Tech_KO

C&D compared the S4, M3, MB C43 AMG, & Saab 9-3 Viggen. S4 beats the bunch.<p>Damn I want one.<p>Tech_KO<br>Silver 1.8T, QSM

donp

Ahhh, conformation that my order was a good decision. My subscription is late... figures!!

Dan F.

Before I make my comments, I'm not saying that the S4 isn't a great car. If I hadn't just bought a new A4, I'd definitely order one!<p>HOWEVER, it seems to me that these car magazines have a bias towards rating the most recent models as the best ones, almost like they're collaborating with the car manufacturers to hype up the cars and generate demand.<p>Another minor example is the Consumer Guide's New Car Review periodical. I've noticed that the review for the A4 has gradually gotten more and more critical as time wears on, while newer near-luxury cars like the TL 3.2 get glowing reports. Is the A4 really getting worse with time? I don't think so.<p>Dan<br>

Tom

Remember last year the Volkswagen Passat V6 rated the 1st place among all others heavyweight contenders like Honda Accord and Toyota Camry, but it didn't even on the 10 Best list. This topic has been discussed heavily on vwvortex board which we all think are unacceptable. The top car should be one of the 10 Best if the Accord finally lost its benchmark status over the Passat.<br>It maybe the Audi S4 won the September issue of Car & Driver's comparo (I no longer subscribe after the lousy comparo of A4 2.8 and 328 issue!) but will the S4 makes 10 Best award for the last 10 Best before Y2K? I doubt it!<br>Remember all the previous years' C&D always said why the 10 Best winner are 2nd place and 1st place is not 10 Best winner? They all say because its subjective in comparo and objective in 10 Best winners. I doubt its objective because BMW made 3 cars this year, Chrysler made 2. Where is A4 that made for the last 3 years?<br>Seems lilke a great debate will be held after!!!<br>Finally, I never took those comparo seriously because they are all subjective to their own choices. I chose cars but my own driving experience.<br>Congrulation for S4 won over M3, C43 AMG and 9-3 Viggen! :=><br>Tom<br>97 A4 1.8TQMS<br>99 JETTA IV GLS 2.0

T2

If you're looking at the same ones I am, I've found that the A4 review in Consumer Guide has not changed since the 1997 model year! They have one comment in there that said their test car made a droaning sound or something like that at highway speeds. It frustrates me that they can't make the effort to test current year cars, since they all do change if even slightly.<p>Tom<br>1.8TQMS Silver/Ecru

Jah-Wren Ryel

My experience has been that anything that Consumer's Guide recommends should be avoided. They are a huge scam organization. They choose a name similar to "Consumers' Reports" so that they can be easily confused with a reputable organization. But, where CR accepts no money or any other compensation from vendors (they buy their cars off the lot without even identifying themselves as working for CR), CG charges vendors to use the name "Consumer's Guide Best Buy" in the vendor's advertising. CR will sue any vendor that tries to use their ratings in advertising.<p>They recommended the first-year Neon, which is as huge a POS as you can get. If you see a CG recommendation, run away.

KJK

I can't believe that you cancelled your subscription for the reason. If I recall correctly, the two cars were like a point apart. Essentially, the rated them equally depending on what you need and want. I recall glowing praise for the A4. As far as BMW making three cars, C&D's evaluation was very consistent with other publications which all praised the new 3 series and absolutely love the 5 series. Ultimately, they rate BMW's high because they are enthusiasts and Bimmers are fun to drive. They are clearly biased towards those types of cars and I am sure that Audis will make the list given their latest offerings.<p>Applying the same logic, you should re-subscribe because they rated the S4 first (albeit against an E36 M3 instead of the E46). Even if you don't always agree with Car and Driver, they are the most aggressive, enthusiast-type of drivers compared to the other auto mags. The only other magazine in the same category is Autoweek.<p>KJK 91 M5

JohnO

C&D routinely does tests of categories right before a new groundbreaking model is coming out in the same category. I'm surprised that the S4 was included in the test - could've been an easy win for the M3! Their ratings routinely make no sense so I largely ignore them. Examples: The Navigator is better than the Range Rover 4.0? NOT even close. The Turbo Beetle spanked the Civic Si but the Civic won because it has a higher redline. Huh? Etc. I was surprised the A4 1.8T won its comparison. That particular car had been in a couple of other magazine's hands before C&D so I'm sure it was pretty abused when they got it - the poor test numbers bear this out. It is truly a testament to the A4 that it won despite being a beater! <p>JohnO<br>