Audi A3 S LINE 2.0 TDI DSG 140PS

skyliner34

skyliner34

Savin' & Lookin' for an A3!
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Hi

I'm currently driving a Focus ST3 tuned to around 275bhp. Loving it, but starting to hate the costs & the roads are getting busier so I cant use the cars full road potential etc.. Although I can get 36mpg If I really try, but the car is too much of a hoot to do that so I normally get around 25-28mpg. Also looking for a better built car, the rear panels in the ST rattle over bumps like spanners in a tool box.

My local Audi/VW dealer has a nice 2005 Audi A3 S LINE 2.0 TDI DSG 140PS in blue.

What do I need to look out for, and what MPG are you guys getting?

Thx

Trist
 
hi, you can get as much as 55mpg from a 2.0l tdi. common faults are faulty cylinder heads, turbos and dual mass flywheels, dont let this put you off though, ive got an 05 tdi thats covered 75000 miles and had no problems at all and plan on keeping it a few more years!
 
Mine has been realiable so far, only complaint is the crashy ride and the rear parcel shelf rattles on realy bumpy roads. I get an overall MPG of 38, but alot of my time is spent thrashing round country roads. I can see about 40-45 MPG normal town driving and 50 MPG on motoway run at the speed limit.
 
Build quality is good, ive found but as mentioned above common faults are porous cylinder heads, turbos (some due to mappin issues/excessive boost) and dual mass flywheels

Big difference from an ST though! Wont you find it too tame??? even if mapped?
 
dunno, I will probably. but Id rather a nice tame car and have more money in the back at the end of the month haha. I'm 23 and hope to move out at 25-26, so I'll need savings :)
 
Wise choice of engine imo.

A remap will see 180, and with it being a diesel you'll see all the torque, which is what you want.

I've got a 115bhp 1.6 and it feels 2x slower than my 1.9tdi 105 diesel....
 
I do alot of motorway diving and i get about 50-60mpg all the time, when i trash it i get about 35-40mpg but i dont do it much. mine is not even re-mapped either. i had a focus and i know what you mean about the rattles on the rear end, not had anything like that on my A3. get yourself a nice A3 and fit on a good set of coilovers and you will feel a really nice ride.
as above the car won't feel anything like your ST-3 but it makes up in other places.
 
Is it the 2005 one you mentioned at the start? If so, sounds good. Check for service history etc etc and try to find out if its had a replacement head (worth knowing) and if the cambelt has been changed or due! And DSG haldex oil change is every 40k.
 
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i went the other way, i went form a remapped 2.0 140ps TDi S Line DSG to a leon cupra and don't miss the A3 one bit. mine averaged 36mpg and i get 29 from the leon, i don't drive it as hard but then i don't have to. i sold mine quickly, it was the most boring car i ever had, i also had concerns about the longevity of the DSG box. I think you will tire of the A3 very quickly over the ST. For the audi, make sure it has had the DSG fluid and service history, it might also need to have a cambelt so check to see if this has been done. I had not rattles with the A3 but the drivers door handle kept working its way loose and i gave up at the second attempt, also the drivers seat sags on cars with leather.
 
audi upgrades
yep the 2005 one.

What do I ned to check with the DSG, the oil etc?

I just want a really tidy quality car and cheaper to run than the ST, my age doesnt help!
 
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What I did was try to find out where the car had been serviced during its life and rang all the dealerships where it had been and got full details of all services etc done. Some were good enough to send me copies too! As said, DSG haldex changes are every 40k, so check this has been done, cambelts are every 60k I think (but could be 80k, cant remember!) so could be due or just done, check the water pumps been done at the same time too!

Just a few pointers, hope it helps.
 
just check its been changed at 40k, there are issues around the mechatronic unit that can lead to its failure and audi being audi will weedle there way out of it if the fluid hasn't been changed. Make sure you get a very good test drive, try it hot and cold and in town traffic as the gearbox can be jerky and there is a slight hesitation to it, all of this gets worse if the unit shows signs of impending failure, its best to use the search buttion to see other issues. Personally i would look at the Octavia VRS TDi or the Leon FR TDi, if you must have the audi then i'd lean towards the 140ps manual and look for quatrro. There are plenty of people that love DSG and a few that don't I fall in the few that don't. Oh and SLine suspension is very hard.
 
Good car for a young age i think, it has a bit of poke it's not the most exciting car but its seems to have alot grip. i'm 21 and just came from a Mini Cooper s and i have dropped my insurance from £1200 to £700 a year aswell.
 
about the same drop as me from the ST then :) Fuel will be my biggest saving I think:) I'm willing to accept its not gonna have the same poke as the ST, but I really dont go round thrashing the car these days, maybe I'm growing out of it hahah

Good grip you say? :D
 
Yeah i found it to have pretty good grip, but its a bit boat like and boring handling wise, mines a sport the sline maybe better but nothing a set of coilovers wont cure.
 
