TheITGuy

Hi Andy

Certainly I seem to have less issues with seat comfort, perhaps as a result of the changes made (as detailed in my post) and maybe I've just adjusted to it more.  I also own a 22 plate Seat Ateca which has lumbar support and pedals fully inline with my feet yet can still get back ache after driving a couple of hours.  Perhaps it is just me 🙂

Back in 2019 I test drove a second-hand A3 and an A4 Sport back to back and I immediately noticed the difference in road noise and ride quality between the two cars.  The A3 was the Sport model and although my wife has a second hand 2014 A3 convertible, the first owner had deselected the sport suspension when placing the order so her car doesn't ride too badly.  Needless to say I choose the A4 Sport model that has the "comfort dynamic" suspension and 70K miles later have not regretted it.

I've had Bridgestone Turanzas on previous new cars (Skodas) and they are indeed very noisy.  They use a hard compound rubber which gives the tyre a long life but seems to transmit a lot of road noise into the cabin.  My Audi has Michelin Primacy tyres for the summer months and Michelin Cross Climate 2 tyres for the winter ones.  Both are lovely and quiet.

I've done this a few times with my Audi - normally when I stuff the keys in a pocket and the boot release button presses against something in the pocket, such as my wallet or phone.  Once, I returned to the car after an hour's shopping to find the boot wide open (with an expensive digital SLR camera inside...).

Now I hold the keys in my hand and glance back at the car until I'm way out of remote key fob range....

The 1.4 TSI petrol engine used in the Audi A4 was replaced by the more advanced 1.5 TSI engine first introduced in the VW group in 2017.  This replacement engine offers cylinder on demand and improved fuel economy.

The standard interior LED lighting is just white, there was an optional Extended LED lighting pack that gave a choice of colours:

Hi Ujw

Yes, on the Sport model the cup holders are lit, as are the air vent controls, strips on all 4 door panels, behind the door handles and the outside of the door handles light up when the car is unlocked.

I believe both the SE and Sport (I have the latter) have the same Comfort Dynamic Suspension and it is the S-Line model that has a lower suspension which is also firmer.  Seat trims are different and standard equipment was more generous with the Sport model (such as the LED interior lighting pack.  The 2017 model year brochure lists these additional features for Sport models compared with SE models:

Wheels
► 17” ‘5-spoke Y’ design alloy wheels
► ultra TDI models come with low
rolling resistance tyres
Exterior
► Radiator grille in Twilight grey matt
with chrome inlays
► Air inlets in Titan black with two
horizontal inlays in chrome
► Rear diffuser in Twilight grey matt
Seats
► Front Sport seats in System cloth
Interior equipment
► 3-spoke leather multi-function Sport
steering wheel
► LED Interior Lighting Pack
Audio and
communication
► MMI Navigation with 7” colour
MMI screen
• 3D map display
• MMI search
• Two SDXC card reader
► Audi Sound System with
10 loudspeakers
► Audi Connect (three-month trial)^

On several occasions I have returned to my car to see the boot lid open (once in a busy town centre car park about an hour after walking away from the car).  I now keep hold of my keys until way out of range before putting them in my pocket.  I also glance back at the car when walking away to double-check the boot is still closed.

I haven't experienced clutch slip but I am getting an increasing amount of clutch judder when pulling away in first gear, noticeably worse when the car has been doing a long journey.  My local indie dealer suggests the flywheel is the culprit, so I'm looking at around £2K for a new clutch and flywheel.  Apparently this is a recurring issue with Audis with a manual gearbox.  Ho hum

Hi Carl

I have an A4 with the same engine and gearbox combination and I also find mine sluggish when setting off from standstill - trying to join fast moving traffic on roundabouts, etc. there is a noticeable delay before the car gains momentum.  My wife, who very rarely drives my car has also commented on this behaviour and much prefers driving her A3 as it is much more responsive.

As Steve says, this is likely due to the car being quite a heavy beast for such a modest engine.  Once you get going, there is no problem keeping up with traffic.

Glen

On 5/11/2022 at 8:20 PM, Saviola said:

Hi gents,

so i bought an A4 today from near Liverpool, bought it off a second hand car dealer, fantastic guys. I did notice the clutch biting point was pretty high when i test drove the car, the dealer told me this is normal on Audis? Is this so? He has given me 12 months warranty on the clutch on top of 3 months standard warranty, thats what swayed me to purchase in the end. 
 

Also on the 200 mile journey back to London the car averaged just under 58mpg. Amazing. 

Well done on your purchase and 58 mpg is excellent.  I don't think the biting point of my clutch is particularly high but I guess with the 12 month warranty on the clutch, you shouldn't have any worries.

Hello Saviola

The 20K service interval is an option, designed for drivers doing mostly long trips, usually on motorways and appeals to fleet managers.  I do about 20K miles a year, so my car is set to this "long life" interval, where the oil quality is monitored to decide when a service is required.  The maximum interval is 2 years, or about 19K miles, whichever comes first.  I would think if you are commuting into London, with its stop/start traffic, the fixed service regime of annually / 10K miles would be more appropriate.

Good look with your car hunting!

Glen

Like audi999 I'm also a big Skoda fan, having owned 2 Estelles, 1 Favourit, 2 Octavias and 2 Superbs 🙂

The Superb's were very close to the Audi for build quality and comfort, but were not as smooth, quiet or refined in the way they drove.

