[m3legacy]

Just last week I picked up an almost new '15 Estoril Blue with Coral Red interior. 3.5K miles on the clock. $39,500.

I've had one version or another of the Audi S4 since 2003. One each of the twin turbo, the V8 and the supercharged 6. The S4 has always hit my sweet spot of performance and utility not to mention I love the look.

I had driven both the S3 and the M235i briefly about a year ago before heading to Thailand.

So this time it was down to the M235i and the Audi S3. Cars were sooooo evenly matched (in my mind anyway) I finally picked the Beemer because I wanted something different and hadn't had one since my 2001 M3,

I was in Thailand at the time and wanted to complete the purchase so I could pick up the car the day after I returned since I had no wheels upon my return and renting would have been very difficult (since I didn't have ANY insurance) and expensive..

Inquired about the car about 8 days before I was due to get back. Salesperson (a female if it matters) got an "11" on a scale of 1-10 for our first interaction, not only by responding right away but even shooting a short, personalized video of the car for me.

Her service going forward, after we agreed on a price and with my insistence of getting the deal done BEFORE I got back so I could get the car right away, then became a "2".

Pretty ironic when you think about it. Normally when I buy a car (or even look into doing so) I can't get rid of the salesperson. NOW, when I am a fish already hooked, I can't get a deal done.

Net-net, with all the frustration of trying to get the deal done and not being able to, she basically KILLED the thrill of the purchase for me. It became more of a chore than anything else. I was actually on the verge of telling her to go,,,,,,,,, well, you know and get myself the S3 I was looking into. And when I actually picked up the car I was more annoyed than anything else. NOT a good way to start.

Anywho, I drove the car from Cincinnati to South Florida in 2 days. The car is great. Everything the magazines said about it was right on. Terrific ride. Can't wait to do some mods (wheels first of course ).

Got great mileage on the trip. Doing 80 most of the way I averaged in the mid 30's per gallon.

But in a few days I already have some issues/peeves.

First, the driver's seat belt is twisted. Not my imagination. No matter how I buckle it either the shoulder belt is twisted or the lap belt is. Both anchoring points look just fine. WTF ?

The start/stop doesn't work properly. Sometimes it doesn't stop. Other times it stops and while my foot is still on the brake it starts up again.

Also, and I think I've seen it mentioned (here ?) before, the downshifting and/or braking while coasting to stop (say, at a light) is quite abrupt and "jerky". My S4 never did that.

Anybody have these issues with their car ? Any "fixes" ?

[DanG]

The start/stop works on a function of battery charge. When the car is cold, the start/stop will not stop. With air conditioning on and other accessories it will start when it thinks the battery is running low even with your foot on the brake. It sounds to me like yours is working to design.

[Transfer]

Congrats. 1) Get your dealership to straighten out the belt. I would hope it would be a warranty thing. 2) Why on earth are you using start/stop? It's a gimmick to trick the EPA. But if you must use it, there are certain paramaters when it won't stop and may start early. RTFM. 3) Is yours an auto or manual? I suppose there is a little jerkiness coming to a stop with my auto box, but nothing concerning. The ZF 8sp is like that across platforms but as a trade off it's the fastest torque converter transmission to date.

Now forget the small stuff and go out and grab it by the scruff and learn what BMW balanced handling feels like compared to Audi. You've just bought a magnificently handling car!

[mike@x-ph.com]

[krhodes1]

Originally Posted by Transfer

Congrats. 1) Get your dealership to straighten out the belt. I would hope it would be a warranty thing. 2) Why on earth are you using start/stop? It's a gimmick to trick the EPA. But if you must use it, there are certain paramaters when it won't stop and may start early. RTFM. 3) Is yours an auto or manual? I suppose there is a little jerkiness coming to a stop with my auto box, but nothing concerning. The ZF 8sp is like that across platforms but as a trade off it's the fastest torque converter transmission to date.

Now forget the small stuff and go out and grab it by the scruff and learn what BMW balanced handling feels like compared to Audi. You've just bought a magnificently handling car!

Actually, start/stop pays almost no dividend on the EPA test - the test doesn't have stops long enough for it to matter. In the real world, it makes a difference. However, that said, I find it is great with my manual car because I control it - it only shuts off if the car is in neutral with the clutch out. I find it much more irritating on automatics because the car has no way of knowing how long you will be stopped, so it shuts off more often and unnecessarily.

Just another reason that autotragics suck. Talk about things that game the EPA test - automatics are #1 for that.

As for the seatbelt - mine isn't twisted, but it does love to jam up when retracting. I find I have to hold onto it so it feeds more slowly. I'm a BIG guy so I am pulling it out much farther than most people would have to.

[Dylan86]

Congrats OP!

Sounds like I had a similar experience with my car, in terms of the salesperson. They HATE when you know more about the car than them

Enjoy,

D