A3 8V 1.8T SportBack S-Tronic mini Review & tips

[JohnM100]

Here is my A3 SportBack S-Line 1.8T S-Tronic mini review having now racked up some miles. I haven’t listed every feature or option, but observations and comments on those features and quirks that have jumped out at me in the early days that may help others.

Build quality: Amazing. Great attention to design detail.

Drive Select: Great concept to adapt power and responsiveness. If you ever need full power, just press the accelerator to the floor (past the initial resistance till you hear a click) and it’ll put you straight into Dynamic mode for max performance regardless of the mode you are currently in. On S-Tronic the coasting function which keeps the engine running but disengages the clutch when off-throttle is superb but sadly its only available in Efficiency mode (though wouldn’t expect it in Dynamic). If you are coasting and need engine braking, just touch either the brake pedal or the down-shift gear paddle and it re-engages smoothly. I don’t plan to use Efficiency mode as my default, so a great feature will be lost.

1.8TFSI S-Tronic and “awful lag” at junctions [separate thread with that title]. I have noticed this but workaround is to just touch the accelerator first before pressing to proceed. If you know you will need to come out of a junction quickly then there is less lag if handbrake released manually first. In other situations, S-Tronic is smooooth. Manual flappy paddle mode – just getting into this but nice that it does still change down itself to prevent you coming into a junction in 7[SUP]th[/SUP] gear if you forget to do it yourself.

Stop/Start: Still spooks me. A bit concerned with S-Tronic as engine starts on accelerator pedal pressure (rather than clutch on manual box) so starter motor then power in less than 1 second. Workaround is when engine stopped, just touch the accelerator pedal momentarily a couple of seconds before you need power so the engine starts without releasing the handbrake, allowing smoother pull-away when you are ready.

Hold Assist: Brilliant, Simply Brilliant. No need to use the handbrake buttons ever again! However, it and the electronic handbrake do get really upset if your seatbelt isn’t on and they refuse to release automatically in protest. Oh, and expect the car behind you in the queue to get a bit narked as your brake lights stay on when it is working.

Fuel gauge & tank. I expect some data smoothing but only time will tell how accurate it is. One quirk is that it has a habit of dropping an LED between switch-off and switch-on. I would never expect advertised mpg and knew what I was getting into, but c’mon – a 1.8T would benefit from a 55L tank like the 1.8T Quattro (which manages it and also has a rear diff to accommodate). Even with a 55L tank those S3 300PS speed demons won’t be getting far between fill-ups……..

Tyres & Tyre noise: Continental 225/40/18: Extremely dependent upon road surface. On a good surface as smooth as glass they are extremely quiet, but get on harder/more abrasive UK tarmac or concrete and it is really intrusive at motorway speeds as documented elsewhere. Perhaps this is just a consequence of the engine and wind noise being so well controlled in the car. GALA needs to be set close to max to cover the increased tyre roar at speed. Tyre pressures are correct. Really hoping next tyres will be the just launched quieter Contis with damping foam or something else, but grip level in the wet will be the primary purchasing decision.

Ride: Sport suspension forgiving in places but firm in others. Now I have racked up more miles, I think I would have preferred S-Line sports suspension given the seats used (see seats review below) even with UK pot-holed roads.

Sport Seats in S-line: They aren’t really Sports seats as they have only token additional bulking in the side bolsters and overall seem a little bouncy for sports seats. They are supportive but certainly don’t hold you in as sports seats should. I don’t have a major issue with the comfort or design, but the Sports label is overstating it a bit compared with Sports seats I have had on other cars (including Audis).

Electric Lumbar support: Took me a while to set this up as it adjusts for height of bulge as well as degree of bulge. Great that it is height adjustable.

Foot rest for left foot (S-Tronic). Seems to be juuust too far forward for me, and I can’t seem to adjust my driving position so my foot naturally rests on it; I always seem to have some pressure on it. Could do with being recessed an inch or two further into the footwell compared with the pedals. Will continue to try to refine my driving position to improve this. Got to fit my Ali pedal caps soon and that may help too. Great that the pedals are not off-set compared with the seat (A5 & A4 – very noticeable).

Xenon Adaptive lights: Brilliant and the cornering side to side adaptation is a little spooky to start with, but after 5 mins driving a car without it, I really noticed its absence and missed it.

Cornering light (single fog light): Why does that need to still come on at such high speeds given that the light comes out sideways? Surely limiting it to 10mph and for sharp bends & junctions (or indicators) is sufficient. If you need the benefit of that light at that angle and speed to go around a corner with significant steering angle then you also need a g-suit. Nice idea but I’ll stick with the adaptive Xenons that steer with the car thanks (if I can ever work out how to switch the cornering fog lights off).