I can also attest that the A4 is absolutely fine at those speeds.  It is a very smooth a quiet motorway cruiser in my opinion.

The A4 1.4 TFSI does not have the COD engine.  I have a 66 plate 1.4 TFSI (owned for the past 3 years) and it is very good, although a bit lacking in torque at low RPM.   I've had to adjust my driving style so suit the characteristics of the engine but this is not an issue.  Other things to be aware of:

• Offset pedals.  I have the manual gearbox and the accelerator pedal is quite offset to the right, sometimes causing discomfort in my right foot, ankle and lower right back.
• Lack of lumbar support. I have the Sport model (with cloth seats) and lumbar support wasn't fitted as standard until later when leather / faux leather seats were fitted as standard.  If you are looking at cars with leather seats check if heating is included - some I looked at when I bought mine didn't have heated seats.  
• The brake pressure servo sensor - as mentioned by Steve Q.  It seems to have affected a lot of Audis of this vintage (not just A4s) and mine included.  If you test the brakes and they feel "odd", or start stop won't function or a message is displayed informing you of reduced braking capability, this suggests a sensor issue.

Despite these, the car always feels special to me: I love the internal ambient lighting (and the lighted exterior) door handles!  It is a very quiet, comfortable riding car (at least with the standard comfort dynamic suspension and 17" wheels) and I can easily get in excess of 50 mpg on a decent run.  If you are commuting into London, I reckon high 30's mpg is more realistic.

BTW my wife has an Audi A3 and that does have the COD engine, which is very impressive and we've had no issues in 5 years of ownership.

Any further questions, just ask.

Glen

On all the cars I have owned, I've got the garage to move tyres around to even the wear, not the whole wheels, just the tyres.   Never been an issue....

It's the brake servo pressure sensor that needs replacing.  Don't drive the car too much before replacing, as with it not working, the car uses the ABS to assist braking, which after a while results in the need to pay a hefty bill to replace ABS components.

Hi

I've owned a 66 plate A4 TSI Sport with a manual gearbox, manual cloths seats, no lumbar adjustment, for the past 2 years.  The seat has always given me some upper back pain on longer journeys, which I sort of got used to.  Now I'm driving the car at lot more since some Covid restrictions have lifted and work has returned to pre-Covid levels, I'm experiencing more discomfort than ever.  I finished one particular week with:

• Aching upper back muscles
• Painful right neck and shoulder muscle
• Pain in the tendons underneath my upper legs
• Pain in my right buttock

I downloaded a really helpful article from Physiomed regarding adjustment of driving position and applied their advice, specifically:

• Inclining the front of the seat (it was previously quite flat as being short - 5" 6" - I was needing to reach the pedals!)  This was done on the assumption that my upper legs weren't being supported by the front of the seat, causing the pain in the underside of my legs
• Lowering the seat slightly
• Making the seat back more upright
• Moving the steering wheel a bit closer
• Lowering the seat belt mounting 

I am giving myself some time to get used to the new driving position and will see if any of these changes help.  My biggest concerns are the upper back support (which has been a problem throughout my time with the car) and the offset pedals causing my right leg to be at an odd angle.

I would welcome feedback from other A4 drivers, especially those with similar seats who are a bit "vertically challenged" like myself - are you able to get comfortable?  How about those of you with leather seats with lumbar support as fitted to later versions of the Sport model?

If this discomfort persists, I may have to sell the car, which is a real shame as in all other respects it is great.

Thanks

Glen

23 hours ago, Norm Rees said:

Got this dreaded message this evening. Parked the car for 6 hours and had a lovely message about restricted servos. 

Hello Norm

Don't delay getting it sorted - as Jean Marc found, if you ignore the message and carrying on driving it results in the need for the ABS system to be replaced (I assume that while the brake servo operation is restricted, it employs the ABS system to compensate, which can only be done for so long before it must be replaced).  When my sensor was replaced the technician warned me that should it happen again, not to wait too long before getting it fixed.

Glen

Hi

If I recall, I drove a couple of hundred miles in mine before the brake pressure sensor was replaced.  

Glen

You could ask a trusted independent garage for advice?  My wife's A3 started warning of no washer fluid some months ago and our local indy garage found mice had chewed through one of the wires going to the sensor in the washer bottle.  They fixed it easily and cheaply.  I know it's not on the same scale as your issue, but an Audi dealer will probably have to follow official guidance and replace half the parts in your car, whereas a good independent mechanic may find an easier and cheaper solution.

Glen

TBH I only need it for online traffic updates for the Sat Nav.....

Glen

The Audi Connect on my 2016 A4 expired a couple of weeks ago (after being renewed FOC by Audi last year).  This time they weren't so generous and I'm now £141 out of pocket 😞

Glen

Hi Omar

My wife has an Audi A3 with cylinder deactivation as did my previous car, a Skoda Octavia 1.5 TSI - the revs don't drop when switching to 2 cylinder mode as the engine is still running a 4-stroke cycle, just with 2 cylinders "empty".  In fact, apart from a message on the dash, you rarely notice it has switched to running on 2 cylinders.  A very impressive engine (well the 1.4 one in the Audi is, the 1.5 equivalent was a nightmare, but that's a whole different story....)

All the best

Glen