Audi A3 TDI SE 2005 - Putting The SE in Base Model
Discussion
If you see my BMW X3 thread you will see I sold the car to a friend as I needed a diesel as a job offer came up and the 6cyl X3 4WD & auto was taking its toll financially.
Anyhow I wanted a german diesel and wanted an A3. Viewed a nice specced one but it was a bucket with many red flags, think it has been mapped as it seemed to be spiking. The prices are pretty high right now too but one came up cheaper than others with pretty good miles in half decent looking condition. Only thing putting me of was the colour, it was definitely not first choice and it reminded me of my B5 passat.
How the Passat ended which make me wanna follow the blue / grey colour scheme.
Anyway. The A3. Its pale blue and base spec, more base spec than i realised, it doesn't even have AC which I didnt notice until after. I was so focused on having the radio down and just driving to listen to noises for the mechanical side and the car was cheaper than others it never crossed my mind until driving home having a look around. But oh well its happened now. No leathers, no armrest, no buttons on the steering wheel, no climate control etc. Just a 2.0tdi 140bhp 6 speed manual on 136K.
Aftermarket stereo issues, only the front tweeters are working, see above for not noticing as music was turned off for test drive. Need the b pillars painting / wrapped? Some touch up of paint on a rear quarter and thats about it for the urgent stuff.
I paid £1550 which is good going in comparison to others on the market, I budgeted for more but vague replies, slow replies, no replies etc left me with this and I was first to message.
I have ordered a kill all wipers wiper delete, an OEM Mounts phone mount, I am going to order some new plates as it has an Audi logo and is in carbon writing. I am getting a price from a friend for a cambelt and water pump change. Armrest will be ordered soon too.
Today I may try investigate the audio situation and I need to replace a brake light.
Happy motoring. Pounds per mile is commencing :driver:
Anyhow I wanted a german diesel and wanted an A3. Viewed a nice specced one but it was a bucket with many red flags, think it has been mapped as it seemed to be spiking. The prices are pretty high right now too but one came up cheaper than others with pretty good miles in half decent looking condition. Only thing putting me of was the colour, it was definitely not first choice and it reminded me of my B5 passat.
How the Passat ended which make me wanna follow the blue / grey colour scheme.
Anyway. The A3. Its pale blue and base spec, more base spec than i realised, it doesn't even have AC which I didnt notice until after. I was so focused on having the radio down and just driving to listen to noises for the mechanical side and the car was cheaper than others it never crossed my mind until driving home having a look around. But oh well its happened now. No leathers, no armrest, no buttons on the steering wheel, no climate control etc. Just a 2.0tdi 140bhp 6 speed manual on 136K.
Aftermarket stereo issues, only the front tweeters are working, see above for not noticing as music was turned off for test drive. Need the b pillars painting / wrapped? Some touch up of paint on a rear quarter and thats about it for the urgent stuff.
I paid £1550 which is good going in comparison to others on the market, I budgeted for more but vague replies, slow replies, no replies etc left me with this and I was first to message.
I have ordered a kill all wipers wiper delete, an OEM Mounts phone mount, I am going to order some new plates as it has an Audi logo and is in carbon writing. I am getting a price from a friend for a cambelt and water pump change. Armrest will be ordered soon too.
Today I may try investigate the audio situation and I need to replace a brake light.
Happy motoring. Pounds per mile is commencing :driver:
Something cool about a poverty spec car, nice motor, I looked at these as A3's hovering around the £1k shed potential, a few months back, make a good no worries hack in petrol form anyway, ended up with a Vectra, even less worry with that thing! Ha!
What's the idea behind the "rear wiper delete" out of interest...is it a VAG scene thing?
I am bit out of trend in the modern VAG scene, more the air-cooled scene I was into
What's the idea behind the "rear wiper delete" out of interest...is it a VAG scene thing?
I am bit out of trend in the modern VAG scene, more the air-cooled scene I was into
W00DY said:
Had no idea they even made these without AC and with a plastic wheel. Proper mean, but rather charming. Not sure why you'd lose the rear wiper, but I guess it fits with the misery spec. Throw away the headrests next perhaps?
Haha that made me laugh, I guess I had that coming!dandam said:
Iirc you can get the B pillar trim from Audi and it’s not too expensive - a friend bought a similar a3 and was investigating wrapping or repainting until he found it was cheaper to buy new
The Rotrex Kid said:
There’s a black plastic cover at the bottom that pops off, two torx screws underneath and they slip straight off, takes minutes!