Don't be put off by people saying that DSG is this, that and the other. Drive one first and then make your mind up.. I have a remapped A3 Sline 2.0L TDI DSG and it's a very good car, you'll never be able to change gear as quick as a DSG car can, my car has paddle shift also which makes the back roads pretty fun, stick it in D for on the commute, as soon as you hit back roads, get it in manual. You can't whack it, yes some DSG motors have had their problems, but i bet if you go on a focus ST site, they'll be 1000s of comments about problems people have had with there fast fords.

Test drive a DSG and a manual and see what you think, quattro is good as well if you can find a decent one.

:thumbsup:
 
definatly test one but make sure you get a good run in one, try it in traffic and at roundaboutw when pulling away, also remember its not truley manual the car will still change gear on its own even in manual if it approachs the redline, a DSG remap should cure it though. I really think that after the ST you will tire of the A3 quickly
 
skyliner34 said:
Cool :)

I've found a S LINE TDI with DSG in my local Audi garage, it's got 65k on it, should I consider this?
Click to expand...
mine is the same but now with 95000 miles still going strong and can get top end of 63,7 mpg on the way back from cardiff wicked car!
 
Thanks for your comments guys :)

I suppose every car has its problems.

About the getting tired comment because I'm coming from a ST. Maybe I will, but driving the ST today, I put £15 in last night, only done the work commute today and the needle is nearly touching the red already and I haven't driven it hard! So that gets to me especially when I want to be a little more tight money wise :)

I'm worried that I'm buying a hight milage one at 65k, how high can these motors go before dying?:)

THis will be my first german car (although my Astra VXR was built in germany think, It felt like it) I'm normally a jap man and have considered the Civic, but fancy something a bit more classy :)
 
For a 5 year old diesel car that mileage is good. lol, I has an A6 with the same engine, had 140k lol, so plenty of miles in it!

As said above, drive both DSG and manual yourself, only then will you know for sure....... Have a good drive and enjoy it, you will know whats best for you!
 
£15 is nothing though, it''l cost you near enough £70 to fill the diesel from empty. Mine was really bad on fuel which is one of the reasons why i don't mind filling up the cupra. if your doing short trips then diesel isn't really ideal, i'd try them all, certainly the Leon FR, the Octavia VRS TDi and if you love jap then why not a Civic Type S CDTi although i didn't like certain things about that either.... :) Oh and i'd sure the ST is built in Germany too.
 
Cheers both :)

No the ST is built in Spain I've heard, the interior feels like it too haha

£15-£18 in the ST gets it up to half a tank, but it doesn't stay there for long! The tank is tiny!!

I do around 30miles a day, so how long would the Audi last me with £15 say? 4 days?

I'm gonna go to my audi dealer tomz and have a look round and a few test drives.

I have been thinking of the Leon and Octavia :) Hows the build quality in the leon?
 
assuming you get 40mpg then the fuel should last 3 1/2days. The A3 is better finished than the Leon, not better buit, the plastics on the doors are a bit scratchy but just a little bit of a step up from the ST, the Octavia is better still. I don't miss the A3 interior one bit, i actually prefer the seats in the Leon and i prefer the look of the dash. try and get a loan of a dsg car don't fall in love with it because of the paddles i left mine in d 98% of the time
 
Ok cheers mate :)

So you rekon the plastics on the A3 wasnt much of a step up from the ST?

I find the dash and front door plastics on the ST very well put together and solid, its the plastics at the rear boot area and rear passenger area thats cheap, not feel wise, feels same as other plastics in the car, but rattles like mad on uneven roads!!! Which is annoying!!

Was going to buy a BMW 1 Series, but BMW would only offer me 8k for my 06 ST3 with only 13k on the clock!! So walked away! I wish I could sell it private, but I need a car for work everyday, so timing when selling private would have to be perfect!
 
soory, the leon is a step up from the Focus but the A3 is better than the Leon
 
My 2003 A3 2.0 TDI which has done over 150k miles has had no major problems. As for MPG, I can get over 60 to the gallon on the motorway if I stick between 60-70.

As others have said watch out for porous cylinder heads especially if its pre-2005.
 
skyliner34 said:
Ok cheers mate :)

So you rekon the plastics on the A3 wasnt much of a step up from the ST?

I find the dash and front door plastics on the ST very well put together and solid, its the plastics at the rear boot area and rear passenger area thats cheap, not feel wise, feels same as other plastics in the car, but rattles like mad on uneven roads!!! Which is annoying!!

Was going to buy a BMW 1 Series, but BMW would only offer me 8k for my 06 ST3 with only 13k on the clock!! So walked away! I wish I could sell it private, but I need a car for work everyday, so timing when selling private would have to be perfect!
Click to expand...

Try webuyanycar, so far they have never quoted me prices less than ive traded cars in at. You might get more than 8k from there, just a thought, i realy wish id gone for a 120d hatch now there so much more fun and alot quicker than my A3.
 
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