Hey guys,

Looking for some help.

Looking to pull trigger on 2009 A4 2.0T this week. I have 2 identical Ice Silver/Black interior to buy with very low miles, but one has Sport Pkg and one has Navigation package.

Questions:

1. If you had to pick, which would you get? Why?

2. I really like the ergonomics of the nav. pkg having the **** down in front of the shifter, but if I went with sport pkg would it matter much? i.e. Do you get sick of leaning forward to adjust everything on the dash **** w/o nav. pkg.? Can you control most stuff from the steering wheel, not having to lean forward?

3. Do you even use the navigation much? Back up cam much?

4. If I don't get nav. pkg, is there a hard drive for mp3s? or How do you play your music on the MMI or AMI w/o nav. pkg? Through the SD card reader or something else?

I'm leaning towards going with the nav. pkg and then spending some cash on different wheels, unless your persuade me otherwise. The question lies, will I get remorse from not having the sport seats and paddle shifters??

Thanks for any advice you can weigh in on with any of these questions.

jdc33333

 

1. Ideally I would get a 2010+ A4 with nav AND sport, which is exactly what I have now. The nav on the 09s is an older 2G MMI. The 2010s+ is the newer 3G MMI.

2. If you dont get the nav you will miss not having the controls on the shifter console and would have to reach for the dash every time. You can control some aspects of the car thru the wheel but not everything. Best to get the nav as well just to have the buttons down there.

3. I only use the nav when I go on long trips. But its still useful enough to always leave it in 3d map mode. Helps when I get a senior moment or two. Backup cam is something I use every time I backup. Its a must-have. You will regret not having the backup cam. Helps tons in parallel parking.

4. You will still have 1 SD card reader to play music.

The sport package is great because it totally changes the car. Lower suspension, upgraded steering wheel, sport seats with side bolsters, paddle shifters if you get the automatic, and 18" wheels with summer performance tires make it a bargain. It makes the A4 so much more fun to drive. I would not overlook it.

 

Depends on which things you want to upgrade aftermarket.

I have 2010 with both Nav and Sport, I highly recommend both. I like having the Nav and everything integrated into the console, it is a lot better than on dash. It works better and it looks cleaner. Back-up camera is a must in this car, low roofline, low seats, high-sills, and tint makes backing up somewhat of a challenge. However these are small things that you might be able to get over. I find the controls on the steering wheel are pretty limited. I don't know anything about the 2g nav though.

Sport package is good, but you can upgrade the ride pretty easily aftermarket - suspension, brakes, etc. The only thing you might have a challenge doing is the seats.

Whichever package you are more comfortable doing aftermarket, get the other package stock.

 

Thanks guys, I think you are both in line exactly with what I was thinking. Go with the Nav pkg, upgrade a few things and in 3 years, order a new one with both. Thanks for the responses.

 

I'd say go with the sport package - I think you'll get more enjoyment from that (esp. with the sport seats and paddle shifters) than you would get from the Nav pkg. I had an '09 A4 P+ with no nav and no sport package - I never really found the controls on the dash to be an issue, but I always wished I'd gotten the sport package (I'd purchased the car in Sept. '08 less than a month after the B8's came out and kinda rushed into the purchase without fully exploring the available option packages).

Granted I now have both the sport package and nav in my '10 A6 (unfortunately sport seats aren't offered in the U.S. with the A6 sports packages) and while I like the nav and backup cam, I get more enjoyment out of the look and handling with the sports pkg.

 

So I have a question for myself, since I just bought a '11 A4 with the Titanium package, but no Nav... it seems like its reasonable to upgrade the suspension if you don't get the sport package, but is it possible to upgrade to the Nav if you (I) didn't get that option?

That was one thing I gave up when choosing mine, and kind of wondered if it was possible to add later. If that is something I could upgrade to in the future when I have a few dollars laying around, that would be amazing. However, it sounds like some ***** and buttons are in different places, so it probably isn't possible. Can anyone confirm either way? I sure would love to have that backup camera...

 

I had the same question about upgrading to a nav system and all 3 audi dealerships I've talked to basically said yea, it's possibility, but they've never done it or heard of it because it costs way too much. Hope that helps. I love the piano black inlays on the titanium package, enjoy your ride!

 

Costs too much to retrofit the OEM nav if you dont get it initially. Have to rip out the headliner, put in additional wiring, add the antenna on the roof, replace the center console and the shifter surround console and possibly replace the head unit not to mention the additional VAG coding that you have to figure out. Will cost you more than just getting the car with nav built in.

I once tried asking a dealer to retrofit the factory nav on a B7 A4 and nobody would do it. If your dealer claims they will do it, ask them if they will match Audi's price on their website, which I doubt.

You are better off retrofitting a 3rd party nav and connecting it to the MMI screen using Xcarlink.

 

To JDC, it looks like most of the advice so far has come from people who were lucky enough to be able to option BOTH sports and nav in their cars, so they could advise you on the features of both - but you have to decide on only one package. The way I read it, the sports pack will make you enjoy driving the car a bit more every time you get into it, whereas the nav pack will add useful features that are great as well.
I don't see the position of the control **** (facia or console) as being a great driveability one, I find myself resting my wrist on the gearshift to operate the ****/buttons on my non-MMI Q5 (with the same dash layout as an A4). In fact on other forums I have heard people with issues about the position of the nav MMI controls in the "coffee spillage" location! So I guess it is each to his own...
But if you haven't committed already, I'd go for the sport. Paddle shifters alone make for a great improvement in the overall driving experience.

Now to Idgarda as well, retrofitting OEM navi is a MAJOR job, well-nigh impossible, but you can certainly fit aftermarket nav to an A4 with Concert or Symphony (non-nav) sound systems.
As Valid says, you could buy one from ebay etc and connect it to the car's LCD screen via xcarlink or similar; OR you could do what I did, which is to find a device that combines the A/V interface and the GPS nav unit in one box. I have installed this in my Q5 with great success, and I know for a fact that it will fit any B8 A4, or in fact any A5. What it does is turns your OEM 6.5 inch LCD screen into a touch-screen and interrupts the video signal when requested to provide reversing camera output as well as GPS navi, DVD or other video input, bluetooth phone, etc. The result is very neat and very professional looking.
Now I am in Australia and I had to import this unit directly from China, but I've sorted out all of the initial challenges and so if anyone wants details of how to achieve it then feel free to pm me.

cheers

 

Well after weighing all the options, decided not to buy either, instead I did a few extra root canals this month and found a 2010 A4 quattro Prestige, with Nav Pkg, Sport Pkg, and S Line Pkg!! Yep, I decided if I'm buying the Audi, I wanted it all, and just spent a few extra Ks. I then realized the 2009 had the 2g MMI nav system, so I then only went looking for 2010 and newer, so found a sweet Black/Black A4 Prestige S Line with only 12,000 and got it pre-owned certified for $38,000, with only 13000 miles. Hope I got a good deal, after all it is like 10 grand off the brand new sticker price. Should be here next week!