Compare the2023 Audi S4VS 2023 Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Audi S4 have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

The S4’s pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Giulia Quadrifoglio doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Audi S4 are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

Both the S4 and Giulia Quadrifoglio have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The S4 has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The Giulia Quadrifoglio’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

The S4’s standard pretensioning seatbelts also sense rear collisions and remove slack from the seatbelts to help protect the occupants from whiplash and other injuries. The Giulia Quadrifoglio doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

The S4 has a standard Secondary Collision Brake Assist, which automatically applies the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The Giulia Quadrifoglio doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.

The S4 has all-wheel drive to maximize traction under poor conditions, especially in ice and snow. The Giulia Quadrifoglio doesn’t offer all-wheel drive.

The S4 Premium Plus/Prestige has a standard Top View Cameras to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Giulia Quadrifoglio only offers a rear monitor and front and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the sides.

Both the S4 and the Giulia Quadrifoglio have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, available blind spot warning systems and rear cross-path warning.

The S4’s corrosion warranty is 7 years longer than the Giulia Quadrifoglio’s (12 vs. 5 years).

There are over 2 times as many Audi dealers as there are Alfa Romeo dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the S4’s warranty.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Audi vehicles are more reliable than Alfa Romeo With 13 fewer problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, J.D. Power ranks Audi higher than Alfa Romeo.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Audi vehicles are more reliable than Alfa Romeo vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Audi 15 places higher in reliability than Alfa Romeo.

On the EPA test cycle the S4 gets better fuel mileage than the Giulia Quadrifoglio (21 city/30 hwy vs. 17 city/25 hwy).

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Audi S4 higher (5 out of 10) than the Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio (3). This means the S4 produces up to 16.5 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Giulia Quadrifoglio every 15,000 miles.

The S4’s launch control uses engine electronics to hold engine RPM’s precisely in order to provide the most stable and rapid acceleration possible, using all of the available traction. The Giulia Quadrifoglio doesn’t offer launch control.

For better traction, the S4 has larger tires than the Giulia Quadrifoglio (255/35R19 vs. 245/35R19).

The S4 has a standard space-saver spare tire so you can replace a flat tire and drive to have the flat repaired or replaced. A spare tire isn’t available on the Giulia Quadrifoglio; it requires you to depend on roadside assistance and your vehicle will have to be towed.

The S4 has .6 inches more rear legroom and .9 inches more rear shoulder room than the Giulia Quadrifoglio.

With its sedan body style, valet key, locking rear seatbacks and remote trunk release lockout, the S4 offers cargo security. The Giulia Quadrifoglio’s non-lockable remote release defeats cargo security.

To make loading groceries and cargo easier when your hands are full, the S4’s available trunk can be opened just by kicking your foot under the back bumper, leaving your hands completely free. The Giulia Quadrifoglio doesn’t offer a hands-free gesture to open its trunk, forcing you to put cargo down if your hands are full.

J.D. Power and Associates surveys of service recipients show that Audi service is better than Alfa Romeo. J.D. Power ranks Audi 8th in service department satisfaction (above the industry average). With a 64% lower rating, Alfa Romeo is ranked 32nd.

The S4 Prestige has a standard heads-up display that projects speed, warning and navigation instruction readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Giulia Quadrifoglio doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

If the windows are left open on the S4 the driver can close them all at the outside door handle or from a distance using the remote. On a hot day the driver can lower the windows from a distance using the keyless remote. The driver of the Giulia Quadrifoglio can only operate the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

The S4’s LED headlights produce a white, bright light using less electricity than the Giulia Quadrifoglio’s xenon high intensity discharge (HID) headlights. HID headlights can be slow to reach full brightness or power cycle, causing issues when flashing them to signal other vehicles; LED headlights light instantly. LED lights also last about three to four times as long.

Manual rear side window sunshades are available in the S4 to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The Giulia Quadrifoglio doesn’t offer rear side window sunshades.

When the S4 with available tilt-down mirrors is put in reverse, the passenger rearview mirror tilts from its original position. This gives the driver a better view of the curb during parallel parking maneuvers. Shifting out of reverse puts the mirror into its original position. The Giulia Quadrifoglio’s mirror doesn’t automatically adjust for backing.

Optional air-conditioned seats in the S4 Premium Plus/Prestige keep the driver and front passenger comfortable and take the sting out of hot seats in Summer. The Giulia Quadrifoglio doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats.

The S4 has standard massaging front seats in order to maximize comfort and eliminate fatigue on long trips. Massaging seats aren’t available in the Giulia Quadrifoglio.

The S4 Prestige’s Park Steering Assist can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, with the driver only controlling speed with the brake pedal. The Giulia Quadrifoglio doesn’t offer an automated parking system.

Insurance will cost less for the S4 owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the S4 will cost $3455 to $6795 less than the Giulia Quadrifoglio over a five-year period.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Audi S4 will be $17460 to $26554 less than for the Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio.

The Audi A4/S4 outsold the Alfa Romeo Giulia by over two to one during the 2022 model year.