Is the Audi A3 diesel a nice car to drive and own?
I am toying with the idea of buying a second hand A3 1.9Tdi.
Which model would be best to get and what are they like to drive? How much can I expect yearly running costs to be?
Thanks for any help....
4 Answers
Hi there. I have had the 2.0 A3 tdi sport which is the one I would recomend. The handling is nice and sharp but some would say the ride is a little hard. Road tax is £120 per year and I achieved upto 62 mpg, although this would drop slightly on the urban cycle.
Not sure which year you're considering, but here are a bunch of user reviews of the 2007: http://www.cargurus.com/Cars/2007-Audi-A3-Reviews-c7476 Hope they help!
Great fun to drive. I drove my sister's TDI for a couple of days, thought it compared very favorably with my USA market A3 3.2Q in terms of driving dynamics, maybe even a bit more fun with all that diesel torque (actually felt like it had better low end torque than my V6). It's similarly seems a bit more front end heavy than the 2.0 liter petrol version, which I think handles the best of all of them. Running cost-wise, hard to say, as diesel prices are coming down, at least over here inthe US, but I got very good range when motorway driving at a steady 75-80 mph, as you'd expect with a diesel. Whatever happens, it's going to save you decent money over a petrol version. One word of caution, check out the warranty situation.. Audi's get expensive in a hurry when you're paying the bills. The DSG gearbox is fantastic, but 3 or 4 years ago it was a fairly new technology, and there have been some (expensive) failures requiring replacement boxes. I speak of experience, as my sister's DSG failed, and it was only 3 or 4 months out of warranty. A good 3rd party warranty could be an idea.
Diesel Trucks are basically a Requirement for Pulling Heavy Loads like Trailers due to their Greater Torque over a Gasoline Engine. VERY Expensive to Maintain - BUT, More expensive if you DON'T keep up the maintenance! I have to have a 1 Ton Diesel Dually! Wish I didn't! Service and/or Repair Charges are outrageously Expensive! Mine's in Shop NOW! A regular mechanic won't touch a Diesel! And I mean simple things like replacing an Alternator! Diesel Car? Couldn't give me one! (But I'm in the U.S. I do understand things are different in Britain, France, etc. due to your Fuel Costs!)