The Rotrex Kid said:
I’ve just bought a similar car (1.9 PD 105) and mines an E Sport! The B pillar trims unscrew, I just painted mine with satin black and stuck them back on, they look spot on!
Thanks guys, noted, thats on the to do list. Its such an eye sore at the minute.757 said:
Something cool about a poverty spec car, nice motor, I looked at these as A3's hovering around the £1k shed potential, a few months back, make a good no worries hack in petrol form anyway, ended up with a Vectra, even less worry with that thing! Ha!
What's the idea behind the "rear wiper delete" out of interest...is it a VAG scene thing?
I am bit out of trend in the modern VAG scene, more the air-cooled scene I was into
Yeah most I was looking at were around the £2000 this came up very cheap but I guess thats my loss for the AC! But it does the job.What's the idea behind the "rear wiper delete" out of interest...is it a VAG scene thing?
I am bit out of trend in the modern VAG scene, more the air-cooled scene I was into
Yeah I think its fair to say the wiper delete comes from the VAG scene I have done it on a bunch of cars I just like the look of it.
Howard- said:
Wow, you could get cars like this without AC?! Someone must have been *really* desperate for that Audi badge to want to buy one of those new...
That is a fair comment! Has me wondering if I can fit air con on from a breaking A3 haNoticed the OSR tyre was losing air and looked pretty tired so took it to a local tyre shop for a replacement, it was soon noticed the NSR also had a split it the tread. Anyway £110 later and 2 new tyres fitted.
The car finally has audio although the rear speakers are still not working but it will do for now. I went for a new Pioneer bluetooth headunit with a smart sync app. Not a bad piece of kit for the money. Had a lot of faffing around for the ISO harness and ended up paying £40 plus next day postage for my ISO harness from Dynamic Sounds. Headunit was bought from Halfords. Still want to fit the microphone later down the line but that can wait until the black headlining & pillars etc will go in. I can also get a parking sensor kit to work with the headunit and app.
Pictured with the phone holder mount pulled out (only using this until my OEM mounts phone holder arrives, the stereo one blocks the hazard switch and the dashboard cup holder)
Pictured with phone mount tucked away.
KillAllWipers kit arrived.
Quick rain shot.
Have done 240 miles in the car so far, rear brakes need doing, clutch pedal sometimes doesnt return and the OS middle air vent needs replacing.
Ticking along nicely and its a much nicer place to be with some music. Some more updates soon when the arm rest and phone mount arrives.
The car finally has audio although the rear speakers are still not working but it will do for now. I went for a new Pioneer bluetooth headunit with a smart sync app. Not a bad piece of kit for the money. Had a lot of faffing around for the ISO harness and ended up paying £40 plus next day postage for my ISO harness from Dynamic Sounds. Headunit was bought from Halfords. Still want to fit the microphone later down the line but that can wait until the black headlining & pillars etc will go in. I can also get a parking sensor kit to work with the headunit and app.
Pictured with the phone holder mount pulled out (only using this until my OEM mounts phone holder arrives, the stereo one blocks the hazard switch and the dashboard cup holder)
Pictured with phone mount tucked away.
KillAllWipers kit arrived.
Quick rain shot.
Have done 240 miles in the car so far, rear brakes need doing, clutch pedal sometimes doesnt return and the OS middle air vent needs replacing.
Ticking along nicely and its a much nicer place to be with some music. Some more updates soon when the arm rest and phone mount arrives.
So I have not had a drive in the A3 this week I just completed a 6 day course and some days I got on the tube, but some days due to the RMT strikes I drove but due to being in the ULEZ zone I have been driving the Jetta.
Anyway, some photo updates for the A3.
The rear wiper delete is done.
The OEM Mounts phone holder kit is here, I will get a photo of the phone mounted soon.
The rear discs and pads was ordered and it was a nightmare. First some photos.
The NSR was done first and it was a pain, even with a wind back tool kit it took an hour of fighting, the OSR didn't cooperate at all either and ended up replacing the caliper (not photographed). This has now led to an airlock in the system and a soft pedal so tomorrow now I am finished with the course I am going to run it to a local garage and get it bled with a better system than a homemade driveway attempt. If I had known prior it was gonna be such a battle I would have replaced both calipers and had them ready beforehand but we live and learn and move on.
I will be better prepared for the front brakes in the near future anyway.
