock run produces an estimated range of over 600 miles on a tank of diesel, whilst the more urban runs suggest somewhere around 450 miles. The WRX’s best was around 250 miles at a similar cost per tank.

I took a quick snap of the old car interior before it left last night to compare with the new arrival. Audi certainly know how to do interiors, it’s so much nicer than the Subaru. Click on the pictures to goto the photo gallery for that car.

I can’t quite believe I took delivery of a new car at 2am, outside a Pub. Long story, don’t ask. Thus far, Zee and I have driven it a total of 3 miles all in. Perils of working from home. I’m sure there’s plenty more to come though.

You can tell it’s a diesel, especially from the outside. But once it warms up, it gets much more refined than diesels of old, and at cruising speed its very quiet, at least in comparison to the WRX. It feels pretty quick and torquey, nothing like the Impreza of course, but it’s still got enough grunt to be fun.

It’s got all the usual toys, including dual zone climate control, sports seats, electric lumbar support, and so on. I’m particularly impressed with the 150w stereo which has 10 speakers (including a pair of subs on the rear parcel shelf) and sounds excellent.

I wasn’t looking fwd to losing the WRX’s performance, but the Audi A4 1.9TDi S-Line is a lovely car. I’m very pleased with it.