If you found the recently-launched R598 000 Audi RS4 too rich for your blood, the limited-edition A4 DTM, powered by an uprated 2,0-litre turbocharged FSI engine, offers quite a bit of flash for a lot less cash. CARtoday.com editor Mike Fourie recently tried it out.
By Mike Fourie, Editor
If you found the R598 000 Audi RS4 too rich for your blood, the limited-edition A4 DTM, powered by an uprated 2,0-litre turbocharged FSI engine, offers quite a bit of flash for a lot less cash.
We’ve known about the existence of a DTM-inspired A4 since December 2004, when CARtoday.com reported Audi had unveiled a “limited-edition” model to celebrate the Ingolstadt-based manufacturer’s triumphant first season in the racing series, where it took top honours in all the categories. Click here to read that story.
At the time, we didn’t pay much attention to the A4 DTM, because it was only offered overseas and in left hand drive form (which ruled out the potential introduction to the South African market). However, Audi now claims “due to high levels of demand from markets outside Europe, the DTM has been made available for right hand drive markets” – isn’t that nice of them?
The majority of South African motoring enthusiasts are aware of the German touring car championship and that Audi is a major force in DTM, but few of us follow the racing closely (unless you catch the odd highlight package sparsely sprinkled on one of the pay TV channels). So, from a South African perspective, the DTM designation sounds a bit snappier than Sportline, but that’s about it.
The A4 DTM is a front-wheel drive car, but its been tweaked by quattro GmbH – Audi’s equivalent of Mercedes’ AMG and BMW’s M divisions – and famous for producing Ingolstadt’s four-wheel drive performance models. Audi SA will make available 180 units of the A4 DTM – both with 6-speed manual transmissions – in two versions. The 147 kW model will retail for R298 000, but the 162 kW version, which will represent 95 per cent of the model mix and offer increased power output by virtue of an adapted EMS, costs R307 700.
At first glance, I briefly mistook the launch fleet of A4 DTMs parked at Port Elizabeth airport (the media corps had just arrived for the launch) for the RS4, which was introduced simultaneously with the DTM edition. The DTM Edition looks so much more dynamic than its standard siblings and can be distinguished by new side sills and the DTM logo in the rubbing strips of the rear doors.
Moreover, the car’s single-frame radiator grille is finished in Phantom Black, and the exterior mirrors are also available in the same colour at no extra charge. The beefy front bumper has a striking carbon-fibre lip in black at the bottom and there are extra air vents at the front and rear to provide an extra sporty touch.
The DTM Edition is further recognisable by its newly-designed rear bumper and carbon-fibre spoiler on the bootlid. The exhaust tailpipes are conspicuous (they’re 100 mm in diameter), and the fluted rear diffuser is likely to make passers-by pause for a protracted stare. That is if they don’t spot the 15-spoke 18-inch wheels, styled to look like those of a DTM racing car, first!
Inside the cabin, the limited-edition A4’s three-spoke steering is trimmed in leather and a suede-like material called Nardia microfibre. Nardia is also used on the handbrake handle, gear lever knob and Recaro sports seats (of which the side sections are trimmed in leather with silver stitching). Although the Nardia was velvety to the touch, I wondered how durable and blemish- or scuff resistant the finely-textured material would be in the long run.
As for the rest, door-sill trims with DTM logos further distinguish the model, as do floor mats with silver piping and DTM logos. The dashboard and door trims have S4-style carbon inlays.
Because I drove the A4 DTM model before being informed of its 15 kW power hike over that offered by the standard 2,0T’s 147 kW 2,0-litre FSI powerplant, which recently won its category in the 2006 Engine of the Year awards, I was unsure whether I was at the wheel of a 2,0-litre car, because the limited model delivered performance characteristics not too dissimilar to that of a 3,2-litre V6 FSI.
The 162 kW DTM may not produce the V6 unit’s 188 kW, but the model offers 300 N.m (20 N.m more than its standard sibling) and accelerates from zero to 100 km/h in 7,1 seconds (Audi claims) before reaching a top speed of close to 250 km/h. Overall fuel consumption is claimed to 8,1 litres per 100 kilometres.
Moreover, the engine has a meaty growl that belies its four-pot configuration and is quite potent, especially in cut-and-thrust driving. The S line sports suspension system, which lowers the body by 20 mm and includes firmer shock absorber/spring rates, is both a blessing and a curse. As expected, the car remains confidently glued to the road in a fast sweep, but the ride is particularly sensitive to any imperfections in the road and can become a bit bumpy.
I don’t like the remote steering feel of the A4’s Servotronic power assisted system, but others might. The DTM Edition models have the same safety specification as their A4 siblings, including front airbags, front side bags and the sideguard head airbag system, the latest-generation ESP and active head restraints.
Standard equipment of the Audi A4 DTM Edition includes dual-zone automatic air-conditioning, remote central locking, electric windows and side mirrors and a CD-based sound system. A rain and light sensor, multi-function steering wheel, automatically dimming rear view mirror are also included as standard, Audi says.