Which engine/transmission?

[NicoS85]

Greetings everybody. New member here hoping for some wisdom from yourselves.

A little introduction about me. My wife and I are expecting our first baby in a few months, so it's time that I got rid of my Honda S2000 for something more practical. I've considered the options, watched and read reviews, had a test drive and I've decided that the new A4 is the perfect car for my families needs.

The car I test drove was a S line 2.0 TDI S tronic. Most reviewers say this is the one to get and I'm fine with that. The thing is in the second hand market which is where I'm looking at, you can find 2.0 TDI, 2.0 TFSI and 3.0 TDI all similarly priced. Now I'm sure most people would want to get the most out of their money so the 3.0 TDI would make the most sense since it's the same price. However I don't know how the Tiptronic gearbox compares with a S tronic.

One of my mates who used to work at a Audi dealership told me that S tronic is dual clutch and Tiptronic is single. I know that dual clutch transmissions are very smooth, so does that mean the Tiptronic isn't? Also are there any reliability issues with either of them? My cousin who is a petrol head tells me that the most recent iterations of both transmissions are the best they've ever been and I shouldn't worry, but I'd like the opinion of people such as you who drive their A4's daily.

Regarding the engines I've always bought petrol cars but I'm willing to get a TDI this time for the fuel savings. (Having a baby really changes a man...) The claimed mpg figures from Audi there's not much difference between 2.0 and 3.0. What I'm more concerned with is again reliability between the two. Also should I expect servicing costs for a 3.0 to be a lot more expensive than a 2.0 due to the extra spark plugs etc?

Look forward to seeing what you all think.

Regards,

Nico

[Jet Jockey]

Probably won't get much input from this group because you are in the UK and this forum caters mainly to the North American driver.

However here is my take on this. First I want to make sure we are talking the same car... The New version of the A4, the B9 model. It mat have been available as a 2016 model year car in Europe but started as a 2017 model year car here in North America. You are on the B9 A4/S4 forum. The previous generation of the A4 was the B8/B8.5.

1- We only get the 2.0 TFSI motor (petrol motor) here in the B9 A4 with either the DSG (S-Tronic) or now a 6 speed manual. The car comes in a FWD or Quattro version.

2- We were supposed to get the new 4 cylinder TDi motor in the new A4 (B9) but at the last minute because of the world wide Diesel scandal Audi decided to pull that motor from our market. In fact that is the motor I had ordered for my car and delayed my delivery by many months to see if Audi would reverse their position on the new TDi motor option.

3- While the above TDi option was in limbo, I test drove a Q5 with the 3.0L TDi (with the Tiptronic) and absolutely loved it and almost went for it... Great economy and great performance (get up and go, it is fast). However I had the hitch for the new A4 and decided to hold off.

4- I have no doubt that if the new B9 A4 was available with the 3.0L TDi motor in North America, it would sell very well and I for one, would be driving one even with a Tiptronic transmission.

5- the difference between the Tiptronic and S-Tronic (DSG) is the Tiptronic is an old style or regular transmission found in most cars on the road. The S-Tronic (DSG) is the dual clutch, much sportier, much faster in shifting transmission. On the B9 A4 Audi worked very hard at making the S-Tronic smoother and it is very good but again if I had the choice of the 3.0L TDi in a B9 A4 it would be a no brainer.

6- BTW, the new B9 S4 comes only with a Tiptronic transmission... They actually dropped the S-Tronic/DSG transmission for the Tiptronic out of this model S4... Go figure!

[NicoS85]

Hi, yes I am aware this is the B9 A4 forum, exactly what I am after. I did not know only the TFSI is available in the American market. Still I am considering the petrol engine so can still get good advice here.

Yes the s tronic A4 that I test drove was very good, I just didn't know how a tiptronic compares, but if you say the s tronic is smoother and sportier that's probably more up my alley.

I've read on other forms that the reason the 3.0 gets a tiptronic is because they handle the higher torque better than a dual clutch. Maybe that's why the S4 comes with this transmission as opposed to it being better than the s tronic? I'm assuming the S4 has quite a lot more power.

[dbuxton13]

The tiptronic is a ZF8 transmission, found also in the RS6 and other high end sports cars. Dual clutches are good for taking your car to the track, because is shifts slightly faster. You probably aren't looking at the S4 at all, so I will refrain from dissing the DSG too much, but both are excellent transmissions in their own right. The DSG will cost more to maintain and replace, should you take your car long term, but the reliability has been improving on transmissions in general (speaking mostly of higher end cars) regardless of their form.

[VipinLJ]

If you are looking for smoothness, the ZF transmission is better than the DSG box. If you are looking for faster shifts, DSG is better. Both have their positives and negatives and both are great boxes. If I were you, I'd buy the 3.0TDI.

[Fantasiamon]

If you are looking for smoothness, the ZF transmission is better than the DSG box. If you are looking for faster shifts, DSG is better. Both have their positives and negatives and both are great boxes. If I were you, I'd buy the 3.0TDI.

Wish I could buy a 3.0 TDI....


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[NicoS85]

I see, well hearing everybody's opinion has given me confidence that both types of transmission are very good and I can't go wrong with either one.

I've just found out however that the UK is probably gonna be hitting diesel cars with much higher taxes in the near future, so I think it would be wise to look at the 2.0 TFSI before anything else...

Thanks chaps!

[VipinLJ]

I see, well hearing everybody's opinion has given me confidence that both types of transmission are very good and I can't go wrong with either one.

I've just found out however that the UK is probably gonna be hitting diesel cars with much higher taxes in the near future, so I think it would be wise to look at the 2.0 TFSI before anything else...

Thanks chaps!

The 2.0TFSI is pretty darn nice and very fast too. The 3.0TDI is equally fast and also has a lot of torque. Both are great cars. You won't go wrong with either one.