First drive: 2016 Audi A4 in the UAE
Audi recently launched the all-new 2016 A4, the ninth generation of the German luxury brand’s top-selling sedan. It was their best seller in their entire line-up worldwide till 2012, when it was overtaken by the Q5 crossover. Audi went with the “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” approach for the looks, while adding their latest tech underneath the skin.
Audi has admitted that they have not changed much with the looks except for a few character lines to give it sharper styling.
It is a bigger car as well, 2.5mm longer and 16mm wider, so it is more spacious inside, giving it more headroom and legroom. However, headroom might be a little low for taller people sitting at the back. Build quality is solid all around as you would expect from an Audi. When driving at speeds of up to 100 kph, wind noise is barely noticeable.
The tech has also been upgraded, giving it a whole new instrument cluster and the latest MMI infotainment system. The optional Virtual Cockpit can be customised to your needs, and the programmable buttons for the MMI controller are some of the new features added. The new 3-zone climate control kept things cool inside on our short drive on a 35-degrees Celsius afternoon.
We had a go in the 4-cylinder 2.0-litre turbocharged front-wheel drive model, connected to a dual-clutch 7-speed automatic transmission. The motor produces 190 hp and 350 Nm of torque. Torque comes on early, good for quick bursts of acceleration from low speeds, proving very useful during some city traffic we hit during our test run.
Gear shifts are also smooth and quick. The steering offers slight feedback but felt well-weighted. The suspension setup is inclined towards comfort, with minimal body-roll when we took a few turns at good speeds on some off-ramps.
The new Audi A4 is a definite improvement over the old model. The exterior changes are subtle, but the massive improvements to the interior and tech features make it a very appealing package.
For UAE prices and GCC specs, visit the Audi buyer guide.
Comments
Asem
Do Audi provide GCC countries with s4 ?
And if not is there an A4 with sport suspension and qutro ?
Prado
Audi is the only reliable german brand along with Lexus, toyota, honda Subaru and Mazda. The A4 & A6 are stand outs, a worth while purchase.
bobby bakshani
All cars are reliable, it depends how you maintain them
Prado
@ bobby
No…
Asem
Prado so you mean Mercedes is not reliable ?
What about those 90s S Class with +500.000 km on the clock and still run like a watch ?
Mashfique Hussain Chowdhury
My friend had a 2004 Range Rover with 400,000 km on it. 🙂
Prado
@ Asem
Those old Merc didnt have any fancy electronic that they have now. Besides if you want to know reliable cars go to consumers reports and pull the data there.
Perception one thing and reality is another. Audi is a brand that was horrible in reliability in the late 1980s,, today it ranked among top reliable cars along with toyota, lexus, honda, subaru & mazda. Not many people know that.
Worse reliable cars are Fiat 500 and Jeep Cherokee as examples.
Prado
@ mash
Sure you can run for 400,000 but at what cost? the wear and tear of RR is substantial.
Mashfique Hussain Chowdhury
If everyone worried about money, we’d all be driving Toyota Yarises.
joe
I’ve tried the new A4 and I don’t agree with the testers here:
When it comes to these new turbo cars with 4 cylinder, torque comes early yes and this is not a good thing when you just want to drive on relax mode. Imagine in SZR jam and every now and then your car is bouncing once you hit the gaz…….same for Jaguar Xe by the way. Turbo’s are ruining the A.B.C. of driving
Mashfique Hussain Chowdhury
That’s more a problem with poor throttle response than the actual engines.
Civic
Nice car
Dear Mashfique Hussain Chowdhury
When i visit the this page :https://www.drivearabia.com/carprices/uae/lincoln/lincoln-mkx/
i get a PHP notice (Undefined index: group_en
/carprices/protected/views/subcategories/view_full.php(187))
Mashfique Hussain Chowdhury
Thanks for catching that. We are doing some maintenance work and are still in the process of weeding out errors.
Sevan Ruben
to Prado , make a visit to east Europe countries , Turkey , you will be amazed how old Ladas , Fiats , Renaults taxis each with more than 250 k Kms works normally from the freezing mornings with little cares , cheap maintenance I’m sure you’ll forget about any japanese cars .
Prado
Qoute
******Turkey , you will be amazed how old Ladas , Fiats , Renaults taxis each with more than 250 k Kms work*******
Oh Really?…. I think I would be happy if Lada started reliability
Check out Putin trying to start a brand new Lada…..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UvLfQxfRiUQ
Fifth time is a charm?…
🙂