The technology package of the Audi A4 3.0 TDI clean diesel quattro comprises the engine itself and the highly efficient exhaust gas after-treatment system. A new common rail injection system that develops pressures of up to 2,000 bar, innovative combustion chamber pressure sensors and an ultra-high-performance exhaust gas recirculation system ensure highly efficient combustion which produces minimal raw emissions. A novel DeNOX catalytic converter at the end of the exhaust system reduces nitrogen oxides. Just upstream of it, a pump injects an aqueous additive named AdBlue into the hot exhaust flow, where this solution decomposes into ammonia, which splits the nitrogen oxides into nitrogen and water. The tank is large enough that the driver never has to refill it. This is done instead by the Audi dealership during scheduled maintenance. The innovative V6 TDI engine makes the A4 a powerful performer, needing only 6.2 seconds (Avant: 6.3 seconds) to go from zero to 100 km/h (62.14 mph). Top speed is electronically governed to 250 km/h (155.34 mph). The combination with the six-speed tiptronic and quattro permanent all-wheel drive ensures a high degree of comfort and superior traction. The equipment and data specified in this document refer to the model range offered in Germany. Subject to change without notice; errors and omissions excepted.
The GTI Autobahn has leather, moonroof, and active dampers. The Golf R has Volkswagen’s Digital Cockpit, a high-resolution LCD screen that replaces conventional gauges. It’s a system that came from Audi where it’s been praised. Like the GTI, the adaptive suspension with active dampers is optional. Available safety features include automatic emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, lane departure warning, park distance control, and automatic headlamps. Volkswagen is stubborn in its clinging to pure rather than trendy styling, and bless their hearts for it. The Golf is clean, especially the SportWagen, and it’s a great relief. It’s not edgy, it’s smooth. No attitude. It mirrors the engineering. That said, the GTI does bring some sport and maybe attitude. Its stance is lower, on the sport suspension, while the red brake calipers show between the spokes of the 17-inch alloy wheels. There are side skirts and a rear diffuser, as well. And you can’t have a diffuser without showing your attitude. The Alltrack has some exterior elements that the cleaner SportWagen doesn’t have: cladding on its lower sides, foglamps, a honeycomb grille, and its own bumpers. The cabin is as clean as the body, functional and spacious.
The materials are not expensive but don’t feel cheap. The instrumentation is intuitive and easy to read and operate. The driver doesn’t have to work to understand his car, unlike so many German cars. The centerstack is oriented toward the driver, and the gauges are hooded so there’s no glare. Some thinking has clearly gone into the design. The GTI and Golf R have a sport steering wheel and shift knob, stainless steel pedals, and an instrument panel with no-nonsense gauges. The sport seats are a plaid fabric, with a black headliner and red ambient lighting. We got great seat time during one week in a 4Motion SportWagen, a long road trip, and we found the cabin to totally easy, comfortable, relaxing, and very quiet. The powertrain and suspension had much to do with that, of course. The front seats are the best, perfectly supportive and easy to adjust for all body sizes.
The leatherette feels a bit rubbery, while the less expensive but rugged plaid upholstery feels just fine. There three touchscreens: base 5.0 inch, upper trim 6.5 inch, and top option 8.0 inch. This big screen gets its own new infotainment system. It might be a bit tight in the back seat for three passengers, but it’s easy to climb in and out. In the hatchback, there are 22.8 cubic feet of cargo space behind the rear seat, that’s quite a lot. The seatbacks lower with a quick pull release, to open things up for 52.7 cubic feet. Bring in the SportWagen, and you have 30.4 cubic feet behind the rear seat, and 66.5 with it folded, although unfortunately it doesn’t fold completely flat. We put more than 700 miles on a 4Motion SportWagen in one week, and didn’t want to leave it. We averaged 30 mpg, most of it on a 70-mph interstate, and the 1.8-liter turbo and paddle-shifting six-speed DSG transmission were flawlessly smooth. They achieved that kind of perfection you want in a car like this: you didn’t know they were there, but they always were there for whatever you needed or wanted.
Seamless acceleration with no turbo lag. We can’t remember the last time we drove a four-cylinder that was this smooth and effortless at 75 mph. The ride, the clear and intuitive instrumentation, there’s nothing we would even nitpick. The SportWagen was an S model with no options, and there was nothing we missed. The infotainment, with satellite radio, was just fine. It lacked navigation, but we had our cellphone with mobile apps. With any Golf, the handling and drivability match the merits of the powertrain. Maybe the S hatchback won’t corner like a Mazda3, but the GTI will, and the R goes beyond that. We also got seat time in a Golf with the five-speed manual transmission, whose throws of the lever are rather long. The six-speed manual is stronger than the five-speed, and that sixth gear has a taller ratio, so the revs at freeway speed are lower and the car quieter. But still, the six-speed DSG automatic is so good that it’s our choice. The sporty GTI is perfectly drivable to the grocery store, even with its firmer suspension and quicker steering.
