Compare the2023 Audi S4VS 2023 Honda Civic Type R

Safety
Warranty
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Environmental Friendliness
Transmission
Brakes and Stopping
Suspension and Handling
Cargo Capacity
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics

Safety

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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 Honda Civic Type R 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 Civic Type R doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

Both the S4 and Civic Type R 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 Civic Type R’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 Civic Type R doesn’t offer knee airbags.

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 Civic Type R 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 Civic Type R 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 Civic Type R 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 Civic Type R only offers a rear monitor.

The S4 has a standard Audi Connect CARE, which uses a global positioning satellite (GPS) receiver and a cellular system to help track down your vehicle if it’s stolen or send emergency personnel to the scene if any airbags deploy. The Civic Type R doesn’t offer a GPS response system, only a navigation computer with no live response for emergencies, so if you’re involved in an accident and you’re incapacitated help may not come as quickly.

Both the S4 and the Civic Type R have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, 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 Audi S4 weighs 659 pounds more than the Honda Civic Type R. The NHTSA advises that heavier cars are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts. Crosswinds also affect lighter cars more.

Warranty

The S4 comes with a full 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire car and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Civic Type R’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 14,000 miles sooner.

The S4’s corrosion warranty is 7 years longer than the Civic Type R’s (12 vs. 5 years).

Engine

The S4’s 3.0 turbo V6 produces 34 more horsepower (349 vs. 315) and 59 lbs.-ft. more torque (369 vs. 310) than the Civic Type R’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the S4 gets better fuel mileage than the Civic Type R (21 city/30 hwy vs. 22 city/28 hwy).

In heavy traffic or at stoplights the S4’s engine automatically turns off when the vehicle is stopped, saving fuel and reducing pollution. The engine is automatically restarted when the driver gets ready to move again. If the conditions warrant or the driver wishes, the system can be manually disabled at any time for the duration of a trip. The Civic Type R doesn’t offer an automatic engine start/stop system.

The S4 has 2.9 gallons more fuel capacity than the Civic Type R (15.3 vs. 12.4 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

Environmental Friendliness

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

Transmission

The S4 has a standard automatic transmission, for driver comfort, especially in the city. The Civic Type R doesn’t offer an automatic transmission.

Brakes and Stopping

The S4’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the Civic Type R are solid, not vented.

Suspension and Handling

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

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the S4’s wheelbase is 3.3 inches longer than on the Civic Type R (111 inches vs. 107.7 inches).

The S4’s front to rear weight distribution is more even (57% to 43%) than the Civic Type R’s (61.4% to 38.6%). This gives the S4 more stable handling and braking.

For better maneuverability, the S4’s turning circle is 1.8 feet tighter than the Civic Type R’s (38.1 feet vs. 39.9 feet).

Cargo Capacity

With its sedan body style, valet key, locking rear seatbacks and remote trunk release lockout, the S4 offers cargo security. The Civic Type R’s hatchback body style 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 Civic Type R 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 Civic Type R doesn’t offer a hands-free gesture to open its liftgate, forcing you to put cargo down if your hands are full.

Servicing Ease

The S4 uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Civic Type R 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 Civic Type R. 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 Honda. J.D. Power ranks Audi 8th in service department satisfaction (above the industry average). With a 30% lower rating, Honda is ranked 25th.

Ergonomics

When two different drivers share the S4, the optional memory seats and mirrors make it convenient for both. Each setting activates different, customized memories for the driver’s seat position and outside mirror angle. The Civic Type R doesn’t offer a memory system.

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 Civic Type R doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

The power windows standard on both the S4 and the Civic Type R have locks to prevent small children from operating them. When the lock on the S4 is engaged the driver can still operate all of the windows, for instance to close one opened by a child. The Civic Type R prevents the driver from operating the other windows just as it does the other passengers.

The S4’s front and rear power windows all open or close fully with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside the car. The Civic Type R’s rear power window switches have to be held the entire time to open or close them fully.

The S4’s rain-sensitive wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically based on the amount of rainfall on the windshield. This allows the driver to concentrate on driving without constantly adjusting the wipers. The Civic Type R’s manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

Heated windshield washer nozzles are standard on the S4 to prevent washer fluid and nozzles from freezing and help continue to keep the windshield clear in sub-freezing temperatures. The Civic Type R doesn’t offer heated windshield washer nozzles.

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 Civic Type R doesn’t offer headlight washers.

To help drivers avoid possible obstacles, the S4 has standard cornering lights to illuminate around corners when the turn signals are activated. The Civic Type R doesn’t offer cornering lights. The S4 Prestige also has standard adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle.

Manual rear side window sunshades are available in the S4 to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The Civic Type R 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 Civic Type R’s mirror doesn’t automatically adjust for backing.

The S4’s standard rear view mirror and optional side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Civic Type R offers an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

Both the S4 and the Civic Type R have standard heated front seats. The S4 Prestige also has standard heated rear seats to keep those passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Heated rear seats aren’t available in the Civic Type R.

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 Civic Type R doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats.

On extremely cold winter days, the S4’s optional heated steering wheel provides comfort, allowing the driver to steer safely and comfortably before the car heater warms up. The Civic Type R doesn’t offer a heated steering wheel.

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 Civic Type R.

Both the S4 and the Civic Type R offer rear vents. For greater rear passenger comfort, the S4 has standard rear air conditioning vents to keep rear occupants cool in summer or warm in winter. The Civic Type R doesn’t offer rear air conditioning vents, only heat vents.

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 Civic Type R doesn’t offer an automated parking system.