B9 S5 034 ECU Stage 1 / TCU Stage 2 (and other goodies): A review on drivability

[oc cc]

Spring has sprung and summer is about to begin soon. With summer heat upon us, it would be the best time to install my 034 ECU/TCU tune, AWE Intercooler, and APR Intake.

But before I delve into the tune, I want to address something important here. Many instances when discussing performance upgrades, there's a huge emphasis on draggy times, slips, and other metrics that really don't speak to the drivability of the car. The purpose of this review is to talk about how these mods affect everyday driving from a drivability standpoint, and what the average consumer can expect.

So let me begin by describing my experience with the OEM tune and what bothered me about it. First and foremost, drive mode seemed very lazy with a lot of pedal delay or throttle delay built into the OEM tuning. I know this is distinct from turbo lag specifically so before anyone mentions that trust me I know the difference. So then you ask why don't you drive it in sport mode? Well the problem with sport mode is that it was overly harsh and would tend to buck a lot (even with my 034 transmission mount). It was actually kind of dangerous to drive it in places like the canyons in sport mode because the throttle was so touchy and did not facilitate smooth transitions in turns. At the same time the transmission felt like there was a lot of slop and it shifted very lazily, and even though in sport mode it was overly aggressive it still wasn't shifting very cleanly. It's almost like Audi was trying to overcompensate for poor tuning with aggressive throttle mapping. Instead of ending up with a product that has a dual purpose (comfortable daily, sporty weekend car), you end up with a product that is too lazy in Drive mode and artificially aggressive in Sport mode, neither of which is very appealing and goes against the ethos of a car like an Audi S5. This car should be a sporty daily with an even more aggressive but refined side that you can tap into when you want.

In my opinion ladies and gentlemen, that has been achieved with the 034 tuning package. So let's talk about the tune. I went with 034 ECU stage 1 TCU stage 2. For me the concern was not so much the power increase, which can be felt and is quite noticeable. It was the drivability factor of the car. Drive mode now is no longer lazy - there is practically no delay at all from when you hit the pedal in the car and when it spools up and goes. Here's where things get crazy though: in dynamic mode, the car noticeably shifts and accelerates much snappier and crisper. However despite shifting much more aggressively, it is also so much more refined and smoother, which is interesting. The car no longer bucks but shifts with purpose and does so in a clean way that doesn't disrupt the cars driving manners. I know most have said this cliché before, but this really does feel like how the factory should have tuned it and less like some crazy Jekyll and Hyde transformation. Where you will see the Jekyll and Hyde transformation is with launch control. It is crazy fast in launch control now, and the shifts are absolutely brutal. Side note: many have commented on the 'pops and bangs' but truth be told even with my catback exhaust I barely notice it. I guess if you have downpipes or a track exhaust it might be pronounced/annoying but at least for me it's like 10% more burbles than stock, so very "OEM+" and not clapped out backfiring WRX. I don't care one way or another about burbles but for those who want a lot of crackles it's very moderate, and for those concerned it's going to be too much - no need to worry it really isn't. My dads 911 Targa 4S def has way more crackles in sport mode out of the factory than my tuned car.

Naturally with the APR intake, induction noise is louder. There is also a much more pronounced blow off sound, as expected. The AWE intercooler makes a noticeable difference - anytime I would drive the stock car on a mildly warm day I could feel it pulling some power. Now with the intercooler, I'm doing pulls back to back with practically no drop off in performance. I'm sure there are other benefits I would have noticed if I hadn't tuned and had these on, such as better throttle tip in, improved spooling, etc. However, it is hard to say because I got it all done at once so I can't really confirm from a butt dyno if these changes are due to the tuning or the hardware. Regardless I highly recommend getting these three items done as the first order of business to your car once you decide you no longer need warranty or are out of warranty.

Lastly, if you are in Orange County CA and want to check it out and go for a ride, let me know!

