1.8 turbo or 1.8 turbo quattro

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Kevan Young

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Hi folks i'm Kevan and i'm new to the site. I am currently looking to buy a an a3 in either 1.8 turbo sport, 1.8 turbo quattro form and possibly a 1.9tdi (130). I would appreciate it if you all could give me your thoughts on living with any of these cars on a day to day basis, reliability, running costs etc. Look forward to reading your reply's and hopefully ill be a bit clearer on what i want. :)
 
A lot of it depends where you live, IE town or country and what you want out of the car, IMO a 1.8t sport is the best 8L model there is (even better than an S3.) But that's because it ticks all the boxes for me.

If you live out in the sticks and will be blasting about on muddy roads then have a look at the TQS, I'd steer clear of the diesel myself because for the MPG you can get out of a 1.8t it just isn't worth it IMO.

All 1.8t models are easy to live with daily, they are very easy to drive and the FWD cars return good MPG. (I've seen 50+mpg over 200 miles with 240BHP mods)

There are two engines, AUM and AGU. AUM comes in the later facelift cars and have electronic throttle control (for identification, otherwise there is a tab on the head) and a better turbo (K03s), the K03s on the AUMs is capable of 240BHP+ in the right hands and with supporting modifications. The management on an AUM is better and the car has many more sensors and generally runs a little bit cleaner.

The AGU IMO is a better engine for tuning and power mind you, with stronger internals and being built at a time when Audi weren't cost cutting. It does however come with a much more basic ECU/Management and a rubbish turbo for anything but a standard car. A K03s can be put on an AGU very easily if you are looking to modify though.

You can get facelift or pre facelift body/interiors too, have a quick search on google and you will see what I mean. Facelift cars have different door handles, one piece front lights, redesigned rear lights, fog lights in the lower bumper, a different boot trim and a totally redesigned interior. Personally, I hate the facelift interior and they always have broken/scratched trim. Facelift cars are from late 2000 on, but Audi were doing some weird things at that time and there are some right old mash ups out there which are part facelift part pre facelift/registered later or earlier.

They are properly good cars though, really well built and if you want to start modifying and playing then there are very few "modern" cars which offer as much potential as an A3. Why are you looking at getting an A3 then? What do you like about them?
 
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All though I own an S3 now I actually agree with 16Klappe. . . The S3 is nice to have, mainly cos the badge on the back, the styling and little things like the interior make it more prestigious but I think i preferred my old 1.8t as an everyday car. They're a fair bit lighter, pretty much just as tunable, return better MG's and drive just as well on dry/normal roads. Also a fair bit cheaper than an S3, especially on the ol' insurance!

If you spend a bit of time lookin about I'm sure you'll find just the spec you're looking for! dolphin grey, recaro leather... what is all about if you ask me! And IMO i wouldn't even bother looking at a pre-facelift unless it really comes down to price.

I also agree with 16Klappe about the AGU being an all round better engine although, unless you're looking for pig power (and have deep pockets), I would go for the AUM lump as you wont have to spend as much money on it to get it to a similar power level as the AGU i.e wont have to **** about looking for a K03s turbo etc. Unless you're doing a big turbo swap an AUM lump will take what ever you can throw at it with the standard K03s turbo.

good luck and have fun car shopping! it's one of my favourite past times!
 
just realised i slightly missed the point here, do'h! . . either way i'd still go for a 1.8t over a 1.8t quattro. The pro's of quattro will be largely outweighed by the cons unless you live up a constantly snowy mountain or are going for big power.
 
Don has a turbo Quattro and after seeing his perform id have a tqs over an s3 and a3
As they are heavier than an A3 but lighter than the s3
He has a gt28 on his I think
I witnessed him do the 1/4 mile in 12.6 at Santa pod in October
 
AARON77 said:
Don has a turbo Quattro and after seeing his perform id have a tqs over an s3 and a3
As they are heavier than an A3 but lighter than the s3
He has a gt28 on his I think
I witnessed him do the 1/4 mile in 12.6 at Santa pod in October
Click to expand...

That's pretty much my point. . . He sees the advantage cos of his expensive BIG POWER t28 swap. And to be fair, his interior is pretty much completely stripped out and he has an engine from a TT anyway! The quattro would only be lighter than a S3 due to things like electric seats, once stripped they'd weigh pretty much exactly the same.

None the less, an awesome motor... the way that things launches is nothing short of comical!

