alpine003

Have the guys that think the c4s awd is superior, live in a snow state and have driven in heavy snow? I did a back to back comparison on friend's c4s, Audi, mercedes 4matic, Evo, Subaru and guess which felt the least confidence inspiring in the snow? And yes my friend's c4s had snow tires on them too. I'm not talking about a "dusting" of snow either.

I'm not saying the c4s isn't capable in snow but just don't feel that it's superior in anyway compared to other systems.

Speedyellow993

The 996 AWD is good in the snow but it needs a proper winter tire set up. 225 front and 265 rears. The issue you will run into is not enought front bumper clearence for snow. And dont kid yourself thinking that it is as good as the Quattro and BMW x-drives. 4-matic is the worst of the bunch with the most computer intervention.

Change your IMS and you are good to go and wont lose any sleep.

Good Luck with your hunt.

Speedyellow993

PS. I will agree that it isnt superior to any of the other products but most of the time it all depends on the tires themselves. Much better then a C2 tough...;-)

spender

Yes, but who wants to own an Audi? It's the German Buick.

Speedyellow993

LOL..... That pretty much sums it up.

My Audi Quattros felt like a tank compared to my X-drive.

But in all fairness, when It snowed hard.... The Quattros are the King!

alpine003

You might want to be careful with that statement if you truly think that, as VW owns Audi and more recently Porsche. So by your logic if Buick=German Buick, then what is VW=?. The only "Buick" I see in Audi is it's weight penalty. BMW was smart in that aspect of proactively partnering with one of the largest carbon fiber companies(SGL)to produce their own CF and better control cost and research(latest joint venture with Boeing). VW/Audi I'm sure will head in that direction and catch up eventually.

We've already seen how much VW/Audi influence has made itself to some Lamborghini models(both good and bad). It will be interesting to see what they do with Porsche long term. Btw, I don't own an Audi.

lml999

Now hey there.

A tool for every purpose...

For what the OP spends on winter wheels and tires he could drive a perfectly serviceable B5 A4. 5 speed, 1.8 turbo. Or he could drive a C5 A6 avant and never have to borrow another pickup truck for Home Depot runs. Great cars. Not Porsches. Still great cars.

calbo

Real world consideration... if you suffer a flat tire on either of the rears, it takes about 2 days to get a replacement. So if the C4S was your one and only car, a simple puncture will mess with your daily routine.

Macster

With both my Boxster and Turbo laid up waiting for tires my local (Livermore) dealer gave me a courtesy car to use, an Audi A4.

The A4 a Buick? Hardly unless Buick has improved dare I say a great deal recently. I don't care if you think it the unified Germany equivalent of a Trabant. This Audi is a nice car and much better than tons of other cars, including a real Buick.

What it ain't is my Turbo. Sigh. Come on new tires!

perfectlap

OP, If I were going 996, I'd get the Turbo. You get the GT1 at a bargain. Otherwise I'd wait for the older 997 C4 prices to come down. once in, I think those 997 values are going to hold up well because of the 991 pricing pushing many towards used Carreras.

P9C

Porsche vs. Audi - two totally different philosophies even though they share some similarities. Living in Finland I have driven both an Audi and Porsche. An AWD Audi (any model) runs circles around probably any car out there during the snowy winter. Summer time is different then - nothing beats Porsche's unique feeling when Audi feels more like a "normal" car regardless how much power it has.

work_truck

10 year old argument solved thank you