[will13k7]

Somehow 034 made it more smooth and responsive at the same time. I just have the stage1 ecu tune with the bundled stage1 tcu tune that just raises the torque limit, and with their first ecu update, they managed to really clean up the shifting. The car just does what I want without delay with a nice bump in power.

If you are not living life a quarter mile at a time and not hitting up the circuit often, I think B9s are a perfectly fun daily driver with just a stage1 tune and a set of coilovers, though an intercooler is nice during the summer.

[joeinla]

This is perfect. This is exactly what I needed to read.

For others that did stage 1 TCU and upgraded to stage 2, is it much more noticeable?

Planning on installing the intake and intercooler this week. Tune will be next.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[oc cc]

This is perfect. This is exactly what I needed to read.

For others that did stage 1 TCU and upgraded to stage 2, is it much more noticeable?

Planning on installing the intake and intercooler this week. Tune will be next.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Trust me, don't skip the TCU stage 2. It's as big as the tune in terms of driving dynamics.

[arumikpart]

I’ll second, the stage 2 tcu tune is almost as much a noticeable change as is the ECU tune. It’s also more advanced than some others that just focus on launch and full throttle shifting.

[034Motorsport]

Glad you're loving the Dynamic+ Transformation on your B9 S4!

Was this on 91/93? Or did you manage to try our E85?

-Sean@034

[oc cc]

Glad you're loving the Dynamic+ Transformation on your B9 S4!

Was this on 91/93? Or did you manage to try our E85?

-Sean@034

Still on 91 - def going to try E85 soon!

[BrentB]

Spring has sprung and summer is about to begin soon. With summer heat upon us, it would be the best time to install my 034 ECU/TCU tune, AWE Intercooler, and APR Intake.

But before I delve into the tune, I want to address something important here. Many instances when discussing performance upgrades, there's a huge emphasis on draggy times, slips, and other metrics that really don't speak to the drivability of the car. The purpose of this review is to talk about how these mods affect everyday driving from a drivability standpoint, and what the average consumer can expect.

So let me begin by describing my experience with the OEM tune and what bothered me about it. First and foremost, drive mode seemed very lazy with a lot of pedal delay or throttle delay built into the OEM tuning. I know this is distinct from turbo lag specifically so before anyone mentions that trust me I know the difference. So then you ask why don't you drive it in sport mode? Well the problem with sport mode is that it was overly harsh and would tend to buck a lot (even with my 034 transmission mount). It was actually kind of dangerous to drive it in places like the canyons in sport mode because the throttle was so touchy and did not facilitate smooth transitions in turns. At the same time the transmission felt like there was a lot of slop and it shifted very lazily, and even though in sport mode it was overly aggressive it still wasn't shifting very cleanly. It's almost like Audi was trying to overcompensate for poor tuning with aggressive throttle mapping. Instead of ending up with a product that has a dual purpose (comfortable daily, sporty weekend car), you end up with a product that is too lazy in Drive mode and artificially aggressive in Sport mode, neither of which is very appealing and goes against the ethos of a car like an Audi S5. This car should be a sporty daily with an even more aggressive but refined side that you can tap into when you want.

In my opinion ladies and gentlemen, that has been achieved with the 034 tuning package. So let's talk about the tune. I went with 034 ECU stage 1 TCU stage 2. For me the concern was not so much the power increase, which can be felt and is quite noticeable. It was the drivability factor of the car. Drive mode now is no longer lazy - there is practically no delay at all from when you hit the pedal in the car and when it spools up and goes. Here's where things get crazy though: in dynamic mode, the car noticeably shifts and accelerates much snappier and crisper. However despite shifting much more aggressively, it is also so much more refined and smoother, which is interesting. The car no longer bucks but shifts with purpose and does so in a clean way that doesn't disrupt the cars driving manners. I know most have said this cliché before, but this really does feel like how the factory should have tuned it and less like some crazy Jekyll and Hyde transformation. Where you will see the Jekyll and Hyde transformation is with launch control. It is crazy fast in launch control now, and the shifts are absolutely brutal. Side note: many have commented on the 'pops and bangs' but truth be told even with my catback exhaust I barely notice it. I guess if you have downpipes or a track exhaust it might be pronounced/annoying but at least for me it's like 10% more burbles than stock, so very "OEM+" and not clapped out backfiring WRX. I don't care one way or another about burbles but for those who want a lot of crackles it's very moderate, and for those concerned it's going to be too much - no need to worry it really isn't. My dads 911 Targa 4S def has way more crackles in sport mode out of the factory than my tuned car.

