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Wagons Audi A3 New A3 Owners - Give Us Your Report!
41 messages, Last post on Jun 02, 2009 at 6:02 PM
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I've had my A3 for 4 weeks, 1,500 miles. Gas mileage on the highway has been 29-31 mpg when putting the cruise on at 60mpg. In town is 21-23 mpg. Handles great. So far very pleased.
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Replying to: utahjake (Jun 16, 2008 12:26 pm) 
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I've been pleasantly surprised by the A3 coming from a MINI Cooper S. This car is just plain fun, and now the question that keeps re-running in my head is why so many people lately are so fixated on MINIs in general when for many, the A3 is probably a better choice. Around where I live, I rarely see any A3s on the road but I'm seeing MINIs everywhere I go. Cost comparison, a decently equipped MINI is not much less expensive than the A3...mine was fairly optioned out and cost 28.3k before taxes, and that was for an '05 model. It didn't have leather either, which if it did would've pushed the MSRP over 30k, and since they're in such high demand there isn't much negotiation on price. The negotiated price on my A3 with S-Line, iPod, Open Sky, and heated seats was about 29k. I'm getting much better mileage on the A3 than I did on the MINI (after 1.5k miles on the A3 ~26 MPG vs ~23 MGP in 60/40 city/highway driving). I went back and looked at my maintenance and repair bills for the MINI, and even with the all inclusive MINI maintenance plan I still shelled out about 4.7k for service over 2.5 years. I can't foresee the A3 (got the Audi Care and warranty through GEICO) ever incurring those sorts of expenses while under factory warranty. The clutch is silky smooth and switching gears is so easy...I love all the torque you get in 3rd gear. I always feel like you get plenty of power and can move without having to drive hard and redline like I did in the MINI. Both my wife and myself find ourselves on the freeway hitting a moment where we look at the speedometer and say 'woah' and have to slow down from 85-90mph. Being as we got the Misano Red Pearl we are certain we're going to start getting speeding tickets sooner than later. It's a great family car - my wife feels like she's not an average suburban mother running around listlessly in an Odyssey, Accord, or a Volvo. Fits all the kid gear in the trunk and no problem getting car seats in and out. All the other mommies seem envious because most didn't even realize there are some great choices like the A3. Especially when my wife tells them about the stellar front and side crash ratings it got from the IIHS. The rear side curtain airbags make the wife feel safer on the roads (probably accounts for some of the extra speeding). Seems like even the storage has storage as well...there's so many nooks and crannies to store stuff. Takes getting used to the front wheel drive taking turns fast, but then it's nice having tires that aren't run flats that get worn down from the beating and need to be replaced every 12-15k miles. I really want to get it chipped but the wife likes things to stay stock, so I'm thinking ahead and will probably get another A3 when they do the next major redesign in 2010 or 2011.
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Replying to: jxbst15 (Jun 18, 2008 6:58 pm) Sports pkg: PPS Sports seat, sports suspension, 18" 5-tri-spoke wheels with 225/40 summer performance tires. |
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Well, the first 4,900 miles on my new A3 were great. Then yesterday, I am cruising at about 65 mph on some freeways and getting great mileage. I exit onto a ramp and it dies. And it continues to die each time I start it and move several feet. No warning lights go on. When it did go further than several feet, it chugged like someone learning to drive stick. I ended up having to have it towed over 30 miles to the dealer. This is a substitution of collateral car in settlement of a legal action against Audi for my 2007 A4 that ended up with 5 major engine repairs within a 10 week period at 20,000 miles. None of the Audi dealers would help me out (I was 60 miles from home) because I didn't buy the car from them. Well, I didn't buy this car from anyone! Roadside Assistance suggested I take a cab home. The dealer never called to confirm that they received the car from tow truck co. I am hoping it fell off the truck someplace. I am now online looking for a new car company.