MMI [Non-Tech Pack but with DAB]: Works well but still learning the menus. May be user error but random/shuffle from SD card source seems to shuffle from all tracks on the card, not just current folder. When listening to a DAB station, it never remembers the DAB “additional text” option which is a pain. AMI & iPhone integration – Brilliant. One feature that I miss is TP Memo that can be preset to record traffic bulletins whilst driving or at set times, even if the car is switched off. It was listed in the 8V brochures up to MY14 v3.2 July-2013 but disappeared in brochure v4.0 Aug-2013 and isn’t on the car itself.

Audi Sound System: Bought this option blind and plenty for me - far better than any car music system I have had before..

Front seat storage/cubby holes. A bit limited. Under the armrest or a shallow one under (only) the drivers seat and yes I have the Storage pack as part of S-Line trim. I don’t have storage compartment under the front passenger seat (maybe that’s available in SE only?) – anyone? Glove box is OK but as it also holds the MMI electronics, then has less space than it looks when open.

Black Upholstery / Black headlining: The Brochure emphasises the black headlining, but its actually all dark grey and absolutely fine. Nowhere near as dark as they seem.

Folding/dipping mirrors: A really nice evolution of the function, especially when reversing. Also helps my OCD/ new car neurosis confirming the car is locked as have set them to fold when locked.

Oil dipstick. A welcome return to the metal design dipsticks and dipstick tube. Previous Audi owners will know the past issues with the crumbling yellow/orange plastic dipsticks and tubes. Note: it does have to be “clicked home” to seat properly.

Oh, and given the behaviour of other drivers on the road, mine seems to have a big (but invisible to me) sticker on the back that says “race me”. Anyone else noticed this?

Some minor quirks and still things for me to adapt to but overall extremely pleased with it.

John.

 

[Casey87]

Very good review there, although we have only owned our 1.8TFSi Manual a week i would say your reveiww is spot on.

I have had a few 'races' since owning it and its done us proud so far.

Regarding the S Line suspension havign only driven our model with the S Line fitted i can say its not as hard as some of the online reveiews ive read and i am glad that it came fitted.

As our car does not have the optional hold assist i was going to enquire if this could be retro fitted. Ours will hold for a brief moment when on a hill to disengage the handbrake and to get onto the accelerator but could do with holding for a longer time if possible, i take it this is were the hold assist comes into play ?

 

[Daveotto]

Oh, and given the behaviour of other drivers on the road, mine seems to have a big (but invisible to me) sticker on the back that says “race me”. Anyone else noticed this?

Great review, and yes constantly get people who want to race/tailgate but more annoying are the rubber neckers who pull alongside on dual carraigeways/motorways not to challenge for a race but to look the car over

 

[Casey87]

It really is a good looking car the A3 especially in Sportback & S-Line trim

I saw a guy at the lights in a TT, i think it was a new TDI S-line and as we pulled away from the lights i turned right and for the next few seconds i could see him rubber necking at the car as we drove away.

As there arent many on the roads (atm) it stands out as a very nice car, i think our neighbours are all pretty jelous too :icon_thumright:

 

[JohnM100]

As our car does not have the optional hold assist i was going to enquire if this could be retro fitted. Ours will hold for a brief moment when on a hill to disengage the handbrake and to get onto the accelerator but could do with holding for a longer time if possible, i take it this is were the hold assist comes into play ?

Casey,

No idea if it can be retrofitted but user NHN on here is the person to contact about that.

There are many threads on here about Hold Assist but search for one by hittchy for the best one.

Think of it as extending the 3 seconds to 'as long as you need' and you can take your foot off the brake pedal straight away & it just sits there. Also no need to apply handbrake manually or release it ever - even at start or end of journey, including on hills.

John.

 

[Casey87]

^Thanks John, ill have a search for NHN and ask him, does he work for Audi or just a general guru on the Audis ?

 

[NHN]

Hill hold would be subject to number of things, abs controller & coding abilities spring to mind.

 

[driver_tim]

I don’t have storage compartment under the front passenger seat (maybe that’s available in SE only?) – anyone?

As I understand it if you have the Audi or B&O upgraded sound systems the passenger side storage box is deleted because the amplifier takes up the space required.

 

[97catalunya]

As I understand it if you have the Audi or B&O upgraded sound systems the passenger side storage box is deleted because the amplifier takes up the space required.