Naturally with the APR intake, induction noise is louder. There is also a much more pronounced blow off sound, as expected. The AWE intercooler makes a noticeable difference - anytime I would drive the stock car on a mildly warm day I could feel it pulling some power. Now with the intercooler, I'm doing pulls back to back with practically no drop off in performance. I'm sure there are other benefits I would have noticed if I hadn't tuned and had these on, such as better throttle tip in, improved spooling, etc. However, it is hard to say because I got it all done at once so I can't really confirm from a butt dyno if these changes are due to the tuning or the hardware. Regardless I highly recommend getting these three items done as the first order of business to your car once you decide you no longer need warranty or are out of warranty.

Lastly, if you are in Orange County CA and want to check it out and go for a ride, let me know!

Hi there!

Sorry for digging up an old thread and I hope you see this! I recently got into a 2018 Audi S4 wth 23k miles on the clock, I came from a F30 BMW 335D which I traded in as my commute dropped to 3 miles a day and I was tired of having to regen the DPF by driving out of the way every 2 weeks, (I am based in the UK, I don't think you guys got the F30 335D in the States) the difference between the BMW and the Audi is incredible. The Audi feels lazy, and downright useless in D even in dynamic and the throttle feeling is like mashing your foot in a bed of foam with something resembling a pedal at the bottom, the lag compared to my ex BMW is just horrendous! The BMW feels like your foot is connected to the engine if that makes sense. From what you are describing it sounds like 034 has "BMW'd" the throttle.

I am very grateful for your write up, I was looking for a fix for the drivability issue and it seems like 034 has nailed it. How has reliability been for you? And that being said what mileage are you on?

[Dan99]

Hi there!

Sorry for digging up an old thread and I hope you see this! I recently got into a 2018 Audi S4 wth 23k miles on the clock, I came from a F30 BMW 335D which I traded in as my commute dropped to 3 miles a day and I was tired of having to regen the DPF by driving out of the way every 2 weeks, (I am based in the UK, I don't think you guys got the F30 335D in the States) the difference between the BMW and the Audi is incredible. The Audi feels lazy, and downright useless in D even in dynamic and the throttle feeling is like mashing your foot in a bed of foam with something resembling a pedal at the bottom, the lag compared to my ex BMW is just horrendous! The BMW feels like your foot is connected to the engine if that makes sense. From what you are describing it sounds like 034 has "BMW'd" the throttle.

I am very grateful for your write up, I was looking for a fix for the drivability issue and it seems like 034 has nailed it. How has reliability been for you? And that being said what mileage are you on?

The F series BMWs crank up the power at low rpms, which provides that instant response. For example, it has most of its torque available at about 1700 rpms. They also have a lot of problems with rod bearings for this reason.

In contrast, the power curve of the stock S4 engine delivers most of its torque at about 2500 rpms, so you have to have the car in a gear that keeps you close to that rpm range if you want to maximize responsiveness. To that end, Sport (not Dynamic) puts you in a lower gear and keeps you closer to the power curve of the engine. When you put the car in Dynamic it temporarily puts you in Sport but, as soon as you turn the car off and back on, it puts you in Drive. Pull back on the shift lever after a re-start to put the car in Sport instead of Drive. You will be in a lower gear and the car will be more responsive. And, you can also use Sport, regardless of drive mode, to have a more responsive drive train. So, Comfort+Sport or Auto+Sport gives you the same engine/transmission behavior as Dynamic+Sport.

