Chav Posted February 3, 2006 Report Share Posted February 3, 2006 SPEC B7 S4 Quattro Tiptronic Cabriolet and all the toys! (Dolphin grey, Black leather/piping and black roof) ENGINE Listen to the engine start and leave it burbling away and it'll be love at first hearing! Not sure what they've changed underneath the hood since the B6, but it sounds deeper than the B6 S4 IMO. Regardless of the speed you're travelling at, you're always aware that there's a 4.2 V8 burbling away... you can hear a faint rumble from the front and a bigger rumble from the back. (Even with the windows and hood up!) Maybe it's to do with the new quad exhaust system, I don't know, but I do know it sounds gorgeous. Maybe less S4 cab owners will consider upgrading the exhaust, as you need the music quite loud to NOT hear it when cruising on the motorway! EXHAUST New quad tips look the dogs danglies IMO. Very similar appearance to an M5, although they don't protrude quite as far. They look far more impressive than an E46 M3 etc, as they're nicely polished chrome and perhaps a bit chunkier. The lip on the rear valance makes them look more imposing too. GEARBOX Hmm. Very similar to the B6 S4 tip. Not sure if its been tweaked at all, but it did seem to rev more freely in S-mode.... going right up to 7K RPM I think pretty effortlessly. Pretty responsive in D-mode too, and doesn't think twice about dropping 2 or 3 cogs if you floor it! S-mode seemed to make the manual mode pretty redundant in terms of extracting extra performance from the car. In manual mode, switching gears by pushing the gear lever forward/back felt more notchy than on the B6 for some reason. However the steering wheel paddle controls are far more fun to use! EXTERIOR It was pretty weird seeing the new grill on a cabriolet in the flesh at first. But the deeper air vents and slightly protruding front/bottom lips help balance the look of the big grill out at a bit, and it looks good. The xenons look cool and perform great. The daytime running lights are distinctly orangey though. The rear lights are gorgeous. Unlike the saloon/avant, they've chosen to keep the lights off the boot lid, except for the brake light. Look at the rear lights closely and you see a funky curved rectangular piece for the brakes, with 4 quadrants outside it for the night lights etc. To summarise - I LOVE the rear of the B7 S4 cabriolet. There's a new gentle crease in the bottom of the door/body panels down the sides, but overall the main body work is the same as the B6. (except for grill/lights at front etc) Everything else same as the B6. Same windscreen frame, same mirrors, same chrome around the rear where the roof joins etc. Very nice! WHEELS 18" with a twin-spoke design. Not to everyone's taste, and they could do with protruding another 1 or 2cm to fill the arches more. Nice and subtle though. I like the little polished ring on the caps too. THE ROOF The accoustic roof does exactly what it says on the tin. Absolutely no road noise through the roof even at 80+. (You can hear road noise through the bottom of the console etc though, but no more than on the B6). Overall the cab feels even more like a coupe with the roof up. And wahay- it opens/closes quicker! About 5-6 seconds quicker we reckon. The bit where it pauses whilst the boot goes up/down is noticeably quicker - it absolutely flies!!! The button for the roof operates the same. Still have to hold it etc, and nothing changed there really, which is fine, as it was great in the B6. INTERIOR Same as the B6 really - which isn't exactly a bad thing, as a B6 cabriolet is a lovely place to sit. Same black leather/piping as for the B6. Centre armrest slightly modified with a new button/click thingy for adjusting the height. There's a couple of mods to the dashboard. eg. light indicator is now on the light button, rather than on the dash. Carbon fibre inlays - looks ok, and I don't really like carbon fibre. Alu trim may look better, but not sure. AUDIO The BOSE sounds great - just like the B6! Definitely worthy upgrade, especially as you need the sound loud when you don't want to hear the engine purring away! - I'm not sure when you wouldn't want to listen to it, though! DIS The DIS has a new odometer function. About time too! Nice clear colour display. A few things jiggled around since the B6 etc. NAV The RNS-E satnav is a dream to use. Only a touchscreen system would be better. Same as the B6 RNS-E I think. Bluetooth for the phone worked first time.... took about 10 seconds to setup! Still no TMC. Apparently it's imminent though..... Whatever! OTHER TOYS Heated seats are essential in any cab! The rear heated seats seemed just as effective as the front. (Havent driven in rear with roof down though) Everything else was the same as the B6. Elec seats weren't any quicker, but let you adjust everything you'd want to really. S4 tintop owners may be disappointed that Recaros aren't fitted to the cab. This is due to the cab seats using a different fitment pattern, so it's basically the sports seats but with a softer leather than the non-S versions. The white piping on the black leather is gorgeous, just wish they'd add some piping to the armrest too. Cruise