For everyday stage1 or 2 tuning i'd still go for the 1.8t
 
16Klappe said:
I'd steer clear of the diesel myself because for the MPG you can get out of a 1.8t it just isn't worth it IMO.
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A TDI130 will do 40mpg all day long, and a realistic 55mpg+ on the long run, and I'm sure if you was to drive the same way as you do i your 1.8T to get 50mpg, the TDI will see 60mpg, so what exactly are you basing your facts on Jarrod? 1.8T drivers love to drive slow and TDI love to drive quick perhaps?? :moa:

All 1.8t models are easy to live with daily, they are very easy to drive and the FWD cars return good MPG. (I've seen 50+mpg over 200 miles with 240BHP mods)
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Be realistic Jarrod.

I'd love to see how many other members that have 'seen' 50mpg out of their 1.8Ts, but maybe that's the keyword here, 'seen'! I've 'seen' 99mpg+ on my S3 running 270bhp, I would have taken a pic of it for you, but my DIS display is knackered.

You also forgot to mention that your car has been lightened somewhat? So why is all your answers based on your fine modified A3??
 
I reckon my S3 costs about a fiver more a week than my 1.8t sport, and I thought my A3 was pretty good on fuel, that makes the s3 not bad either.....!!
Seriously though unless you are going big power or need the quattro then get a fwd, you'll get a nicer lower milage one for the same price or one the same milage/condition but cheaper......
In fact I've got one spare at the moment!!!!!!
 
jojo said:
I'd love to see how many other members that have 'seen' 50mpg out of their 1.8Ts
Click to expand...

Occasionally (in my old stage2 1.8t) I'd take a long slow careful crawl up the motorway (mainly when collecting parts and stuff), i'd reset the display as i join the motorway and I would regularly see an AVERAGE of 50+ mpgs on my display for the whole journey there and back. . . That's actual average not just the "how many you're doing now" thing other wise we could all just cruise down hills and claim our cars use no fuel!
 
50mpg out of a 1.8t................. yea doing 55 mph on the motorway, a 130 tdi will get 55mpg doing 90 - 100 mph, in town around 45mpg compare to a 1.8t's 25-30mpg, there's no if or buts, the diesel is MUCH better on fuel and a remap will make it even more economical

a remap on the 130 will get you around 180 bhp with around 280lb ft torque, which will see off the 1.8t a3 in standard form easily in terms of performance and real road driving

the diesel is the better buy imo, cheaper to run and service, no coil pack problems or sparks to look after

as for the tqs, depends whether you want a REACTIVE 4x4 system or not? i am not a huge fan of it, but it does work much better than fwd cars, pitty they don't do quattro diesel 8l, or do they?
 
My car hasnt been lightened at all?! My car has full leathers! When I went home for Christmas, rolling along the A303 at 70 I averaged 39.2mph on the way back, and got just over 365 miles from the tank. My highest MPG average was 53.2 from Basingstoke to Plymouth at 58mph.

And how can you possibly compare a modified soot chucker to a standard 1.8t? The modified soot chucker wouldnt be any better on fuel than a modified 1.8t.

You say the Haldex works better than FWD but not in any context. Yes, Haldex works better than FWD for a hard launch, if you can't drive, or in the mud and snow, but IMO for daily driving it is in FWD mode 90% of the time dragging its **** along behind it! If the OP lives in a town, or does a lot of motorway driving then FWD is by far his best choice. If he doesn't it is still debatable, bearing in mind we arent talking about an S3 here, we are talking about two cars with the same power and engine, one with Haldex and one without.

Lets please not turn this into another "FWD is ****, well Haldex is for gays" thread, because I would hate to embarass anybody in front of a newbie and it just isnt relevent to the question asked.
 
jojo said:
Seriously?! You have a full interior as it came from the factory?
Click to expand...

Yup, full heated leathers, always carry a spare. 100% totally standard interior. Apart from at ADI where I removed the spare and the rear bench.
 
16Klappe said:
My car hasnt been lightened at all?! My car has full leathers! When I went home for Christmas, rolling along the A303 at 70 I averaged 39.2mph on the way back, and got just over 365 miles from the tank. My highest MPG average was 53.2 from Basingstoke to Plymouth at 58mph.

And how can you possibly compare a modified soot chucker to a standard 1.8t? The modified soot chucker wouldnt be any better on fuel than a modified 1.8t.

