Have I made the wrong engine choice???

TheCarMadDad

TheCarMadDad

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Hi guys,

I'm beginning to think I've made the wrong engine choice when I ordered my A3 Sportback. I went for the 1.6tdi in S Line trim. Problem is, the more I look at reviews the more I think I should've chosen the 1.4TFSI 140. It seems to be a cracking little engine with performance that would put some bigger cars to shame! I only do a 20 mile daily commute 4 days a week so I don't do massive mileage, less than 10k a year.

So, do I call up the company car people and see if I can change engine or do I go with what I originally ordered?!?! Also, am I right in thinking that the 1.4TFSI would have the better multilink rear suspension set up? (not that I would probably notice).

Lastly what do current owners of this engine think of its performance/fuel economy?

cheers
 
Course you have. Should have gone for 2.0T!
 
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I'm not an owner yet, but I've tested the 1.4 TFSI 140 twice now and I have been impressed both times. In comparison to the 1.8 TFSI, I see no reason to pay the extra money for worse fuel economy and 40PS more power (torque is the same). A TDI is still more sensible if you do a lot of miles, but otherwise the Cylinder on Demand is my choice!
 
I drove the new Golf with the 1.4 COD and was very impressed by it. For the sort of usage you quote I'm not sure that you will come anywhere near to getting the benefit of the diesel. Can you get a test drive?
 
Gonna try and book test drives tomorrow. I went for the diesel because of the BIK tax, however I've since found out the 1.4 TFSI COD is only 3 quid a month more
 
For <10K you're almost always better off with a petrol, you won't recoup the price difference with those miles, and there is no DPF to clog on short journeys on a petrol.
 
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I'd always go petrol if you do less than 12k or even more, there are comparisons out there that show that over 3 years petrol is actually cheaper. Also much smoother engine with the 1.4. If it was the 2.0 diesel would be a different view but against the 1.6 I'd say get the petrol
 
We did a test drive in a A3 1.4 CoD and a Golf 1.6 Tdi - both autos. The stop/start technology on the 1.4 was so smooth it was almost not noticeable. It was very noticeable on the diesel.

But the car will be doing 20k miles a year. So we ordered the diesel.

You are correct the 1.4 petrol will have performance multi-link rear suspension. The 1.6 diesel will have light weight torsion bar rear suspension.

You should watch a few reviews on youtube. Most mention suspension. Do you drive on good roads? The 2.0L sport we drove had very firm suspension.
 
Daz Auto said:
We did a test drive in a A3 1.4 CoD and a Golf 1.6 Tdi - both autos. The stop/start technology on the 1.4 was so smooth it was almost not noticeable. It was very noticeable on the diesel.

But the car will be doing 20k miles a year. So we ordered the diesel.

You are correct the 1.4 petrol will have performance multi-link rear suspension. The 1.6 diesel will have light weight torsion bar rear suspension.

You should watch a few reviews on youtube. Most mention suspension. Do you drive on good roads? The 2.0L sport we drove had very firm suspension.
Click to expand...

1.4 TFSI has the same suspension as 1.8, right?
 
IIRC only the 1.2 petrol and the 1.6 diesel Audi A3s have torsion beam rear suspension.
 
I'm not really worried about recouping the cost of diesels as it's a company car. I've got the choice of the 2.0tdi too. Will the 1.4 struggle when fully loaded? I like the torque in diesels
 
TheCarMadDad said:
I'm not really worried about recouping the cost of diesels as it's a company car. I've got the choice of the 2.0tdi too. Will the 1.4 struggle when fully loaded? I like the torque in diesels
Click to expand...

Go 2.0tdi IMHO . Superb torque excellent economy!
 
If you only do short journeys, ever, then that is bad for Diesel engines. But since it's a company car that probably isn't top of your list of factors.
 
If the choice were between the 1.6 TDi and the 1.4 Cod it would be the petrol for me every time as i drive much less than 12K a year. Only had mine for a few days but I have not found it lacking in any way. I have been throwing it around A roads mostly though, it has plenty enough grunt for passing on those types of roads but i have not done much dual carriage way or motorway driving so cannot comment on how much of that power is left at the top of the gearbox. It also whisper quite until you push it, and when you push it there is a pretty nice engine note for a 1.4.

That said if the 2.0 Tdi is an option I suspect that it would provide a lot more torquey fun.

Edit: MPG wise i am getting around 43 to 50mpg on the A road runs and 30 to 40mpg on urban roads depending on whether i disable Auto Start Stop or not.
 
Your mileage doesn't justify purchasing a diesel at all, get the 1.4 140pd COD engine as it is a cracker...
 
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I had the same choice

I test drove both on the same day and I found the 1.4 COD a little less planted on the road than the diesel , performance wise the 2.0 TDI is superb

The 1.4 is very quiet but I'm going for the diesel and I do under 10,000 miles and mine will be a company car
 
TheCarMadDad said:
£1.50 difference for the 1.4 cod or 2.0tdi both s line
Click to expand...
The petrol will be smoother to drive.

S-line, is that 18 inch alloys with sports suspension? Hope you like a firm ride. Do you do any long journeys?
 
Daz Auto said:
The petrol will be smoother to drive.

S-line, is that 18 inch alloys with sports suspension? Hope you like a firm ride. Do you do any long journeys?
Click to expand...

I'm going to be deleting the sports suspension for the softer set up. I do a few long journeys a year about 3 hrs long each
 
neil stait said:
I had the same choice

I test drove both on the same day and I found the 1.4 COD a little less planted on the road than the diesel , performance wise the 2.0 TDI is superb

The 1.4 is very quiet but I'm going for the diesel and I do under 10,000 miles and mine will be a company car
Click to expand...