and everything else work in the same way. Didn't notice any modifications there. The B7 S4 cabriolet has ISOFIX as standard btw. (Passenger airbag on/off control is in the glovebox, and the child seat fixings are on the passenger seat) New seatbelt warnings may annoy I guess, but that's standard on new cars. STEERING Servotronic is ace. Makes parking in tight spaces a doddle (unless you're as crap at parking as me!) Wheel is a 3-spoke multifunction wheel. Feels very nice and very sturdy. The perforated bits at the sides is even nicer to grip than the leather on my sports wheel. SUSPENSION Feels great. No bone shaking here. The car feels extremely well planted to the road, and there's little evidence of body roll unless you're really playing. You don't get the same level of feedback as from an M3 etc, but its a softer setup, making the car far more practical for regular, long journeys. HANDLING I'm not an expert enough driver to tell you if the 40:60 quattro system is actually there or not, but it corners great and feels less nose heavy than the B6 S4. As with every Audi I've driven, it feels like it's on rails. It was 0 degs C on the DIS tonight, with frost evident on the roads, but grip was superb. The car feels extremely sturdy. I love that about Audis - you feel safely cocooned and comfortable even after long journeys! PERFORMANCE Hmm... License losing. Acceleration feels faster than the B6 S4 cab, but not sure why, maybe the power delivery is less linear, but there's a nice judder to the back of the seat when you really floor it from the lights and the quattro kicks in. I'm still thinking the S-mode revs higher in the B7, but can't remember what the B6 S4 cab revved up to, and I haven't driven one for a few weeks now. Felt lovely and nippy though, and the torque does a great job of hiding just how a heavy a car it is. Braking performance felt the same ... composed, firm and reliable. ECONOMY 300 miles from a tank and you've been driving like miss daisy. Can't remember the MPG when cruising, but the needle seemed to go down a little bit slower! CONCLUSIONS A lovely 4-wheel drive V8 Audi Cabriolet with a silent, quick retracting roof, and lovely interior that looks like USS enterprise when driving at night, and a GORGEOUS exhaust note and rumble!! - what more could you want! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sparky Posted February 3, 2006 Report Share Posted February 3, 2006 Great review. So when are you ordering yours? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chav Posted February 3, 2006 Author Report Share Posted February 3, 2006 I wish! Have you got a spare company fuel card? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenjaminTDI Posted February 3, 2006 Report Share Posted February 3, 2006 Good review chav, the car sounds great. The wheels are growing on me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soapsuds Posted February 3, 2006 Report Share Posted February 3, 2006 quality reveiw! Not a fan of those wheels at all. They remind me of the original B6 launch alloys. Too spiny and fussy and not 'man' enough for an S4..... will look nice with some better alloys on and another 10mm off the ride height. Great colour that one though! Still cant justify a B7 over a B7 (cab / avant / saloon) as driving it will still feel the same, as you cant see the outside!! This may be different on the tweaked perfomnace models thought, that i do agree... Save your pennies J Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J_C Posted February 3, 2006 Report Share Posted February 3, 2006 I enjoyed reading that! I agree with the other comments regarding the wheels - the 'Avus' six-spokes suit the S4s best IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmmlmmam Posted February 3, 2006 Report Share Posted February 3, 2006 Top review Chav! Sounds like they've managed to improve the car somewhat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chav Posted February 3, 2006 Author Report Share Posted February 3, 2006 The roof is the main thing though eh! Wonder if its retro-upgradeable somehow - It all looks like the same mechanism... just faster? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DHA Posted February 4, 2006 Report Share Posted February 4, 2006 Re the exhaust sounding better. When I had my B7 S4 Daz did say that it sounded better than the stock B6 one. So I would say that you are right that it has been modified somehow to provide more of a rasp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UBM Posted February 5, 2006 Report Share Posted February 5, 2006 Great review - wish I had some spare cash.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest PeterPiper Posted February 19, 2006 Report Share Posted February 19, 2006 Had my first drive in B7 cab at stealers yesterday, and have to agree that the 'rumble' is deeper than my B6 cab.It seemed quicker too, but that may be down to it being a tip, and mine is a manual (and I tend to get lazy with changing gear),the S mode is simply astounding. Actually, I now wish I hadn't tried it, I want one......... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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