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1993 AR Audi S4 Project Car: Red Hot Performance!
We’ve come a long way since the initial installment of our 1993 Audi S4 Project Car. We chose the Audi for several reasons: 1) It’s a very tunable platform, with a 227 horsepower, intercooled turbo five-cylinder motor mated to legendary quattro all-wheel drive. 2) We knew the complete history of this car, a critical point considering the mileage when purchased (131,000). Knowing the car had been garaged and well-serviced its entire life was a huge plus. 3) Audi is on the rebound. Long one of our favorite brands, Audi still uses some technology found on the original S4 models. So while our car is a 1993 model, it’s still relevant to the tuner set.
Getting it done
We scoured various sources, and hit the road to find sponsors for the Project S4. We were very pleased when Brandywine Foreign Car Parts joined the Project S4 team. Located in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, not far from AR headquarters, Brandywine Foreign Car Parts is a premier recycling yard, specializing in high end makes like Audi, BMW, Lexus, Saab and Volvo. Manager Greg Meinhardt supplied a number of items to help our keep our S4 roadworthy, including trim items, a replacement headlight cluster, various electrical components and some spares. We’ve dealt with Brandywine for the past 25 years, and they true professionals, and are the tops in their business (www.brandywinepart.com/foreignparts).
To complete the low down nasty look our S4 possesses, we contacted the good folks at TireRack.com. Matt Edmonds of TireRack.com supplied the S4 with gorgeous OZ Ultra Leggerra 18” wheels with carbon fiber center caps that perfectly match the S4’s factory carbon fiber dash and door trim. TireRack.com wrapped the OZ wheels in sticky Avon Tyres, measuring 245-45/18. The Avon Tyres are the perfect combination of dry and wet weather handling, and even handled a light snowstorm in the Maryland area! But what we like about them most is they are quiet. No longer does upgrading to performance rubber mean downgrading your ability to hear! TireRack.com also supplied Koni Sport shocks and struts, and H&R Sport Springs. The look is now wicked, with the springs dropping the S4 about 1.3 inches. The wide rubber fully fills the S4’s flared fenders, and the ride quality of the dropped S4 is firm, but still rides very well on the highway. It’s a great conversion from the stock look. TireRack.com is a one stop shop for wheels, tires, brake kits, springs, shocks, and other custom accessories. You’ll love their interactive menus, which allow you to actually see the wheels you want to buy on your actual car. Items come right to your door via UPS, and are well protected against any possible shipping damage. Wheel/Tire packages are also balanced and come with lug nuts. Prices are far lower than you might think. Check them out! (www.tirerack.com)
 Keeping with the handling/performance theme, when you lower a car, you alter the factory settings for caster and camber. Unfortunately, Audi did not build in fully adjustable camber plates in the Project S4. Lowered cars can quickly wear out expensive rubber if this issue is not addressed. Have no fear, as Ken and Andrew Bennett at 2Bennett Audimotive came to the rescue. 2Bennett custom manufactures a number of Audi exclusive parts, including their “Revolution” Camber Plate System. These plates are works of art, and are crafted from billet aluminum with delrin bushings. They are adjustable in many ways, and eliminate the chance of the S4’s rubber going bald. To add some bling to the engine compartment, we replaced the stock S4 strut brace with 2Bennett’s custom billet aluminum strut brace. This well crafted piece features the 2Bennett logo laser etched on the brace. Don’t drive an S4? 2Bennett carries a full line of custom parts for Audis old and new (www.2bennett.com).
You know that no Project Car is complete with out some bangin’ tunes, so we contacted Sony Audio for the 411 on their incredible XPLOD line of audio upgrades. Jenny Mehlow of Sony hooked us up with the works. We’ve got the XAV-A1 motorized DVD player coming out of the dash. Inside, we’ve got Sony XPLOD 5 _ two way component speakers custom mounted on the front and rear doors. Heading to the rear, we’ve got a pair of XPLOD 6 _ speakers mounted to the rear deck lid, surrounding a 5” Sony DVD monitor. To provide punch, the system is powered by three XPLOD amplifiers, one for the interior sound, and two to power the XPLOD 12” subwoofers mounted in custom trunk enclosures. This is a body rattling system that produces impressive sound levels, and sounds extra clean when you push it to the limit. The audio wars can be brutal, but Sony has the goods to do battle with any manufacturer (www.sony.com).
