New Audi S4 Spied

Following the release of Audi's fourth-generation B8 A4 Sedan at the Frankfurt Motor Show two weeks ago, we bring you the first spy pictures of a fully undisguised Audi S4 on the roads of Ingolstadt.

Compared to the standard new-generation A4, the S4 features new S-style bumpers, a small bootlid spoiler as well as quad exhaust pipes. Powered by Audi's 4.2-litre V8, putting out some 340 bhp in the current B7 Audi S4, the new-generation S4 is expected to get a slight power boost to keep its Munchen- and Stuttgart-based rivals at bay. In usual Audi fashion, the range-topping S-models are equipped with the Quattro four-wheel drive technology. This time buyers will have a choice between a six-speed manual or automatic gearbox.

Our colleagues over at Motorauthority.com are reporting that Audi may debut its all-new sport differential, capable of "distributing torque from the engine in continuously variable proportions between the rear wheels," in the 2009 S4.

According to Audi, the controlled power flow "enables the car to take corners even more directly and responsively, and to retain its directional stability considerably longer" adding that understeer becomes a thing of the past. The sport differential will be available from 2008 onwards, indeed suggesting that it will be in the model year 2009 range for the S4.

How do you like the new S4?