Of course, one will never know the truth, however I believe this is to assist in achieving total marque emission and fuel targets more than economy of scale.
Though it is still far better than its alternatives, even with its warts, still disappointed the S4 couldn't be had with a manual tranny....and yes, slush boxes have improved immensely over the period.
In the 60's we had in Oz, Chrysler Valiants (like a shrunk Dodge Phoenix), which had a series of buttons located on the dash, right-hand side of the tiller. It was referred to as a typewriter tranny, because both buttons were surprisingly similar. Actually I believe Audi should do something similar, say, for R/N/D, and put the Sport button on the s/wheel/console, then remove the superfluous (and hideous) gearlever.
Again, manufacturers giving us what they want us to have, rather than what customers really desire.