In terms of throttle response, the 034 TCU Stage 2 tune makes more of a difference in drivability than the 034 ECU tune. Assuming you are near the power curve of the engine, any delay you feel is the slushy stock transmission. Consider the Stage 2 TCU from 034 and the 034 transmission mount, and drive in Sport to have a more responsive drive train.

The 034 ECU tune actually changes the throttle map to be less aggressive than the stock ECU tune. The stock throttle map provides a lot of throttle with the initial movement of the gas pedal. For example, 25% of gas pedal movement produces something like 50-75% of the throttle. The 034 throttle map is more linear, where 50% gas pedal provides 50% of throttle. So, the 034 tune requires more pedal movement to get the same amount of throttle; however, this also gives you more control over down-shifting with the throttle, making it easier to go down 1 or 2 gears as you want, and greatly improves drivability.

So, I recommend that you get the 034 Stage 2 TCU and drive in Sport if you want the drive train to be more responsive. However, the S4 engine is not designed to provide gobs of torque at low rpms, so it probably won't act like your BMW. It will act like an Audi.

[DreamTFK]

In contrast, the power curve of the stock S4 engine delivers most of its torque at about 2500 rpms, so you have to have the car in a gear that keeps you close to that rpm range if you want to maximize responsiveness. To that end, Sport (not Dynamic) puts you in a lower gear and keeps you closer to the power curve of the engine. When you put the car in Dynamic it temporarily puts you in Sport but, as soon as you turn the car off and back on, it puts you in Drive. Pull back on the shift lever after a re-start to put the car in Sport instead of Drive. You will be in a lower gear and the car will be more responsive. And, you can also use Sport, regardless of drive mode, to have a more responsive drive train. So, Comfort+Sport or Auto+Sport gives you the same engine/transmission behavior as Dynamic+Sport.

Dan that was an amazing response and I felt like I learned a lot. I did the 034 Stage 1 with TCU patch but did not do the Sage 2 TCU tune yet. Was hoping for a 4th of July sale.

I do use comfort a lot since I drive in heavy city traffic and it gets me much better gas mileage but the sluggish throttle response does get annoying. I removed my Pedal Commander for the tune.

So a restart of the car, followed by putting the tran into sport (with dynamic still engaged), is better than just changing to sport + dynamic while driving?

[Dan99]

Dan that was an amazing response and I felt like I learned a lot. I did the 034 Stage 1 with TCU patch but did not do the Sage 2 TCU tune yet. Was hoping for a 4th of July sale.

I do use comfort a lot since I drive in heavy city traffic and it gets me much better gas mileage but the sluggish throttle response does get annoying. I removed my Pedal Commander for the tune.

So a restart of the car, followed by putting the tran into sport (with dynamic still engaged), is better than just changing to sport + dynamic while driving?

Regarding Dynamic vs Sport, your car has only two engine/transmission mappings (Drive and Sport). When you put the car in Dynamic it automatically puts the car in Sport and it is Sport that makes the drive train more responsive, not Dynamic. When you put the car in Comfort or Auto it automatically puts you in Drive instead of Sport, but all you have to do is pull back once on the shift lever to toggle into Sport mode. So, for example, if you have an adaptive suspension on your car you could put the car in Comfort, then toggle Sport, and you will have a more responsive drive train with a softer ride.

When you go into Individual mode and look at the options for engine/transmission, you can select Dynamic. If you are driving and switch to Individual, it will put you in Sport when the Individual engine/transmission setting is Dynamic. But, just like Dynamic, it reverts to Drive after restarting the car. If you choose Comfort or Auto in Individual mode and switch to Individual while driving, it will put you in Drive instead of Sport. Regardless of the drive mode you are in, you can always pull back on the shift lever to toggle Drive/Sport.

So, it does not matter how you get into Sport mode (switch to Dynamic or Individual while driving, or pull back on the shift lever), the engine/transmission will behave in the same way regardless of the other settings. So, to answer your question, it does not matter.

