+1 for Josh and Open Road Audi's assistant sales manager. I would avoid Richmond at all costs. I go there for servicing only and the front desk girls.

If you're buying/leasing brand new, I would suggest Open Road over the other dealers. Josh knows his cars and is courteous.

From what I understand you can get the S4 as a 6-speed manual or 7-speed tiptronic. Not sure about the dual clutch thing. If I were to spring for the S, I was going to go for the auto, but I'm likely going to do the A4.

Between the Audi's and BMW's, it's just personal preference. You're already in German luxury league, so it's really up to your own tastes.

To be frank, I think the BMW's are all around better cars than Audis. Everything's very sturdy and reliable. But when I drive a 3-series, from the moment I sit inside, everything just seems very vanilla and bland. I've never been a huge fan of the 3-series' minimalist interior. The interior, the exterior, the whole package feels very.. meh. I mean everything's good, there's nothing wrong, but at the same time there's nothing that really stands out, and it just didn't excite me like the Audi did.

I prefer the Audi exterior, interior, and features in every way. Also, everything just feels a lot more.. edgy and sleek. Since I'm leasing, Audi's rates are a bit better than the BMW's, though this wasn't the deal breaker. Audi's 2.0T is known to have problems, but apparently in the newer generations, the problems seem to be minimal, no more than the 335i's common problems.

iirc, the rate for a4 was 1.9 and s4 is 2.9
bmw said 4.9 for the 2012 335i....

I didn't test drive the 3 series, so do you know how the steering is? The A/S 4's steering was a bit loose for my taste. I've driven my friends C350 and it didn't have the same feeling of looseness

What did the s4 have? I tested all of these cars out prior to getting the s4, and have also tested multiple cars after getting the s4. C350/Is350 have the loosest steering of them all. Where as the 335i/s steering is quite stiff. The s4 (I have never driven an a4 before so I can't say much on them) is in between them all. If you opt for the Sport differential, or the Audi Drive Select, there is a noticeable difference in the steering. Comfort mode steering feels more loose then my corolla, where as sport mode is more akin to a BMW. There is a difference between an s4 and an s4 with the sport differential. May seem like a minor thing, but most people's gripes with the s4's steering/handling/etc. can be solved with the sport differential, and some better sway bars.

Like PJ I was swayed from getting a 335i because despite being a driver's car, bmw 3 series felt boring to drive. Sure the steering is nice when doing fast turns/tracking, but gets in the way of normal everyday driving. Exterior looked bland, interior was worse then the competition .by a long shot ( Personal opinion) And for the price I was paying it felt like I was getting less- Blind spot detectors, backup camera, etc.

HOWEVER these are all based on my 2010 S4 versus the old e92 335i/s, and pre 2012 c-class benz.

Also as other's have mentioned, Josh at Open Road is probably the only person I'd talk to in the Openroad audi sales department.

s4 come with DSG -> dual clutch =)

for BMW:

The BMW Store. I recommend to talk to Neil Shah.

good luck!

another +1 for The BMW Store. Had no problems with my sale.