Strange because I found the opposite. As the petrol engine is much lighter I didn't feel that heavy lump in front thus turn in is far sharper...
 
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I suppose it depends what you are used to I have a BMW 118D at the moment

I pulled up at the traffic lights in the petrol and actually had to check the rev counter as it was soo quiet I thought I had stalled
 
Think I'd echo some of the other posters here ... for that mileage, I'd go for a petrol.
 
be aware most modern cars are fitted with particulate filters to keep the emisions down.if your only doing short trips i.e 20 miles, the engine doesn't get chance to warm up and you run the risk of automatic regeneration not happening, as it should.you could end up with a vehicle that cuts out and won't start.modern diesels are efficient but for short journeys ... I would suggest petrol is the way to go.
 
Your 20 mile commute is similiar to mine (11.5 miles each way).

I had an A1 1.6 TDI and was getting weekly DPF regens. Got rather annoying hence I chose the 1.4 CoD and I am loving mine.

MPG is ok too, averaging 44 mpg @ 13.4p per mile compared to 57 mpg @ 10.9p per mile on the A1 1.6 TDI (according to Fuelly)
 
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cuke2u said:
Strange because I found the opposite. As the petrol engine is much lighter I didn't feel that heavy lump in front thus turn in is far sharper...
Click to expand...

+1

Though the planted feeling probably comes from the extra diesel weight. I guess it is just personal preference.
 
TheCarMadDad said:
Hi guys,

I'm beginning to think I've made the wrong engine choice when I ordered my A3 Sportback. I went for the 1.6tdi in S Line trim. Problem is, the more I look at reviews the more I think I should've chosen the 1.4TFSI 140. It seems to be a cracking little engine with performance that would put some bigger cars to shame! I only do a 20 mile daily commute 4 days a week so I don't do massive mileage, less than 10k a year.

So, do I call up the company car people and see if I can change engine or do I go with what I originally ordered?!?! Also, am I right in thinking that the 1.4TFSI would have the better multilink rear suspension set up? (not that I would probably notice).

Lastly what do current owners of this engine think of its performance/fuel economy?

cheers
Click to expand...

I came from 6 years of 1.6 petrol engines to the 1.6TDi. I haven't driven a huge variety of engines, but overall I am impressed with the 1.6 engine itself. Its pull is impressive for its size, particularly in sport mode, and it never runs out of ideas at most speeds. It certainly feels faster than it actually is, and the pokey engine combined with the quality of the car reassures you that you are in premium quality car.

Fuel economy seems excellent to me, although you only notice the true benefit on long motorway drives (in some instances I have done 300 miles on £35, in comparion to the £60-70 in my petrols).

Of course, I will always miss the smooth quiet feel of the petrol, and if my 1.6 petrols had been turbo charged, this would have been a different story. But overall, I think its a great car and engine combination and I wouldn't worry.
 
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Oh and just to add, the only thing that gets to me a little is the DPF regens. It happens probably 1-2 times a week as I do mostly city driving. I sometimes find it a bit embarrassing pulling up at a shopping centre and getting out when my car fan sounds like a jet engine... people who don't know what DPF regen is just look at my car and think, that new A3 is knackered!
 
I've had that a couple of times, but mostly not noticed the regens (other than stop/start being disabled all of a sudden).
 
My existing Audi has the 1.4TFSI and I find it great. Decent mpg and for the miles I do (c. 6,500 per year) the diesel is not worth it. Currently pricing up a new company car and was going for the same engine but I've just noticed that they have priced up the 1.4TFSI 140.
 
The 1.4 sounds like a great engine and I definitely would have considered it myself, but I do ~18k miles a year and also tow glider trailers occasionally so the diesel made far more sense for my situation. If I was doing your mileage and had no particular towing requirements though I'd definitely have considered the 1.4 (though the COD version wasn't available when I ordered I think)
 
neil stait said:
I had the same choice

I test drove both on the same day and I found the 1.4 COD a little less planted on the road than the diesel , performance wise the 2.0 TDI is superb

The 1.4 is very quiet but I'm going for the diesel and I do under 10,000 miles and mine will be a company car
Click to expand...

Most people seem to compare pertol and diesel based on fuel consumption and forget about torque.....I went from 1.4TFSI to 2.0TDI purely based on the additional torque and in-gear acceleration and was not concerned about DPF (typical commute is 10 miles) or economy (however you calculate it).
 
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Hi, but the torque of the petrol engines that have forced induction and direct injection is far higher than petrol engines of old. If you look at the 1.4 petrol it has the same torque as the 1.6 diesel and it comes in at the same rpm...
 
cuke2u said:
Hi, but the torque of the petrol engines that have forced induction and direct injection is far higher than petrol engines of old. If you look at the 1.4 petrol it has the same torque as the 1.6 diesel and it comes in at the same rpm...
Click to expand...

Good point, OP was refencing v 1.6TDI and I was comparing to 2.0TDI
 
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In a loaner 1.6TDI I found that I was changing gear more often as there was limited in-gear pull, especially up hills, as compared to the 2.0TDI. 1.6 was noticeably quieter though.

Whilst the 1.6TDI has the older torsion beam rear suspension, I think most people would struggle to notice it in everyday driving.

However, to the OP's point: engine is personal preference so suggest testing others as soon as possible as the wrong choice would remind you of that on almost every journey.

Petrol vs diesel has been covered here already and nothing else to add on that.

John.
 
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