2025 4S - First Impressions and 1,000 mile report

• -Pleasantly surprised, even on 22s, and without acoustic glass.
• -As noted above, no real-wheel steering, but given I don’t live in a city, I’m not anticipating this will be a big issue (though would have still added to a custom build)
• -It’s very quick, and while my head thinks there is no way I would ever need a Turbo, my heart is curious what this would be like. It has already saved me a couple of times, being able to quickly maneuver around traffic on a freeway to safely make an exit, or avoid other cars merging. Where I would have had to brake with my Q3, I now accelerate (safely) to avoid others. The power of the 4s really seems to overcome the body weight, which is a very good thing, because it’s heavy (but you really don’t notice it at all). Definitely feels like an SUV and a Sports Car had a baby- which I supposed is precisely the goal.
• -The adjustable air suspension works really well, and it’s really smart too; it will ask you if you want to adjust at a certain location in the future, if you go there again (let’s see if it actually works). The fact that it can be increased to nearly 9-in of ground clearance is great for me getting to trailheads in Colorado. It actually has fairly good SUV chops, thanks to this feature.

• -Overall, very pleased, although I do find the center console rather odd, and the underneath storage part is difficult to access or use practically; would prefer it to be more level and “cock-pit like” like in the Cayenne.
• -I’m surprised there is no USB-C access in the center armrest storage
• -This build has the “off-road design” package which, living in Colorado, I am very happy to have, even though it’s not finished in body color (which I would have preferred)
• -I do like the look of the roof rails, although the dealer has been unable to install crossbars for me yet - they couldn’t figure out how to anchor them *sigh*
• -Headlights are insanely good
• -I found preferred drive position to be quite low, which surprised me, but I am embracing it. It also allows me to see the driver display without being obstructed by the steering wheel, and still have good visibility. The 18-way sport seats are very comfortable, although the controls aren’t particularly intuitive.
• -The spoiler up/down seems a bit buggy to me; I have it mapped to go up when in Sport or Sport plus mode, but it doesn’t want to do it… so I have to manually do it typically. Not a big deal, but wonder why this is the case?

• -I finally settled on my favorite screen layout, which took some time. For the driver’s display, I prefer battery status on the left dial, partial Nav map in the middle (tip: you can press the right dial and select “satellite” for the center map as well - looks much better), and toggle between Nav directions or consumption data on right dial, which are conveniently right next to each other in the list. I keep the main display for music as I like to see all of the music controls and full-sized album artwork.
• -This build includes the premium package with Bose; and I agree with what others have said that initially the sound quality didn’t seem great, but it is growing on me. Keep in mind, it’s Bose, so it’s tuned more for “mids“ - sounded great right out of the gate listening to instrumental or movie scores. After adjusting the base to ~7 and treble to ~5 for Pop/EDM, sounded really good. Playing in Surround, obviously- all others options sound really bad to me. Was pleasantly surprised that the embedded Sirius app includes not only the live satellite stations, but also all the on-demand stations (if you have a subscription, obviously). Surprised that you can’t download Apple Music from the App Store, but no big deal - just play thru CarPlay.
• -I was very happy to find out that the 3mbps data package is included, with no annual fee. This was a big gripe with my Audi - had to pay~400/yr for Audi Connect to get premium google maps and real-time traffic, etc. You can pay 20/month from increased data speed (10 mbps) and wi-fi hot spot, but I do not need these features, so I am very happy with the basic “free” connection.
• -Innodrive: it’s worked quite well for me, just be careful with the auto speed adjustment, as others have mentioned, particularly when you come into a school zone on a weekend (it’s not 25 mph on a Saturday!). This almost caused me to be rear-ended today - so I’m considering turning off this feature, unless I’m cruising on a freeway or divided highway. I have been able to successfully use the lane-keeping; you kind of just have to “let it do it’s thing” and not struggle with it, and as long as the lane lines are clear, it does very well. For me, this implementation of an auto-pilot is the right amount of autonomy; I have no desire to do fully autonomous driving but being able to take your hand off the wheel for short bursts without disabling the auto-pilot is nice.
• -Shortcut button on steering wheel: long press it for customization. I have mine mapped to electric sport sound, which I initially thought was silly, but I LOVE. The sublime silence of an EV is great, but this is an SUV with the soul of a sports car, so when you are driving around town or more dynamically, it’s fun to turn this on with the push of a button. The sound makes me smile every single time - highly recommend - it’s just fun and relatively inexpensive.
• -VERY pleased with the Porsche voice assistant - the fact that she can help with deep settings, and streaming music stations etc, is a very, very welcomed changed compared to my Q3, in which the voice assistant was laughably bad.
• -I would probably skip the Sport Chrono if I were custom-building; and I have launch control disabled in settings, I have no desire to “launch” myself!

