Which Audi to go for
Discussion
Hi,
I'll be selling my 911 soon and I'm looking for an all-rounder Audi. Something safe for transporting a new born around in, spacious enough for snowboarding trips and fast enough to make a journey interesting.
I've been looking at either an A4/S4 Avant or an A3 Sportback. Not really interested in the RS4/6, they're overkill for what I want.
Any advice on which model to look at would be useful, never driven an Audi before so any advice on what to look out for/avoid would be appreciated.
Quite tempted by the DSG model 3.2 A3s, are these any good?
Cheers
I'll be selling my 911 soon and I'm looking for an all-rounder Audi. Something safe for transporting a new born around in, spacious enough for snowboarding trips and fast enough to make a journey interesting.
I've been looking at either an A4/S4 Avant or an A3 Sportback. Not really interested in the RS4/6, they're overkill for what I want.
Any advice on which model to look at would be useful, never driven an Audi before so any advice on what to look out for/avoid would be appreciated.
Quite tempted by the DSG model 3.2 A3s, are these any good?
Cheers
I second that emotion re the allroad:
I moved from a TT 3.2 DSG to a 2.5TDI allroad (dog's and other stuff necessitated) and it was the best move I made. First diesel I ever owned and well pleased. Sheer delight down to the South of France. Plenty of grunt. Quattro - so it's planted to the road and will cope with the snow and slush of your snowboarding trips. Plenty of room for all your kit. Feels like it could pull a tree stump out the ground. Keeps up with anything on the motorway. Tiptronic with Sport setting when you're feeling frisky. Had to drive it last week during the gales and it felt safe as houses (at least trhe houses that weren't damaged!)
Extremely comfortable (the air suspension soaks up the bumps) and fantastic around town where it glides over pot holes, speed bumps and other Council obstacle courses. Great visibility on high setting. And the tree-huggers will leave you alone 'cos they think it's a "normal" car (especiallky on the low ride height setting). The new allroad with the 3.0TDI is even better. If you're not buying new I'd recommend one of the last of the 2005 LTD editions with all the toys(sat nav, privacy glass, parking sensors etc) for around £25k. Made me realise there's not much point having a fast coupe with sports suspension in these days of crap roads and traffic jams.
I ended up in the allroad by accident. Was actually test driving A4 Avants. But there was a mint 04 ebony black allroad ltd on the forecourt. Took it for a spin and was hooked. It just felt much more substantial than the A4. I think you'd feel better strapping your baby into an allroad than an A4. S4 is an entirely different proposition. It's a V8 semi-supercar with the running costs to match.
Test drive the A4 and A6 allroad (or Avant) back to back and you'll immediately feel the difference.
I moved from a TT 3.2 DSG to a 2.5TDI allroad (dog's and other stuff necessitated) and it was the best move I made. First diesel I ever owned and well pleased. Sheer delight down to the South of France. Plenty of grunt. Quattro - so it's planted to the road and will cope with the snow and slush of your snowboarding trips. Plenty of room for all your kit. Feels like it could pull a tree stump out the ground. Keeps up with anything on the motorway. Tiptronic with Sport setting when you're feeling frisky. Had to drive it last week during the gales and it felt safe as houses (at least trhe houses that weren't damaged!)
Extremely comfortable (the air suspension soaks up the bumps) and fantastic around town where it glides over pot holes, speed bumps and other Council obstacle courses. Great visibility on high setting. And the tree-huggers will leave you alone 'cos they think it's a "normal" car (especiallky on the low ride height setting). The new allroad with the 3.0TDI is even better. If you're not buying new I'd recommend one of the last of the 2005 LTD editions with all the toys(sat nav, privacy glass, parking sensors etc) for around £25k. Made me realise there's not much point having a fast coupe with sports suspension in these days of crap roads and traffic jams.
I ended up in the allroad by accident. Was actually test driving A4 Avants. But there was a mint 04 ebony black allroad ltd on the forecourt. Took it for a spin and was hooked. It just felt much more substantial than the A4. I think you'd feel better strapping your baby into an allroad than an A4. S4 is an entirely different proposition. It's a V8 semi-supercar with the running costs to match.
Test drive the A4 and A6 allroad (or Avant) back to back and you'll immediately feel the difference.
