2009 Acura TL SH-AWD vs 2009 Audi A4 3.2 quattro - Performance - Comparison

Switch the ADS from Comfort to Dynamic, though, and the A4 takes on new life, transforming from comfortable cruiser to adrenalized attacker. The steering, almost too light in Comfort, weights up exponentially for the utmost response and feel. The six-speed instantly blips a downshift, ready to spur the refined, rev-happy 3.2 until the throttle, whose sensitivity has intensified, closes ever so slightly.

In Dynamic the A4 is a bit frenetic but totally foolproof -- like driving on unbreakable eggshells, if there were such a thing. It stays impressively flat even over mid-turn bumps and undulations, delivers admirable grip over the briskest of back roads, and turns in with crispness that belies its 185.2-inch length and 3852-pound curb weight. Obviously, the 110.6-inch wheelbase (1.3 inches longer than TL's) and more neutral 55/45 weight distribution (versus TL's 59/41), not to mention quattro, coalesce nicely, imparting a sense of agility and sure-footedness. Not that the Acura doesn't impart that same sense, mind you, thanks to its wide tracks (1.6- and 2.7-inch-wider front/rear) and sticky tires.

While the TL delivers slightly more vertical motion when driving aggressively, say, at 7/10ths, its limits are nevertheless higher than the A4's, always egging you on to approach another tenth. Much of that egging comes courtesy of the 3.7-liter V-6, whose racy rhythm above 5000 rpm is literally music to the ears. Problem is, for routine, public driving -- even of the spirited sort -- that slim window from 7 to 10/10ths isn't one normally entered. If, however, autocrossing or racetrack activities routinely make the calendar, then the TL is the better, more capable choice. But for the daily grind, be it enduring rush hour or relishing a deserted byway, the A4 is more accessible and more comforting.