• -A few frustrations so far; unable to get the free charging to work via Electrify America, even though I am following the instructions as trained and activating the station via the MyPorsche App. Also, “plus and charge” is not working at EA either, even though I have it setup successfully with profile downloaded etc.
• -Then, today, it wouldn’t charge for me at two consecutive locations (different types); I thought I was going to have to turn around, 70 miles into my trip, and go back to the dealer. But after locking the car, letting it sit in ‘sleep mode’ for ~20 mins, going back to it and trying to charge again, it worked. My trainer said this ‘resetting’ - by locking and putting it to ’sleep’ - likely was what was needed. However, I will be keeping a close eye here and have a very low threshold for making a warranty claim.
• -I am having a charge station installed at home this Monday morning; I was originally not planning to do so, but now I see that it will be critical.
• -Here in Colorado, Charge Point has been great - their stations have all worked seamlessly for me, so far.

tjt1976 said:

Dear all,

I am a new 2025 4S - and new EV - owner. I really appreciate this forum.

I picked-up this beauty from the dealer about 3 weeks and just under 1,000 miles ago now (build recreated here —> https://porsche-code.com/PSNNXPL7. It is not exactly how I would have custom built my own, but it was on the lot, and the Oak Green Metallic and Club Leather Interior in Brown were two of the main things I wanted, so I felt like it was meant to be (it was my birthday, no less). This build is heavy on “appearance (the wheels are not only 22-in Sypders, but painted out in satin black with black brake calipers); would prefer more performance (real-wheel steering/HUD are notably lacking), but overall I am pretty happy especially coming from a 2021 Audi Q3 PP/Tech/S-line. After taking a couple of road trips, would like to share some initial impressions; but let me first say that these are just my thoughts and I am merely a new owner, not a Porsch professional, so particularly if safety is in question please consult with your dealer/traIner.

DRIVE QUALITY:

• -Pleasantly surprised, even on 22s, and without acoustic glass.
• -As noted above, no real-wheel steering, but given I don’t live in a city, I’m not anticipating this will be a big issue (though would have still added to a custom build)
• -It’s very quick, and while my head thinks there is no way I would ever need a Turbo, my heart is curious what this would be like. It has already saved me a couple of times, being able to quickly maneuver around traffic on a freeway to safely make an exit, or avoid other cars merging. Where I would have had to brake with my Q3, I now accelerate (safely) to avoid others. The power of the 4s really seems to overcome the body weight, which is a very good thing, because it’s heavy (but you really don’t notice it at all). Definitely feels like an SUV and a Sports Car had a baby- which I supposed is precisely the goal.
• -The adjustable air suspension works really well, and it’s really smart too; it will ask you if you want to adjust at a certain location in the future, if you go there again (let’s see if it actually works). The fact that it can be increased to nearly 9-in of ground clearance is great for me getting to trailheads in Colorado. It actually has fairly good SUV chops, thanks to this feature.

INTERIOR/EXTERIOR BUILD QUALITY:

• -Overall, very pleased, although I do find the center console rather odd, and the underneath storage part is difficult to access or use practically; would prefer it to be more level and “cock-pit like” like in the Cayenne.
• -I’m surprised there is no USB-C access in the center armrest storage
• -This build has the “off-road design” package which, living in Colorado, I am very happy to have, even though it’s not finished in body color (which I would have preferred)
• -I do like the look of the roof rails, although the dealer has been unable to install crossbars for me yet - they couldn’t figure out how to anchor them *sigh*
• -Headlights are insanely good
• -I found preferred drive position to be quite low, which surprised me, but I am embracing it. It also allows me to see the driver display without being obstructed by the steering wheel, and still have good visibility. The 18-way sport seats are very comfortable, although the controls aren’t particularly intuitive.
• -The spoiler up/down seems a bit buggy to me; I have it mapped to go up when in Sport or Sport plus mode, but it doesn’t want to do it… so I have to manually do it typically. Not a big deal, but wonder why this is the case?