 So is the S4 all show and no go. NO way! We contacted Bob Myers of MRC Chips to put some boogie in the S4. MRC reverse engineers the car’s electronic control unit and safely raises the performance level of the turbocharged Audi. MRC modifications raise the output of the S4 from 227 to about 290 horsepower. The feeling of 60+ additional horsepower is indescribable. What was already a fast car is now an AWD rocket! We have noticed no drivability issues whatsoever with this conversion. The Audi I5 motor has been safely boosted to more than 800 horses in track form. It’s a robust motor, with an expected lifespan well above 200K miles with proper servicing. Pound for pound, this is an inexpensive upgrade that has a high return on investment (www.chips-ur-s.com).
Since the engine had been upgraded, we also needed to upgrade the exhaust system. The stock system is too restrictive to deal with the increase in horsepower our Project Audi S4 had received. So we contacted Scot Taylor and Jeff Postupack of Stromung Exhaust Engineering. Stromung (pronounced “stroy-mung”) means “to flow” in German, and boy does the Project S4 flow! The system is custom built and bent from 3” T-304 stainless, and incorporates a high flow Magnaflow muffler, cat and resonator. The system can be installed using hand tools, and replaces a stock system that weighs more than three times the Stromung system! The system exits your rear bumper with twin polished tips, and just sounds and looks awesome. It’s the perfect companion to the performance chip upgrade, and adds horsepower to our project sled. Check out their Web site for more applications (www.stromung.com).
 To add some styling flair to the Project S4, we added the latest body kit for the C4-based Audi S4 from LL Tek Motorsports (pronounced “el-tek”). We’ve installed a gorgeous front spoiler, which incorporates a wide mouth grille to feed more air to the hot turbo engine. The design of the spoiler also aids airflow to the factory intercooler, adding additional horsepower. Custom driving lights are also part of the package, and LL Tek did a beautiful job of painting the spoiler in factory Tornado Red. In the near future, we will also add custom S4 side skirts, completing the styling transformation. Contact Mark Lubotta at LL Tek for your Audi, Porsche 911 and VW Touareg braking, handling, styling and performance needs. They have an awesome color catalog that will leave you drooling (www.lltek.com).
We’ve got some future upgrades coming on our Project S4. It can go plenty fast now, so we need to upgrade the brakes. We’ve contacted Greg Johnson of the Audi S4 brake upgrade specialists Braking Improvement Research Association (BIRA) for their “big brake” upgrade. BIRA uses Porsche 996 calipers with customs hats and brackets to make the S4 a super-stopper (www.bira.org).
 We’d also like to thank All C’Zonz detailing for tinting the Audi’s windows to perfection (www.allczonz.com), the parts crew at Rockville Porsche/Audi for providing factory replacement parts (www.rockvilleporsche-audi.com), and Promotion Tuning of Woodbridge Virginia, for their excellent work installing the S4’s shocks, springs and Stromung exhaust system. Owned by James Howard, Promotion Tuning is a full service performance shop, and carries a number of high performance engine, suspension and styling accessories for your Japanese, German, or American performance ride (www.promotiontuning.com). Big props also to Shell Gasolines for supplying the S4 with a healthy diet of their V-Power Premium Fuels (www.shell.com). Lastly, we’d like to thank Extreme Audio Connections of Rockville, Maryland for their work installing all the Sony components in the Project S4 (www.excessiveaudioperformance.com).
The Show
The Project S4 made its debut at the Automotive Rhythms' Urban Restyln’ Salon at the 2006 Washington International Auto Show. Part of AR’s 60 vehicle display of hot cars, trucks, SUVs and bikes, the S4 more than held its own. Look for the AR Project S4 at an East Coast show this summer!
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