Compare the2023 Audi S4VS 2023 Volkswagen GTI

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 GTI doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

Both the S4 and GTI 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 GTI’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 Audi S4 has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The GTI doesn’t offer knee airbags.

The S4 has all-wheel drive to maximize traction under poor conditions, especially in ice and snow. The GTI 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 GTI 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 GTI have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, available blind spot warning systems and rear cross-path warning.

The Audi S4 weighs 641 to 714 pounds more than the Volkswagen GTI. The NHTSA advises that heavier cars are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts.

The S4’s corrosion warranty is 5 years and unlimited miles longer than the GTI’s (12/unlimited vs. 7/100,000).

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Audi vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Audi 10 places higher in reliability than Volkswagen.

The S4’s 3.0 turbo V6 produces 108 more horsepower (349 vs. 241) and 96 lbs.-ft. more torque (369 vs. 273) than the GTI’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

As tested in Motor Trend the Audi S4 is faster than the Volkswagen GTI (automatics tested):

The S4 has 2.1 gallons more fuel capacity than the GTI (15.3 vs. 13.2 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

The S4 has a tether attaching its gas cap to prevent its loss. The GTI’s gas cap isn’t tethered, so it can be left at a gas station if the driver forgets to screw the cap back in.

The Audi S4 comes standard with an automatic transmission, for driver comfort, especially in the city. Automatic costs extra on the GTI.

An eight-speed automatic is standard on the Audi S4, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only a seven-speed automatic is available for the GTI.

For better stopping power the S4’s brake rotors are larger than those on the GTI:

The S4 stops shorter than the GTI:

For better traction, the S4 has larger tires than the GTI (255/35R19 vs. 225/40R18). The S4’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the GTI (255/35R19 vs. 235/35R19).

The S4’s tires provide better handling because they have a lower 35 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the GTI’s standard 40 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the S4 has standard 19-inch wheels. Smaller 18-inch wheels are standard on the GTI.

The S4 has standard front and rear gas-charged shocks for better control over choppy roads. The GTI’s suspension doesn’t offer gas-charged shocks.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the S4’s wheelbase is 7.4 inches longer than on the GTI (111 inches vs. 103.6 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the S4 is 1.5 inches wider in the front and 1.6 inches wider in the rear than on the GTI.

The S4’s front to rear weight distribution is more even (57% to 43%) than the GTI’s (60.9% to 39.1%). This gives the S4 more stable handling and braking.

The S4 has .1 inches more front legroom, .7 inches more rear legroom and .6 inches more rear shoulder room than the GTI.

With its sedan body style, valet key, locking rear seatbacks and remote trunk release lockout, the S4 offers cargo security. The GTI’s hatchback body style, non-lockable folding seat and non-lockable remote release defeat cargo security.

A standard locking glovebox (which can’t be accessed with the valet key) keeps your small valuables safer in the S4. The GTI doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

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 GTI doesn’t offer a hands-free gesture to open its liftgate, forcing you to put cargo down if your hands are full.

The S4 uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The GTI uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

The engine in the S4 is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the GTI. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because the accessory belts are in front.

J.D. Power and Associates surveys of service recipients show that Audi service is better than Volkswagen. J.D. Power ranks Audi 8th in service department satisfaction (above the industry average). With a 32% lower rating, Volkswagen is ranked 28th.

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 GTI can only operate the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The S4 Prestige has standard headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The GTI doesn’t offer headlight washers.

The GTI’s cornering lamps activate a lamp on the front corner when the turn signal is activated. The S4 Prestige’s standard adaptive cornering lights turn the actual headlight unit up to several degrees, depending on steering wheel angle and vehicle speed. This lights a significant distance into corners at any speed.

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

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 GTI.

The S4 has a standard dual zone air conditioning allows the driver and front passenger to choose two completely different temperatures so people with different temperature preferences won’t have to compromise. This makes both the driver and front passenger as comfortable as possible. Dual zone air conditioning is only available on the GTI Autobahn.

The Audi A4/S4 outsold the Volkswagen Golf/GTI by 50% during the 2022 model year.