You say the Haldex works better than FWD but not in any context. Yes, Haldex works better than FWD for a hard launch, if you can't drive, or in the mud and snow, but IMO for daily driving it is in FWD mode 90% of the time dragging its **** along behind it! If the OP lives in a town, or does a lot of motorway driving then FWD is by far his best choice. If he doesn't it is still debatable, bearing in mind we arent talking about an S3 here, we are talking about two cars with the same power and engine, one with Haldex and one without.

Lets please not turn this into another "FWD is ****, well Haldex is for gays" thread, because I would hate to embarass anybody in front of a newbie and it just isnt relevent to the question asked.
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mate, sorry, but you chat ****, a diesel is more economical, i can not believe you are so naive

you go on about getting 50mpg yet only manage to get 365 miles from a tank ?? for your information i've had over 500 miles from a single tank before out of my s3, and that works out at around 41 mpg, if you get 50mpg out of your a3 it should have a tank range of about 625 miles, which is clearly doesn't, so stop making things up !

and what about the rear wheels on a fwd car, they are dragging their **** along too, no one has mentioned launching, day to day driving most people would prefer an awd over a fwd, we live in england, where it rains and over the last 2 years it's snowed quite heavy, my mates a3 could not move up certain hills, my s3 could, in fact i picked him up once when he abandoned his car, i;d rather have a car that works in all conditions thanks

i suppose you think your fwd is a better than a quattro system too?!
 
homer_eating_popcorn.jpg
 
I'd go for the diesel, iv got mates who see 60+ mpg from them on runs and over 40 when hoofing it or town driving. They don't even cost much. If its economy your after... Diesel is the only way.
 
and here's the maths

a3 8l has a 55 litre tank, 4.54 litres of fuel in a gallon, so at 50mpg that's around 11mpl, so with a 55 litre tank doing 11mpl you'd get 605 miles out of a tank

with a tank range of 365 miles on 55 litres of fuel, you were getting 6.6mpl, so lets turn that into mpg and you get 30mpg

so how did this 50 mpg come about?

my s3 managed 515 miles from its 62 litre tank, 37mpg

so, mr know it all, it appears even when you drive like a saint, your "sorted a3" still has worse economy than a mapped s3 LOLOL


brialliant!!!
 
Ahh, heaven...Honestly, it's like you are banned again!

396391_10150653121710130_709735129_11967604_94863682_n.jpg


When somebody tells me you have removed your head from your **** and have an informed opinion I might think about unblocking your posts.
 
I think we've had this before, the 1.8T is NOT anywhere near as economical as the 1.9 disease-all, and thats based on forum member feedback of their own cars - or you can listen to Jardo who always knows more.

As for 4WD vs. FWD that again is down to personal preference, but I do see the benefit in having it in everyday driving.
 
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Tahoma, Calibri, Geneva, sans-serif]Granted,the mapped diesel will be more economical than a mapped 1.8t but thefact remains they still can't really be compared. The 1.8t willalways out perform, power is much more usable throughout the revrange and is a much more entertaining/rewarding engine regardless of the level of tune. Unless you really really want those extra MPGs, Irecommend the 1.8t[/FONT]


[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Tahoma, Calibri, Geneva, sans-serif]Yes,the rear wheels of a FWD car are still dragging but they don’t havethe drag of the drive shafts, diff etc and not to mention theadditional weight of the haldex system it's self (roughly 150 kg's Ibelieve!?) it all adds up![/FONT]


[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Tahoma, Calibri, Geneva, sans-serif]Atthe end of the day it really depends on what you want your car forKevan. I'm sure you now have more than enough info/opinions to makeyour own descision!

Good luck[/FONT]
 
Welly said:
homer_eating_popcorn.jpg
Click to expand...

I like that lol!!

This is just my bit on mpg.. I've had a mk4 Golf GTTDI 150 ARL in standard form & I got 52+/- mpg on a long run & 46+/- around town once I had it mapped I got 58+/- on a run & 50+/- around town & it was quick ;)

Now since my S3 broke I've got myself a mk4 Golf GTi turbo 150 AGU as my daily, which was slow in standard form & I had it mapped with in days lol.
Now saturday just gone I pop up to Badger5 in the Golf I got 34+/- mpg doing no more than 75mph all the way up & back.

