Audi injects some sport into A4, A5 range

AUDI has spiced up its four-door A4 and three-door A5 range with a limited edition that adds up to $10,000 worth of extra gear for less than $5000 over the regular price.

Audi is limiting the Sport Edition to 250 A4 sedans and 150 A5 Coupe, Sportback and Convertible models, and has added cosmetic and mechanical extras in a bid to maintain interest against stiff competition from the top-selling Mercedes-Benz C-Class and newer BMW 3 Series.

Extras on the A4 sedan include larger 19-inch, five-spoke alloy wheels, premium metallic paint and Xenon headlights with LED tail-lights.

Driver and passenger sports seats, a flat-bottom steering-wheel and an updated satellite navigation system featuring 20GB of media storage and a DVD player are included in the upgrades to the cabin, while the A4 sedan gains a sports suspension set-up.

The Sport Edition carries a $4490 premium over the petrol A4 1.8 TFSI and 2.0 TDI diesel on which they are based, lifting the entry price to $59,990 and $62,390 before on-road costs respectively.

Audi has included the same equipment upgrades to the A5 Sport Edition, although the Xenon head-lights and LED tail-lights are already standard.

The premium for the A5 Coupe and Sportback is $3800 over the standard models.

The 1.8 petrol TFSI retails for $70,700, while the 2.0-litre diesel is now $72,500.

Audi’s A5 Cabriolet Sports Edition is priced from $83,440 in petrol guise and $85,840 for the diesel, marking a $4940 leap over the price of the regular base model drop-top.

Audi says the extra equipment adds up to $9000 worth of extras for the A4 and between $8000 and $10,000 for the A5.

On top of the extra equipment in the Sport Edition, standard gear for both cars already includes leather interior, rear parking sensors, electric driver’s seat, and automatic head-lights and wipers.

Engine choices include the 125kW/320Nm 1.8-litre TFSI with claimed fuel use of 5.8 litres per 100 kilometres on the combined cycle, or the 2.0-litre TDI diesel engine producing 130kW/380Nm and using just 4.8L/100km.

Both are mated to a “Multitronic” continuously variable transmission.

Audi launched the current A4 in January 2008, giving the premium mid-sizer a significant facelift in 2012. However, it still trails its German counterparts Mercedes-Benz and BMW on sales.

Mercedes-Benz is leading the sales race with 3476 examples of its C-Class shifted in the first seven months of this year, and BMW is hot on its trail after selling 3284 3 Series’ in the same period.

Audi settles for third place with 1610 A4 sales from January to July, ahead of Japanese luxury brand Lexus, which has sold a total of 1437 IS sedans.

An all-new A4 is expected to surface at some point in 2014 and is rumoured to weigh 50kg less than the current model thanks to extensive use of aluminium, plastic and magnesium in the body construction.

Audi A4 and A5 Sport Edition pricing*

A4 1.8 TFSI sedan (a)	$59,990
A4 2.0 TDI sedan (a)	$62,390
A5 1.8 TFSI Coupe and Sportback (a)	$70,700
A5 2.0 TDI Coupe and Sportback (a)	$72,500
A5 1.8 TFSI Cabriolet (a)	$83,440
A5 2.0 TDI Cabriolet (a)	$85,840

*Excludes on-road costs.