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Got my '06 DSG Sport Packaged 2.0T A3 workhorse up to 42K miles and counting. No major problems to report. In fact, I had just taken it in for it's first real unscheduled warranty repair. The center stack armrest container stopped racheting correctly, and the latch broke on the arm rest storage bin lid (a common problem according to the service guy). Unfortunately, he took the position that they were doing me a favor repairing and replacing the whole arm rest assembly as he said Audi stuck them for the bill in denying warranty on the lid latch breaking! Did Audi hire a former Chrysler worker? This is a terrible management decision if true. |
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Just spent first cent on maintenance after passing the 48K mark. 30K on Goodyear F1 all season and they're roaring, though still handling nicely. P6s didn't make it past 25K before needing replaced. Next set will be Bridgestone RE960s - already have sets on '99 Passat and '02 Turbo S. Best mileage was with the worn Pirellis, A/C on economy, early morning I26/I40 from Spartanburg to Knoxville, 60 -70 mph - 37.4 mpg. F1s have pretty high rolling resistance and took the normal 33.1  78 mph to 31.8 mpg. Tires do make a difference. Still just as much fun as when new and love the way it goes from practical, high mileage scenic cruiser to snarly, hard cornering, pocket rocket. |
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Just before my 50K warranty was up (I'm now approaching 52K shortly), the battery died on me with complete failure; it wouldn't recharge and the only way to get the car started was to jump it even after driving 200 miles w/o stopping, and I did check to make sure the alternator was working properly. So the battery died on me in 35 months of use, at 49,000 miles or so. Found out Audi doesn't cover the battery past 12K or 12 months, and that's a darn shame. Audi should be ashamed of themselves for that terrible managment decision. Again, I think they must of hired a former Chrysler employee who's advising them poorly on their warranty terms. I was angry that the battery wasn't AT LEAST covered on a PRO RATED basis, which is the bare minimum standard. So in 2005 they did, but in 2006 they decided to go cheap. Seems not a coincidence that as soon as they shorten the warranty, they start installing batteries that can't even last 3 years or 50,000 miles. I know I got raped by the dealer, but installation and new battery cost me about $250! 1 hour of labor to install a battery>??? probably took them 10 minutes at most! and their labor rates in CA are astronomical. The actual battery cost of abotu $115 isn't too bad actually, considering the replacement does have a 4 year prorated warranty!
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Replying to: andres3 (May 04, 2009 10:09 am) Has anybody had problems with the shift paddles on DSG equpped Audis? So our '06 A3 w/ the DSG has ~45k miles now. The up (right) paddle on the steering column became loose about 6 months ago so that you could not engage the next gear unless you flicked it towards you along the very bottom edge of the paddle. I figured we'd get it in at the 45k service and get it replaced before the warranty ran out - no need for an extra trip, right? About a week ago the paddle actually fell off with no prompting from us. Our dealership declined it as a warranty item first stating it was a plastic trim piece. When I pressed and got to the service manager he said as it had fallen off, it was due to our use / abuse and would not be covered. He further said if we had come in while it was still hanging loose it would of probably been covered(?!?). He quoted me ~$400 for the replacement. I contacted Audi Customer Care (not an accurate title in my opinion) regarding this. They took 24 hours to get back to me. When they did, they declined any assistance in the form of warranty repair or even a discount on the cost of the work. I would have accepted just about any peace offering just to see they were willing to listen and prperly respond. They too said it was due to our use. I asked if I could speak to a manager but they indirectly declined, saying there were managers there but only for administrative purposes and it would be of no use to talk with them. I have had 2 Audis, 3 VW's including a current 01 Passat and others have relied on my recommendation before purchasing similar rides. Next time I will not provide such glowing reviews and I am considering walking away from Audi the next time around. There are a lot of other quality manufacturers out there that stand behind their products better than Audi these days. Oh yeah, also at this service we were told a leaking strut was not a warranty item and they proposed a ~$400 estimate for that too. Some other quality issues are a chronic check engine light (cleared by software usually but now have replaced a damper motor and something about intake runners); finish has peeled of the window switches, CV boot failed spewing grease everywhere; sun shade latch has fallen apert 4 times (which they've continued to replace). Sorry to rant - just very frustrated by this bad experience. Thanks for listening and if I have posted in the wrong place, lemme know. Cheers LS_jr
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Replying to: pf_flyer (Oct 16, 2006 5:53 am) |
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