New Audi S4 touches down in Oz

Powered by a beefed up 3.0-litre turbo-petrol V6 engine that pumps out 260kW, the 2017 Audi S4 is the most powerful S4 ever. And also the most affordable.

Priced $100 shy of $100,000 for the sedan, the new S4 is priced $6120 lower than its predecessor while offering what's claimed to be more than $12,000 worth of extra features.

But with compelling options from rivals such as the recent Mercedes-AMG C 43 ($101,290), Audi had to get competitive.

The new Audi S4 is based on the new-generation A4 and rips to 100km/h in 4.7 seconds thanks to quattro all-wheel drive and 500Nm of torque pumping through a conventional eight-speed automatic transmission.

It sits 23mm lower to the ground than garden-variety A4 models, gets a mechanical central differential, has a 250km/h top speed and a low fuel consumption rate of just 7.7L/100km (claimed).

Standard features for the sub-$100K scorcher are claimed to include "the most advanced infotainment and safety systems in the segment." Cop that BMW and Benz!

That's the word according to Peter Strudwicke, Audi Australia's product planner for the A4 and A5 model ranges. He points out the S4 is fitted as standard with the Audi virtual cockpit, a fully digitised and customisable instrument panel, and an MMI navigation plus system.

Both systems use Google Maps, displayed on a large 8.3-inch central colour screen or the virtual cockpit, feature real-time traffic updates, voice control and touch pad inputs and there's a digital radio hooked up to a 10-speaker, 180 watt stereo with subwoofer.

On the safety side the Audi S4 can park itself, navigate traffic by itself, stop you dooring cyclists, warn and even assist the driver to brake and steer if it detects impending risks.

In Audi-speak that means you get adaptive cruise control with traffic jam assist, exit warning system and active lane assist as standard. It also has a swerve avoidance system.

The regulars are in there too, such as side assist and blind spot warning, eight airbags, stability control, autonomous emergency braking (AEB) up to 85km/h, turn assist, high beam assist, rear cross traffic assist, and 360-degree surround cameras to make parking easier.

Simply put, Audi has thrown it's entire safety tech catalogue at the car.

Luxury cars – even fast ones like this – come with plenty of touchy-feely stuff too, such as electrically adjustable luxury leather and Alcantara sports seats (heated), three-zone automatic climate control, brushed aluminium interior accents and ambient interior lights with 30 customisable colours.

The cabin gets some sporty flair too, such as a flat-bottom leather steering wheel with paddle gear shifters, stainless steel pedals and a third virtual cockpit mode with a giant rev counter. Keyless access, adaptive dampers, 19-inch alloy wheels, adaptive LED headlights and illuminated door sills are other big ticket features fitted as standard.

"We're really confident this car will do well for us," says Strudwicke.

"What we've done compared to the previous generation, we've added over $12,000 of additional equipment.

"We've got about 100 orders in the system at the moment, so I think we'll be looking at over 200 per year, and if you consider the lifecycle has a long way to run, I think we'll do quite a bit better compared to the previous car.

"It's the best performing S4 we've offered, with a sharper design, amazing interior quality and the most advanced infotainment and safety systems in the segment," stated Strudwicke.

Some of the options include a sport differential, which adds rear axle torque vectoring ($2950), dynamic steering ($2210) and the S performance package ($5900) which adds faux leather dash upholstery and carbon accents, S sport front seats with Nappa leather and diamond stitching.

Like all Audi cars the S4 gets a three-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty. Service intervals are 12 months or 15,000km, whichever occurs first.

2017 Audi S4 pricing (plus ORCs):
S4 Sedan — $99,900
S4 Wagon — $102,900