Somewhat underwhelmed by my Audi

[zollybosher]

This is not a post wanting technical advice, but more of a observation having previously owened a B6 Audi 1.9Tdi Avant SE and clocked up over 170K in the car I decided to trade it in and pick up the B7 170BHP A4.

I dont like the shape of the new style so stuck with something I was familiar with and having loved my B6 and the Audi build decided to go for the B7 I saw a car that had everything I wanted but it was a 170 as opposed to my previous 100BHP model. I thought well it will ceratainly be quicker if nothing else I was also aware of the fact that I woudl lose some fuel efficency but I factored that in.

So after 3mths of driving this car I can honestly say I am somewhat underwhelmed. the acceleration is pants the gearbox is designed to take you no more than 2 inches before you have to change gear. 1st to second (what is this all about?) It is a 6 speed gearbox as opposed to 5 and the acceleration say for instance when on a motorway is no better than the previous model. Fuel consumpton for the same journey each day is some % lower than my previous B6 avg 42mpg when I was getting over 50mpg. The care massivley understears and that linked with the issues of DPF and Injectors has really put me off owning another Audi. I will keep this for a couple of years and then its bye bye.

Does anyone else on here have similar views with regards to dissapointment with there car?

 

[jonny87]

an understeering audi?

i wont hear of it!!

 

[Daved-and-Confused]

I have to agree somewhat, albeit with limited experience. I have a 2.0tdi quattro avant which I bought early December and I've done about 8,000 miles maybe a bit more.
In the dry, I'm pretty pleased with it, I generally think the handling is good but I have never pushed it.
In the damp or wet, I'm not convinced, not pushing on but just some spirited driving I find it understeers when you turn in then grips then as you try and push on then understeers again and you can keep it understeering as you continue until your out of the bend.
Now this isn't scientific as I have no experience of the tyres (half worn Michelin Pilot Sport) and the condition of the suspension, although this isn't obviously very worn.

Anyway just my tuppence worth.

 

[eddscott]

My mother went from B6 TDI to B7 and she was surprised how much lower the MPG is - although hers is an auto.

I know what you mean with the gears but really in most everyday cars the 6th gear is just a gimmick. Theres the lowest ratio and the highest and you either have 5 gear in between or 6 - therefore you are changing gear more.

Almost all modern cars will understeer as a safety feature - assuming lift-off oversteer isn't your idea of fun. A 4WD car will want to understeer naturally anyway. You could always put an RS4 rear roll bar on which does tighten up the rear and reduce understeer. It will still understeer though - mine does. At the moment, my car has cheap tyres on so I'm not entirely sure how far to push them.

As for acceleration, I didn't think the 170 was "that" bad. I think its more of a problem that diesel engines just aren't as useable as petrol and if you drop out of the narrow working window the drop off is noticeable. I also find the 170 quite laggy - annoyingly laggy.

Today I had the DPF EGR removed and mapped. I went for complete removal with new pipes for DPF and EGR rather than gutting the EGR and de-activating the EGR. Drive home was pretty good. 50 to 90 doesn't take long but I'll admit theres a gear change in there

I do find myself defending the 170 a fair bit but tbh I'm quite happy with mine.

 

[jonny87]

audis always have and will understeer, they are renound (spelt right?) for it due to the engine being so far foward and all that weight of the chassis/carriage loading up the front axle.

kinda pointless having 4wd in a production audi such as the a4 as it doesnt have the guts to push it round a bend instead the weight of the 4wd system compounds the problem

ive got ditch finder rubber on mine at the moment (i didnt fit them) and they are awful in the wet, think of bambi on ice thats me driving in a fine mizzle!

i dont think theres any amount of aftermarket parts you could fit that would solve the issue, good tyres uprated suspension bits will help but for me an audi is about the comfort the quality and hint of prestige not the cornering ability

as for mpg, well i find the 2.0tfsi engine a funny ****** to drive economically, 80mph in 6th on m'way gives me 28mpg, not amazing then 100mph on the m'way still in 6th gives me 25.5mpg?!?!
around town i average 22mpg but 90% of my journeys are short stop starts, engine barely warms up before i arrived at work/home so its to be expected really

 

[Rick @ Unicorn Motor Dev.]

Unfortunately the MPG has dropped with the newer variants due to tougher emission standards. This has meant revised injection timing which leads to a lower pressure less efficient burn designed to reduce NOX output.

Rick

 

[OxfordRich]

As above, "put an RS4 rear roll bar on which does tighten up the rear and reduce understeer" - A4 B7, indeed it does!

Then get it remapped... drive sensibly and the MPG comes up a bit.

 

[jonny87]

Unfortunately the MPG has dropped with the newer variants due to tougher emission standards. This has meant revised injection timing which leads to a lower pressure less efficient burn designed to reduce NOX output.

Rick

would a custom map with a hpfp help matters at all, maybe not an overall increase in mpg but make it easier to drive more economically?

 

[Rick @ Unicorn Motor Dev.]

Biggest gains in economy during a remap is the part throttle, mid load type driving. If you are driving at 60mph with very gentle throttle inputs then a remap doesn't see a large gain in economy. Again, if you average 4mph in traffic a remap isn't going to show huge gains.

You don't need a high pressure fuel pump, it can all be done on stock hardware. What you can also change is the throttle response, to make the the first 30% of travel more linear, but still have the power under full throttle.

Rick