Upgrading from Audi A4: Need a sensible car that's a pleasure to drive

I had my eyes on a used Porsche Macan S diesel or an R4 but my dad has been driving sedans all his life & seems to be against owning a Crossover or an SUV.

BHPian highcommand-GT recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Hello BHPians,

A bit of the back story, our family garage consists of 3 cars, a B8.5 Audi A4, a Polo 1.5 TDI and a Tata Tiago AMT. The Polo and the Tiago have been recent acquisitions, the former pre worshipped and the latter bought new. The Polo is solely used by me as a daily project and is currently running a stage 2 setup (thread in the works).

Coming to the point, we got the Scuba Blue A4 new in 2016 and there's no denying the fact that it's still a gem of a car. The 2.0 TDI mated to the CR177 turbo brings a smile to the face every time you put the pedal to the metal. The CVT tranny is the only limiting factor in my opinion.

But leaving the performance aside, the car has started to show its age. It's been a reliable workhorse nearing 100k KM's and I feel an update is due. The car is used by my father for mostly highway runs and some city runs as well. And he's rarely chauffeured in it as he loves driving (Like father like son). So now the question is, what next?

I had my eyes on a Porsche Macan S diesel (pre worshipped) or an R4, but him having driven sedans all his life (for context, he owned an MK1 Octy VRS for 10 years before we got the A4), seems to be very against owning a Crossover or an SUV. He clearly stated, "Let's get a sedan itself, I don't want a big car". We tried the BMW route as well, but he doesn't really seem to be a fan of the brand, not sure why. We also test drove the new C220 D, but with the absurd prices they are quoting for a C class, seems really out of budget.

So yes, I am open to any and all suggestions. Preferably something post 2019-2020, a sedan that could be a sensible upgrade from an A4, and something that won't take away the pure pleasure of driving the 2.0 TDI. Maybe too much to ask for but let's see shall we?

Attaching pictures of the TDI twins down below as well

The beauty

And the stage 2 beast

Here's what BHPian Jatin247 had to say about the matter:

Getting a pre-owned 530D or E350d would be a good upgrade.

If you wanna go the petrol route then a lot of M340is have also come on sale, imo it’s a no-nonsense performance master and if your budget allows you should definitely try getting one.

Here's what BHPian Mart65 had to say about the matter:

Hi, thanks for sharing. Much cleaner than my A7!

It's funny I am in a similar situation in terms of upgrading but I am, for whatever reason, thinking EV - Is this an option for you?

Depending on the budget and how comfortable you are with it I think a 3-4 year old A4 (e.g. 3-4yr old A4s) is similarly priced to an A6 plug-in hybrid version (e.g. A6 hybrid).

Interested to know your thoughts. The Q5 PHEV is nice but a bit more expensive and I think you could get an A3 EV for quite a bit less.

Oh also sorry I should have asked - Is the A4 an automatic?

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.