Edited by audidoody on Monday 22 January 19:57
I run a 996 C2 also and opted for an A8 as my runabout. Brilliant car and v good value secondhand. Paid £7k for a 6 year old minter with 100k on clock. Mine is a 3.7 sport quattro. We had a lot of snow last night and the A8 cruises up the snowy lanes with no problems. I also get 33 mpg on motorway runs.
It's so well engineered and feels like it'll last forever. Can't fault it (not as good as the 911 thought!)
It's so well engineered and feels like it'll last forever. Can't fault it (not as good as the 911 thought!)
Sportback is a nice car (had 2 for swmbo ) but A3 is basically a nicer looking Golf imho , weve had a few new shape Golfs and as much as hate to say it, drivewise they are as good as the Audi (swmbo prefers the vw! ) and cost thousands less for Equivelent 5dr !!!!
A3 and Golf has the engine mounted transverse gearbox on the side and has a higher level of noise inside.. A4 / A6 has the engine mounted inline with gearbox on the rear, with this set up I cant tell you what it is but they drive totally different more refined much quieter , they just feel better and more grown up some how!
With Audis like most cars the Bigger the car better they drive, A6 is streets ahead of A4 , A8 is awesome but only if you want a big car ..
A4 avant is a good car but beware rear leg room if you carry passengers.. I have more families walk away from A4s for this reason :-(
A3 and Golf has the engine mounted transverse gearbox on the side and has a higher level of noise inside.. A4 / A6 has the engine mounted inline with gearbox on the rear, with this set up I cant tell you what it is but they drive totally different more refined much quieter , they just feel better and more grown up some how!
With Audis like most cars the Bigger the car better they drive, A6 is streets ahead of A4 , A8 is awesome but only if you want a big car ..
A4 avant is a good car but beware rear leg room if you carry passengers.. I have more families walk away from A4s for this reason :-(
I have an S4 4.2 the fuel economy is shite but I disagree that it has semi supercar running costs mine is the convertable so the extra weight may cause the poor fuel economy, it is the most solid, safest car I have owned. If you want a fantastic all round car I would recommend an S4.
Take it that your thoughts around A3/A4 mean that huge space is not a major priority.
I ran an A3 when my first child was born, and chopped it in within a few months - it really was not big enough for all the clutter needed for a baby.
I had an S4 for 10 days and it was fantastic - no experience on running costs, but performance was great and economy poor.
Also, worth a drive in an A4 3.0 TDI. We are running them at work and I've clocked up a lot of miles in one last year. Even with the auto box, performance is great, handling is secure and economy is on the right side of 33mpg. Also, the traction is superb - in the wet you mash the throttle and pull away from a stand still like its dry.
And in S-Line spec they look the nuts!
I ran an A3 when my first child was born, and chopped it in within a few months - it really was not big enough for all the clutter needed for a baby.
I had an S4 for 10 days and it was fantastic - no experience on running costs, but performance was great and economy poor.
Also, worth a drive in an A4 3.0 TDI. We are running them at work and I've clocked up a lot of miles in one last year. Even with the auto box, performance is great, handling is secure and economy is on the right side of 33mpg. Also, the traction is superb - in the wet you mash the throttle and pull away from a stand still like its dry.
And in S-Line spec they look the nuts!
To echo others comments re hot audi diesels. Last year I bouth a a4 3.0 TDI quattro. Great car. Quicker than a my mates prodrive imprezza in gears due to all of the torque - 400lbs ft and 200bhp+ I think. Just been up to Nottingham from south coast today and no problems in the snow etc.
All the toys, auto box with tiptronic and sports mode. Wipe clean leather seats so easy to clear up after my 9m old son. Highly recommended if you want sensible 40+mpg and nippy family wagon.
All the toys, auto box with tiptronic and sports mode. Wipe clean leather seats so easy to clear up after my 9m old son. Highly recommended if you want sensible 40+mpg and nippy family wagon.
Cheers for all the comments.
I'm going to head over to my local Audi garage later today and have a test drive in an A3 Sportback and an A4. At this stage I'm leaning towards the A4 purely from the look of it, I really like the new shape S-line models, in dark colours they look quite agressive.
