mypocketrocket-
I like that factory body kit. Is that a whole new bumper, or are
the aero pieces pre-painted and added on? prepainted and added-on is
better for me.

hahaha, need to sneak out the bedroom to your 'other' girl at night.

 

Interesting to say the least! Was all part of a promotional email I got from Audi to receive 33 songs from iTunes for test driving the A3.

The car I drove was equipped with the 2.0 liter Direct Injection turbo and the DSG (automatic) transmission and sport package.

First impression about the car - Audi took a page out of the MINI book with the sunroof - dual panes with the rear pane not opening. Interior was generally of high quality (as it is for most VW/Audi products).

Turning out of the parking lot - steering was pretty awful - numbing absent any feel - over-assisted and over boosted. Not a good first impression.

However, once on the road, with the DSG in manual shift mode and my foot on the gas - I chuckled over the rather interesting engine/exhaust FART that occured between upshifts. I looked down and was very impressed with the speed I was making - 200 hp and 207 ft/lb of torque allows that. This car has some serious cajones! Let's hope the next gen MINI has an engine similiar to this Audi! This engine has ZERO turbo lag and tons of torque!

Would I buy this one? Probably not - the lack of quattro in the model (until next December when it will be combined with the 3.2 narrow angle V-6 - think R32 in Audi A3 clothing) and the rather hefty $32,000 price tag make it a serious non-contender.

I'm keeping my '05 MCS (I'm not looking to sell or buy anything just yet). Nonetheless, an interesting alternative to a Mini Cooper S.

 

At what price point?

 

wonder what this shift-up farting sounds like...
is it a dry fart or juicy?


Im not looking to replace my MCS with the A3 in my case.
Just looking for something cool to commute to work in.

 

That's called active steering. You will feel lighter in parking lot, but stiffer on the highway.

I guess it is a dry fart...haha

It's actually the sound of a westgate in action. It's normal in turbo cars.

Forget the 3.2 Quattro when we will see RS3 sometime next year with 3.2 turbo put out 350hp and 380torque. This is truly a wolf in a sheep clothing

Here are just some computer generate images.




We just bought this car to replace her Nissan Z. We just found that A3 offers perfect utility space and well performance at reasonable price.

...well I got to sneak out to see both of my mistress in the garage now....hehe

 

Kenchan...my experience (and from what I've heard/read) is that the Quattro system is basically bullet-proof...very few problems with that. However, also based on my experience (and the word of nearly every Audi mechanic at my local dealership), the rest of an Audi ain't so bullet-proof.

Perhaps VAG will get the reliability stuff under control for this new round of Audis.

 

I loved the A3 when I saw it at the Auto Show. In a year I would consider buying the quattro version to replace my 90 Audi 100 (83k miles). I will keep the MINI cabrio for the summer. Though the old Audi shows no sign of dying anytime soon. Smooth on the road. No rattles. Everything from the ac to seat warmers to s/roof all work.

 

thanks for the info! :smile:

 

This car has the full Oettinger body kit and Oettinger RZ wheels (2 piece).
Actually, since this is the showcar for Oettinger press photos, I bet it has more Oettinger parts than what we can see from this pic.

 

Has any pricing been announced on the Oettinger pieces yet?

 

This is not official number, but this is what floating around the Audi forums.

front bumper - $1029
rear bumper valance $569
side skirts $689

 

Drove the A3 yesterday. Wow, this is a REALLY nice car, and I think an outstanding buy for $25k (well, that's where they start, anyway). Great power, nice gearbox, beautiful interior, nice suspension. Nothing bad to say about it at all. I don't think I'll be buying one, though - I'll just take the free songs, thanks.

 

I drove one last week and really was inpressed. The DSG trans shifted crisper and sharper than most "manumatics" out there. It is a good competitor for the Volvo V50 and such.

 

here is a sneek peek of the A3 S-line

 

Is there a performance bump in the S-line (that doesn't sound like the S3, am I correct?). I'm not feeling the front end treatment on that.


BTW, I noticed you mentioned speculative pricing for the rear valance from Oettinger, any pics from that angle?

 

I'm not so sure about the performance upgrade in S-line, but it's not an S3 for sure.

Right now Oettinger is not officially release the full body kit yet. They just only did a press release with the pricing of the body kit.

 

S-line is just an appearance package