What does matter depends on the type of suspension in your car. If you have adjustable/adaptive shocks where Comfort gives you a softer ride than Dynamic, you could use Drive mode (Comfort/Auto/Dynamic) to choose the level of ride comfort and sporty handling you want, then toggle Drive/Sport to get the engine/transmission behavior you want. However, when you just put the car in Dynamic, you get Dynamic everything, including the ride quality. So, it does matter in terms of ride and handling qualities.

[RHagel]

Spring has sprung and summer is about to begin soon. With summer heat upon us, it would be the best time to install my 034 ECU/TCU tune, AWE Intercooler, and APR Intake.

But before I delve into the tune, I want to address something important here. Many instances when discussing performance upgrades, there's a huge emphasis on draggy times, slips, and other metrics that really don't speak to the drivability of the car. The purpose of this review is to talk about how these mods affect everyday driving from a drivability standpoint, and what the average consumer can expect.

So let me begin by describing my experience with the OEM tune and what bothered me about it. First and foremost, drive mode seemed very lazy with a lot of pedal delay or throttle delay built into the OEM tuning. I know this is distinct from turbo lag specifically so before anyone mentions that trust me I know the difference. So then you ask why don't you drive it in sport mode? Well the problem with sport mode is that it was overly harsh and would tend to buck a lot (even with my 034 transmission mount). It was actually kind of dangerous to drive it in places like the canyons in sport mode because the throttle was so touchy and did not facilitate smooth transitions in turns. At the same time the transmission felt like there was a lot of slop and it shifted very lazily, and even though in sport mode it was overly aggressive it still wasn't shifting very cleanly. It's almost like Audi was trying to overcompensate for poor tuning with aggressive throttle mapping. Instead of ending up with a product that has a dual purpose (comfortable daily, sporty weekend car), you end up with a product that is too lazy in Drive mode and artificially aggressive in Sport mode, neither of which is very appealing and goes against the ethos of a car like an Audi S5. This car should be a sporty daily with an even more aggressive but refined side that you can tap into when you want.

In my opinion ladies and gentlemen, that has been achieved with the 034 tuning package. So let's talk about the tune. I went with 034 ECU stage 1 TCU stage 2. For me the concern was not so much the power increase, which can be felt and is quite noticeable. It was the drivability factor of the car. Drive mode now is no longer lazy - there is practically no delay at all from when you hit the pedal in the car and when it spools up and goes. Here's where things get crazy though: in dynamic mode, the car noticeably shifts and accelerates much snappier and crisper. However despite shifting much more aggressively, it is also so much more refined and smoother, which is interesting. The car no longer bucks but shifts with purpose and does so in a clean way that doesn't disrupt the cars driving manners. I know most have said this cliché before, but this really does feel like how the factory should have tuned it and less like some crazy Jekyll and Hyde transformation. Where you will see the Jekyll and Hyde transformation is with launch control. It is crazy fast in launch control now, and the shifts are absolutely brutal. Side note: many have commented on the 'pops and bangs' but truth be told even with my catback exhaust I barely notice it. I guess if you have downpipes or a track exhaust it might be pronounced/annoying but at least for me it's like 10% more burbles than stock, so very "OEM+" and not clapped out backfiring WRX. I don't care one way or another about burbles but for those who want a lot of crackles it's very moderate, and for those concerned it's going to be too much - no need to worry it really isn't. My dads 911 Targa 4S def has way more crackles in sport mode out of the factory than my tuned car.

Naturally with the APR intake, induction noise is louder. There is also a much more pronounced blow off sound, as expected. The AWE intercooler makes a noticeable difference - anytime I would drive the stock car on a mildly warm day I could feel it pulling some power. Now with the intercooler, I'm doing pulls back to back with practically no drop off in performance. I'm sure there are other benefits I would have noticed if I hadn't tuned and had these on, such as better throttle tip in, improved spooling, etc. However, it is hard to say because I got it all done at once so I can't really confirm from a butt dyno if these changes are due to the tuning or the hardware. Regardless I highly recommend getting these three items done as the first order of business to your car once you decide you no longer need warranty or are out of warranty.