I'm going to head over to my local Audi garage later today and have a test drive in an A3 Sportback and an A4. At this stage I'm leaning towards the A4 purely from the look of it, I really like the new shape S-line models, in dark colours they look quite agressive.
I went from an S3 to an S4 avant and often nick my work partners A3 3.2 DSG, by far the S4 is the winner no ifs or buts about it, it's just so good at doing everything, dog in the boot, seats down it's like a van, comfy, solid, dependable, goes like stink, and it's a V8, oh yes fuel economy.....average around 17-18, on a run expect just over 20 but if you push it hard expect to see a constant 6 returned at 150mph 
Oooops but you will love it, I've never had a better everyday work horse
Oooops but you will love it, I've never had a better everyday work horse996C2 said:
Cheers for all the comments.
I'm going to head over to my local Audi garage later today and have a test drive in an A3 Sportback and an A4. At this stage I'm leaning towards the A4 purely from the look of it, I really like the new shape S-line models, in dark colours they look quite agressive.
I'm going to head over to my local Audi garage later today and have a test drive in an A3 Sportback and an A4. At this stage I'm leaning towards the A4 purely from the look of it, I really like the new shape S-line models, in dark colours they look quite agressive.
Get an A4 DTM Edition if you can find one. Not that Im biased or anything
landy_girl said:
I have been looking at golf GT tdi and audi s3 and sportsback dsg
what one is good for a female?
what one is good for a female?
It depends what you are looking for as they are all very different, the Golf will have good economy and the performance is not too bad at all for a soot chucker. In my opinion the build quality is better in the A3/S3 and one of the best if not the best in its class.
My choice would be the S3, the looks are slightly understated and it doesnt look too different to the S Line but it has a good engine, performance and handling should be really good and economy would not be too bad considering the performance. Because of the looks I think it is fine for a female, it is not an in your face type car. I was considering changing my MK5 R32 for an S3 and if I hadnt got the RS4 I would probably have one now.
I went from a Touareg 2.5 Tdi SE Sport to a Golf GT Tdi 2.0L, which I picked up last Monday.
Very impressed with the Golf and it would be ideal for a lady with or without a young family.
Buy an ex-demo one if you can with the best spec that you can afford.
Shop around on the VW website. I ended up getting mine from VW Crewe.
Sorry, don't mean to slag of Audi by this but I prefer the Golf personally.
Very impressed with the Golf and it would be ideal for a lady with or without a young family.
Buy an ex-demo one if you can with the best spec that you can afford.
Shop around on the VW website. I ended up getting mine from VW Crewe.
Sorry, don't mean to slag of Audi by this but I prefer the Golf personally.
landy_girl said:
I have been looking at golf GT tdi and audi s3 and sportsback dsg
what one is good for a female?
All 3 are relatively understated and shouldn't get too much attention - assuming that is what you mean by "good for a female" - otherwise I suggest you look at pink Micra's what one is good for a female?
I wouldn't buy ex-demo as it will still depreciate rapidly - buy something 3 years old with a load of miles on it and get a bargain.
S3 will have higher running costs (fuel, 4wd maintenance and the odd more expensive part) but generally not too bad. I'd guess it will be an older car for the same money though, but usually very well spec'd and an interior that is better than the A3.
Partly aimed at response to Davel, but not being to be argumentative: Sorry, don't mean to slag off VW by this but I prefer the S3 personally.
UpTheIron said:
landy_girl said:
I have been looking at golf GT tdi and audi s3 and sportsback dsg
what one is good for a female?
All 3 are relatively understated and shouldn't get too much attention - assuming that is what you mean by "good for a female" - otherwise I suggest you look at pink Micra's what one is good for a female?
I wouldn't buy ex-demo as it will still depreciate rapidly - buy something 3 years old with a load of miles on it and get a bargain.
S3 will have higher running costs (fuel, 4wd maintenance and the odd more expensive part) but generally not too bad. I'd guess it will be an older car for the same money though, but usually very well spec'd and an interior that is better than the A3.
Partly aimed at response to Davel, but not being to be argumentative: Sorry, don't mean to slag off VW by this but I prefer the S3 personally.
It wont be a pink Micra thats for sure.
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