Comparison tests Audi S4 v Audi RS4. Does Supercharging Rule? - CHRIS HARRIS ON CARS

[donkeykong]

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[Deckhook]

^IMO the S4 is so good that the need for the RS4 is put into question and this before a simple £400 chip cancelled any performance advantage it might have previously enjoyed.

 

[klier]

I usually agree with Chris, but not this time. RS4 ANY day over S4, absolutely without question.

If I want an S4 type car I'll take a superior 335i. Thanks.

 

[Levi68]

If I want an S4 type car I'll take a superior 335i. Thanks.

 

[ACE]

I usually agree with Chris, but not this time. RS4 ANY day over S4, absolutely without question.

I know it's hard to understand for a guy like you who never actually buys any performance cars, but the RS4 costs significantly more than a Revo S4.

If I want an S4 type car I'll take a superior 335i. Thanks.

You would choose a BMW over an Audi? I bet nobody here would have guessed that. Thanks for mentioning BMW in an Audi thread, again, no Audi thread would be complete without it.

 

[Kowalski]

I usually agree with Chris, but not this time. RS4 ANY day over S4, absolutely without question.

If I want an S4 type car I'll take a superior 335i. Thanks.

You mean the superior 335i that got and still gets beaten in every comparison test by the S4?

 

[donkeykong]

Yeah,I think he means that one.

 

[Tumbo]

You mean the superior 335i that got and still gets beaten in every comparison test by the S4?

Haha. Bingo

 

[DeDe]

Give me a S6 instead of these two anytime (yes, the base price of the S6 is less than the RS4's)

 

[Deckhook]

Give me a S6 instead of these two anytime (yes, the base price of the S6 is less than the RS4's)

The S6 has its place and if you want something bigger and more luxurious then I would agree but compared to these two it feels its size and weight.

 

[DeDe]

The S6 has its place and if you want something bigger and more luxurious then I would agree but compared to these two it feels its size and weight.

It's the cheaper and faster sport-Audi, that's enough for me - and if it's bigger as well? Even better.

Plus it looks much better than those Avants IMO.

 

[Tumbo]

The slow-mo shots of the RS4 taking of, is like watching porn.

 

[ACE]

The S6 has its place and if you want something bigger and more luxurious then I would agree but compared to these two it feels its size and weight.

The S4 with the V6 is lighter and also has better weight distribution than the RS4 and S6 with their V8s. The RS4 and S6 cost about 50% more than the S4 in the UK.

The MRC tuned S4 is also significantly faster than the Revo S4, 0-60mph in 3.3 iirc. There's a video of the revo S4 vs MRC S4 on YouTube.

 

[Tumbo]

Anybody else that have watched this video several times? great review and great shooting

 

[FC123]

Real price/performance killer is the std A4 Avant 3.0 TFSI 272 hp, price difference between the RS4 and this is 113k Euro in Denmark. Badge delete and the MRC going over would make an excellent commuter

 

[DblPen]

what about reliability of the engine?

 

[martinbo]

what about reliability of the engine?

Excellent question.

 

[Giannis]

what about reliability of the engine?

In theory, you have absolutely no problem. In practice, at least from various friends who REVOed their Audis, you can expect some minor issues, like some vacuum valves failing, or some N75 malfunctioning. Nothing serious, nothing that costs much, but certainly not 100% trouble-free experience.

The question is how far you are willing to push the potential problems to power increase ratio. Tuning the ECU of a turbocharged car is cheap and easy power. Many people are willing to accept a few minor issues that may arise for such a power increase especially for that price!

 

[Deckhook]

I was always lead to believe manufacturers engineer in a sizeable safety net into their components that pushing an extra 15-25% from the ECU isn't an issue. Probably pushing things beyond this might be more problematic.

 

[Giannis]

I was always lead to believe manufacturers engineer in a sizeable safety net into their components that pushing an extra 15-25% from the ECU isn't an issue. Probably pushing things beyond this might be more problematic.

Manufacturers used to do that. Nowadays they are trying to milk the last mpg out of each engine they produce, so the safety margins have been reduced accordingly.

***

One more thing to take into consideration is linearity. Suppose you have a turbocharged engine that has a 0.4bar of constant pressure with a 0.6bar of overboost between 3500 and 5500rpm. You can easily go to an ECU tuner and increase the boost pressure up to 1.2/1.4bar or even more. Sure, you get a very descent power increase, but your engine is nowhere as linear as it used to be.