Lastly, if you are in Orange County CA and want to check it out and go for a ride, let me know!

Hey Man, sounds like we have a very similar ride, at least with the mods. Where do you live in OC? I am in Aliso if you are looking for people to meet up with. I am usually down to meet up somewhere. LMK, send me a PM if interested!

[handspin]

Normal Daily Mode:

Individual Mode = Dynamic Engine, Comfort Steering, Dynamic Exhaust (like Dynamic, just with lighter steering)

Turn off traction by holding down

//

Except I forgot to select E85 Tune for TCU Stage 2. Downshifting was abrupt and rarely reverse would grind.

Now updated ECU and TCU to E85 properly, shifts are smooth / effortless power

//

Launches also wear the front brakes faster, will have to swap rotors / pads out soon

[Oni_]

Sorry for bringing up a dead thread but the review from op definitely helped me decide on getting the 034 tune done and I figure I should add my experiences for those that may have been hesitating to do it to.

My b9 s5 serves a similar purpose to op in that it’s my daily and I don’t plan on tracking or launching it (maybe very rare occasions) but I wondered if the tune would give me the same excitement I got when I stage 1 my b8 s4. I agree with op in that the stock drive mode is very lack luster and almost embarrassing to drive but the sport mode was overly aggressive. So I did it and got the ecu and tcu stage 1 tune and flashed it two days ago. Immediately, drive felt the way it should. Pedal was so much more responsive. Sport however.. felt more tame. Too tame… so I tried out the tcu stage 2 that everyone says was a must within 24 hrs. I figured if it wasn’t what I was looking for, I have a 30 day return window but there will be no return. The new bluetooth dongle was a life saver because I couldn’t wait to get home to tune it… so after I got the validation email, I tuned my car on my lunch break. On the drive home.. literally uttered out verbally “holy shit”, this car is a beast. Drive still has great response but sport put a big smile on my face. As I gave it some gas, it got some go, and when I wanted to do an aggressive pass, I was blown away. It fit my driving style really well and I’m thoroughly happy with the results.

Tl;dr
Stock: drive = sluggish, sport = very aggressive
Stage 1 ecu + stage 1 tcu: drive = responsive, sport = tame but fast
Stage 1 ecu + stage 2 tcu: drive = responsive, sport = very spirited, refined aggression.

[Ordie]

Great write up. One thing I do find annoying of the S4 is lazy throttle response and jerky gear changes. Been on the fence about getting a tune but I think I might pull the trigger.

Regarding Dynamic vs Sport, your car has only two engine/transmission mappings (Drive and Sport). When you put the car in Dynamic it automatically puts the car in Sport and it is Sport that makes the drive train more responsive, not Dynamic. When you put the car in Comfort or Auto it automatically puts you in Drive instead of Sport, but all you have to do is pull back once on the shift lever to toggle into Sport mode. So, for example, if you have an adaptive suspension on your car you could put the car in Comfort, then toggle Sport, and you will have a more responsive drive train with a softer ride.

When you go into Individual mode and look at the options for engine/transmission, you can select Dynamic. If you are driving and switch to Individual, it will put you in Sport when the Individual engine/transmission setting is Dynamic. But, just like Dynamic, it reverts to Drive after restarting the car. If you choose Comfort or Auto in Individual mode and switch to Individual while driving, it will put you in Drive instead of Sport. Regardless of the drive mode you are in, you can always pull back on the shift lever to toggle Drive/Sport.

So, it does not matter how you get into Sport mode (switch to Dynamic or Individual while driving, or pull back on the shift lever), the engine/transmission will behave in the same way regardless of the other settings. So, to answer your question, it does not matter.