The armrest is here now but I thought it was a straight forward fit via the ashtray which is incorrect, my centre console requires cutting, after watching some videos online. I think I would rather buy a second hand console and swap it over when I change the seats.
I decided this time round for my Pounds Per Mile sheet to combine my 2 lists so my parts / labour / tax / fuel / insurance is all in one list. I am currently £2345.85and 604.5 miles in, bringing a total of £3.88 a mile currently. Doesn't help after a week of no driving but spending money. Most excited to get in and drive with the new phone holder. I will get the brakes done and give it a quick clean over in the week and hopefully get some miles in.
Anyway, some photo updates for the A3.
The rear wiper delete is done.
The OEM Mounts phone holder kit is here, I will get a photo of the phone mounted soon.
The rear discs and pads was ordered and it was a nightmare. First some photos.
The NSR was done first and it was a pain, even with a wind back tool kit it took an hour of fighting, the OSR didn't cooperate at all either and ended up replacing the caliper (not photographed). This has now led to an airlock in the system and a soft pedal so tomorrow now I am finished with the course I am going to run it to a local garage and get it bled with a better system than a homemade driveway attempt. If I had known prior it was gonna be such a battle I would have replaced both calipers and had them ready beforehand but we live and learn and move on.
I will be better prepared for the front brakes in the near future anyway.
The armrest is here now but I thought it was a straight forward fit via the ashtray which is incorrect, my centre console requires cutting, after watching some videos online. I think I would rather buy a second hand console and swap it over when I change the seats.
I decided this time round for my Pounds Per Mile sheet to combine my 2 lists so my parts / labour / tax / fuel / insurance is all in one list. I am currently £2345.85and 604.5 miles in, bringing a total of £3.88 a mile currently. Doesn't help after a week of no driving but spending money. Most excited to get in and drive with the new phone holder. I will get the brakes done and give it a quick clean over in the week and hopefully get some miles in.
Hey people just checking in.
The A3 has just been working, although it is losing coolant slightly now. And it has been hot with no AC through these heatwaves we have had.
I last updated at £2345.85 and 604.5 miles in, bringing a total of £3.88 a mile. This has now dropped and the miles have been racking up.
Parking up in multi-storeys.
Been to weddings out in Chelmsford and Airbnb trips to Colchester.
Racked up nearly 1,000 miles in a week on a trip to visit family in Sunderland, while there I visited Holy Island & Bamburgh Castle. The car worked great just the lack of AC still nagging me.
I have a boot full of parts to fit now, gates cambelt kit incl water pump, thermostat, aux belt, full service kit new oil and coolant, wipers. I have some wheels lined up finally to but it's all going on at home behind the scenes!
Anyway the Pounds per mile update to finish off incl ulez fees, the car purchase, fuel, tax, insurance, labour and parts etc.
£3319.99 spent and 3291 miles driven. £1.01 per mile.
Updates coming once wheels are fitted and cambelt pump etc.
The A3 has just been working, although it is losing coolant slightly now. And it has been hot with no AC through these heatwaves we have had.
I last updated at £2345.85 and 604.5 miles in, bringing a total of £3.88 a mile. This has now dropped and the miles have been racking up.
Parking up in multi-storeys.
Been to weddings out in Chelmsford and Airbnb trips to Colchester.
Racked up nearly 1,000 miles in a week on a trip to visit family in Sunderland, while there I visited Holy Island & Bamburgh Castle. The car worked great just the lack of AC still nagging me.
I have a boot full of parts to fit now, gates cambelt kit incl water pump, thermostat, aux belt, full service kit new oil and coolant, wipers. I have some wheels lined up finally to but it's all going on at home behind the scenes!
Anyway the Pounds per mile update to finish off incl ulez fees, the car purchase, fuel, tax, insurance, labour and parts etc.
£3319.99 spent and 3291 miles driven. £1.01 per mile.
Updates coming once wheels are fitted and cambelt pump etc.
Picked up the new set of wheels, they need a refurb but I am in no rush! I want to get it done but not trying to spend all at once and I still need to pay for the cambelt kit to be fitted and the service so it will have to wait.
Much better. They don't have the best tyres and they need a refurb but see what the future holds. Any recommendations for 225/40/18's that don't break the bank then I am all ears. Was thinking maybe rainsports.
Much better. They don't have the best tyres and they need a refurb but see what the future holds. Any recommendations for 225/40/18's that don't break the bank then I am all ears. Was thinking maybe rainsports.
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