So, I know they are not A3's but they are the same model.
Just my findings on mpg, but at the end of it I'd have petrol over diesel ;)

Pat
 
I can, have, will and do jump in my car and get 50mpg+. I wouldnt struggle to average 40mpg+ over a few hundred miles of A road. Getting 50+ was a ball ache and was far from easy, but it is possible. Its not an opinion, it is fact! A healthy 1.8t driven appropriatly will get 50+ MPG over a 120 mile A road run at just over 55 mph average.

In reality for average joe 40mpg is a good and not to difficult figure to go for if driving eco.

Every tuned 1.9TDI I have been in has given between 40 and 50MPG when on an A road at a reasonable speed. So I would say they aren't too far apart when modified. Standard, there is no contest.
 
Prawn said:
I'm with Wellyboots on this one, Pass the popcorn!
Click to expand...

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Tahoma, Calibri, Geneva, sans-serif]Awwwwwwwwwprawn... I'm not gonna lie, I was a little excited to see you hadposted here and was looking forward to what you had to say on the subject... butyou're probably right, best just sit on the fence!

Any of thatpopcorn goin spare?[/FONT]
 
Ill bet poor Kevan wishes he never asked that question! I cant really believe its actually a debate - amazing......

Anymore popcorn going spare? :happy:
 
LOL this 16klappe needs to go and work for a car manufacturer, imagine the extra cash they'd make if their performance petrol cars were more fuel efficient than their diesels !
 
VAG-Slag said:
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Tahoma, Calibri, Geneva, sans-serif]Awwwwwwwwwprawn... I'm not gonna lie, I was a little excited to see you hadposted here and was looking forward to what you had to say on the subject... butyou're probably right, best just sit on the fence!

Any of thatpopcorn goin spare?[/FONT]
Click to expand...

Prawn disagrees with me, he says that driving eco takes up all his brain power.

My point is that regardless of figures a 1.8t can be made to return such a good MPG for its power and size that the need for a TDI is negated.

Oh, and if you are penny pinching over MPG then maybe an Audi isnt for you...lol!
 
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I reckon the only reason your 1.8T is so economical Jardo is because of the weight savings you manage to achieve by just having fresh air in that gap in your head.
 
beanoir said:
I reckon the only reason your 1.8T is so economical Jardo is because of the weight savings you manage to achieve by just having fresh air in that gap in your head.
Click to expand...

A bit excessive don't you think?
 
Sod this, I'm chopping in the TDI for a 1.8T. Reckon I'll save a bundle on fuel costs:)
 
16Klappe said:
Prawn disagrees with me, he says that driving eco takes up all his brain power.

My point is that regardless of figures a 1.8t can be made to return such a good MPG for its power and size that the need for a TDI is negated.

Oh, and if you are penny pinching over MPG then maybe an Audi isnt for you...lol!
Click to expand...

Ha ha! so true, driving economically actually takes up way more concentration than just blasting it everywhere and you have to concentrate for twice as long!

And although you've made some bold statements about some figures those last two lines sum it up nicely... Now back to sitting on the fence for me! you guys feel free to continue, it makes good reading
 
TDIQ said:
They do, 45mpg booting it on A roads so not as economical as the 50mpg 1.8t green machine :slapped:
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then the OP should get a tdiq and spend £200 on a remap and be done with it!!!
 
audi upgrades
You guys are such **** takers sometimes, take what I said in the context it was said and there is nothing wrong with it. Turn it inside out and put it out of context and I can see your point. Bearing in mind my first post was answering a legitamate question from the OP in a factual, well thought out and helpful way, Joe comes along telling me to get real about the MPG my car HAS achieved and picking holes about my car (epic moderation skills there Joe, hats off) and then the voltures descend. There's no need for it.

You want my advice on which one to buy? Go but a Seat Leon FR or something, because they map up well, are newer, give good MPG and performance. And you won't have to put up with stuff like this on Audi forums!
 
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colicabcadam said:
and here's the maths

a3 8l has a 55 litre tank, 4.54 litres of fuel in a gallon, so at 50mpg that's around 11mpl, so with a 55 litre tank doing 11mpl you'd get 605 miles out of a tank

with a tank range of 365 miles on 55 litres of fuel, you were getting 6.6mpl, so lets turn that into mpg and you get 30mpg

so how did this 50 mpg come about?

my s3 managed 515 miles from its 62 litre tank, 37mpg

so, mr know it all, it appears even when you drive like a saint, your "sorted a3" still has worse economy than a mapped s3 LOLOL


brialliant!!!
Click to expand...

Lmao- loved that post.
 
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