What does matter depends on the type of suspension in your car. If you have adjustable/adaptive shocks where Comfort gives you a softer ride than Dynamic, you could use Drive mode (Comfort/Auto/Dynamic) to choose the level of ride comfort and sporty handling you want, then toggle Drive/Sport to get the engine/transmission behavior you want. However, when you just put the car in Dynamic, you get Dynamic everything, including the ride quality. So, it does matter in terms of ride and handling qualities.

The issue with driving the transmission in sport is that it will stay in 7 gear while in highway speeds unless you turn on cruise control. So I just drive it manual at all times to get around this.

[Dan99]

Great write up. One thing I do find annoying of the S4 is lazy throttle response and jerky gear changes. Been on the fence about getting a tune but I think I might pull the trigger.


The issue with driving the transmission in sport is that it will stay in 7 gear while in highway speeds unless you turn on cruise control. So I just drive it manual at all times to get around this.

If you drive in Sport but find yourself on the highway, just pull back once on the shift lever and go to Drive if you would rather be in 8th. Personally, I like to put it in Manual 7th then invoke cruise control so cruise control stays in 7th.

However, remember that the car is geared for the Autobahn, not speed limits in the US. 6th gear will take you to the top speed of the car, 7th gear is an overdrive gear, and 8th is a double overdrive gear. The issue with 7th vs 8th is mileage, and low rpms is not always the most efficient operating range for an engine. While you have an S4 and I have an RS5, the principles are the same. My car gets 28 mpg at highway speeds in 8th gear; it gets 31 mpg in 7th gear. The operating rpms of the engine at most highway speeds in the US is more efficient in 7th, and the engine will lug in 8th at low road speeds which is hard on the engine.

31mpg30pct.jpg

[Ordie]

If you drive in Sport but find yourself on the highway, just pull back once on the shift lever and go to Drive if you would rather be in 8th. Personally, I like to put it in Manual 7th then invoke cruise control so cruise control stays in 7th.

However, remember that the car is geared for the Autobahn, not speed limits in the US. 6th gear will take you to the top speed of the car, 7th gear is an overdrive gear, and 8th is a double overdrive gear. The issue with 7th vs 8th is mileage, and low rpms is not always the most efficient operating range for an engine. While you have an S4 and I have an RS5, the principles are the same. My car gets 28 mpg at highway speeds in 8th gear; it gets 31 mpg in 7th gear. The operating rpms of the engine at most highway speeds in the US is more efficient in 7th, and the engine will lug in 8th at low road speeds which is hard on the engine.

31mpg30pct.jpg

I tried the slapping it over to drive mode once I reach my speed but it makes it an announce having to slap it over to pass left lane campers. 7th gear at 85-90mph is trouble. It gets up into triple digits real quick. I have a 2021 which supposedly has same gear ratio as RS5. So you can see where the RPMs would sit at Texas highway speeds. I have gotten used to keeping in manual since I do it with my weekend car anyways but in manual still a bit jerky.

[034Motorsport]

I tried the slapping it over to drive mode once I reach my speed but it makes it an announce having to slap it over to pass left lane campers. 7th gear at 85-90mph is trouble. It gets up into triple digits real quick. I have a 2021 which supposedly has same gear ratio as RS5. So you can see where the RPMs would sit at Texas highway speeds. I have gotten used to keeping in manual since I do it with my weekend car anyways but in manual still a bit jerky.

All S4's, 2018-2024 have the same drive ratios.

[Dan99]

All S4's, 2018-2024 have the same drive ratios.

They don't have the same gear ratios as the RS5, which was the claim I addressed in a previous post. Prior to 2020, the RS5 had slightly different gear ratios in the transmission. For example, 1st gear is 5:1 through 2019, and 4.71 starting in 2020.

Starting in 2020, however, the S4 and RS5 have the same gear ratios in the transmission, but they still don't have the same gearing because the rear end ratio is different. The RS5 is 3.2:1 and the S4 is 2.85:1. So, the effective gear ratios are not the same, even when the transmission ratios are the same.

[Ordie]

Thank for clarifying that. Makes sense