TECHNOLOGY:

• -I finally settled on my favorite screen layout, which took some time. For the driver’s display, I prefer battery status on the left dial, partial Nav map in the middle (tip: you can press the right dial and select “satellite” for the center map as well - looks much better), and toggle between Nav directions or consumption data on right dial, which are conveniently right next to each other in the list. I keep the main display for music as I like to see all of the music controls and full-sized album artwork.
• -This build includes the premium package with Bose; and I agree with what others have said that initially the sound quality didn’t seem great, but it is growing on me. Keep in mind, it’s Bose, so it’s tuned more for “mids“ - sounded great right out of the gate listening to instrumental or movie scores. After adjusting the base to ~7 and treble to ~5 for Pop/EDM, sounded really good. Playing in Surround, obviously- all others options sound really bad to me. Was pleasantly surprised that the embedded Sirius app includes not only the live satellite stations, but also all the on-demand stations (if you have a subscription, obviously). Surprised that you can’t download Apple Music from the App Store, but no big deal - just play thru CarPlay.
• -I was very happy to find out that the 3mbps data package is included, with no annual fee. This was a big gripe with my Audi - had to pay~400/yr for Audi Connect to get premium google maps and real-time traffic, etc. You can pay 20/month from increased data speed (10 mbps) and wi-fi hot spot, but I do not need these features, so I am very happy with the basic “free” connection.
• -Innodrive: it’s worked quite well for me, just be careful with the auto speed adjustment, as others have mentioned, particularly when you come into a school zone on a weekend (it’s not 25 mph on a Saturday!). This almost caused me to be rear-ended today - so I’m considering turning off this feature, unless I’m cruising on a freeway or divided highway. I have been able to successfully use the lane-keeping; you kind of just have to “let it do it’s thing” and not struggle with it, and as long as the lane lines are clear, it does very well. For me, this implementation of an auto-pilot is the right amount of autonomy; I have no desire to do fully autonomous driving but being able to take your hand off the wheel for short bursts without disabling the auto-pilot is nice.
• -Shortcut button on steering wheel: long press it for customization. I have mine mapped to electric sport sound, which I initially thought was silly, but I LOVE. The sublime silence of an EV is great, but this is an SUV with the soul of a sports car, so when you are driving around town or more dynamically, it’s fun to turn this on with the push of a button. The sound makes me smile every single time - highly recommend - it’s just fun and relatively inexpensive.
• -VERY pleased with the Porsche voice assistant - the fact that she can help with deep settings, and streaming music stations etc, is a very, very welcomed changed compared to my Q3, in which the voice assistant was laughably bad.
• -I would probably skip the Sport Chrono if I were custom-building; and I have launch control disabled in settings, I have no desire to “launch” myself!

CHARGING:

• -A few frustrations so far; unable to get the free charging to work via Electrify America, even though I am following the instructions as trained and activating the station via the MyPorsche App. Also, “plus and charge” is not working at EA either, even though I have it setup successfully with profile downloaded etc.
• -Then, today, it wouldn’t charge for me at two consecutive locations (different types); I thought I was going to have to turn around, 70 miles into my trip, and go back to the dealer. But after locking the car, letting it sit in ‘sleep mode’ for ~20 mins, going back to it and trying to charge again, it worked. My trainer said this ‘resetting’ - by locking and putting it to ’sleep’ - likely was what was needed. However, I will be keeping a close eye here and have a very low threshold for making a warranty claim.
• -I am having a charge station installed at home this Monday morning; I was originally not planning to do so, but now I see that it will be critical.
• -Here in Colorado, Charge Point has been great - their stations have all worked seamlessly for me, so far.

Sorry for the long post - but I hope some of you find this helpful/interesting!

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SergeyIndy said:

Great review. I think you are missing out on the fun of Launch Control try it once and it may grow on you like the Sport Sound. Actually, it is very controlled and smooth in the 4S, so you will not be actually launching yourself.

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tjt1976 said:

• -I was very happy to find out that the 3mbps data package is included, with no annual fee. This was a big gripe with my Audi - had to pay~400/yr for Audi Connect to get premium google maps and real-time traffic, etc. You can pay 20/month from increased data speed (10 mbps) and wi-fi hot spot, but I do not need these features, so I am very happy with the basic “free” connection.

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shawn said:

Great info, and happy birthday . Also, if you live outside the city and have gravel roads don't forget to put PPF on the front and sides. You want to keep that lovely green from becoming a pitted zucchini.

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RGBArgee said:

Launch has been around for a while on ICE cars - great fun and so smooth with EV

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