Yeah I have an S-Line with B&O and no storage under passenger seat due to amp. Storage under the drivers seat is for the first aid kit, very snug fit

 

[driver_tim]

Yeah I have an S-Line with B&O and no storage under passenger seat due to amp. Storage under the drivers seat is for the first aid kit, very snug fit

Same with me. I have to say that lack of interior storage is one of my gripes with the A3. The other one being no foot rest on the right hand side, which makes the cruise control a bit less useful!

 

[cemerson]

Cornering light (single fog light)

It's not the fog light on the A3, it's a separate lamp in the headlight cluster for the static cornering light

Also, the MMI shuffle thing got me for a while. When you are selecting songs normally, pressing the MMI controller will select the song out of the whole list on the card rather than just that folder, so then if you use shuffle it will shuffle the whole card. If when browsing by folder though, you press the top left button instead to select either a folder or a track, it'll only load tracks in the same folder ('folder repeat mode'), and an icon will appear at the top of the screen showing that, and shuffle will work only on those tracks.

My first aid kit isn't under the drivers seat... is this the proper place for it? Mine is under the boot floor in one of the corners next to the spare wheel!

 

[97catalunya]

Nice review Johnny. I agree with most things, just a couple of things I would like to add.

1.8 S-Tronic lag:
Yes it is there but I have got used to working around it too, my conclusion is the lag is due to how early the car changes from 1st into 2nd, at around 1000-1500rpm, this occurs just as your pulling away. If it happens in a straight line you don't notice it but if joining traffic at a T junction or roundabout it can be a little unnerving. So when in this situation I tend to just drop the gearbox into "sport" and the lag is gone entirely.
Because of hold assist causing the start stop to start the car on touching the throttle not releasing the break my work around is this. Pulling away in a straight line no problem, but again when joining traffic from a stand still I just preempt that I'm about to move so I depress the break and this will restart the car in readiness to move.

Now I have learned to do this I don't notice the lag at all, but my Mrs who doesn't drive it very often still notices it as she hasn't adapted her driving style.

Sports Seats:
The seats I find very comfortable and I suffer with back problems ok they don't grip you as much as the seats in my Subaru but at least you can move about a little and not locked in one position on a long journey.

Tech Pack:
I have the tech pack and think it is excellent, the media player app on my iphone seems to have settled down and works flawlessly on the WiFi hotspot. However I do wish I had opted for Audi Connect.

B&O:
In a word "Awsome!"
Very clean and crisp sound well balanced with lots of punch.

Advanced Key:
Works really well, I like the way it folds the mirrors on locking great visual reminder but wish they unfolded on unlocking too. Only problem I find now is walking up to my front door and try the handle then remember "oh yeah I need to put the key in" how quaint lol.

In summery I love it! Great car great engine great gearbox

 

[97catalunya]

My first aid kit isn't under the drivers seat... is this the proper place for it? Mine is under the boot floor in one of the corners next to the spare wheel!

Oh is that where it is supposed to live? I thought I read somewhere it was supposed to go under the seat, it's such a made to measure fit! (It was just chucked in the boot when I collected the car)

 

[Daveotto]

My first aid kit isn't under the drivers seat... is this the proper place for it? Mine is under the boot floor in one of the corners next to the spare wheel!

My first aid kit is also under the boot floor, to be honest I have not even opened it to see whats included, and use the freed up space for a couple of cleaning/valeting cloths. I have left the high vis vests in the rear under seat storage compartment, mainy as I need to have them in the main cabin as that is a leagal requirement when driving in France.

I aree in general that storage space in the main cabin is a little limited but as I keep the interior very clean and tidy this is not a big issue for me and more thna blanced by the raised boot floor which gives a great space for hiding away other bits and pieces

 

[97catalunya]

Same with me. I have to say that lack of interior storage is one of my gripes with the A3. The other one being no foot rest on the right hand side, which makes the cruise control a bit less useful!

Yeah I think the car could do with more cubbies, it's lacking things like sunglasses holders etc.
As for right hand foot rest I have never had one before, even on cars with cruise control but makes sense.

 

[disco82]

I have the 1.8 sline with the stronic box am intrigued by the talk of handbrakes on hills. I don’t have hold assist and when on a hill I tend to just sit on the footbrake and then move to the accelerator to pull away and never roll back.

Never used the handbrake on a hill am I going to roll into someone one day!

I don’t notice the lag mainly owing to my last car being a 1.2 clio!

My only bug bears with this fantastic car are the following (perhaps these can be fixed with settings I don't know about!)

1. Why can you default the central console screen to stay down!
2. Hate the fact that the auto stop start warning covers the clock. I am most likely to look at the clock when stopped!

 

[disco82]

3. Oh and the auto rain sensor wiper setting is worse that useless!!! It doesn't come on when it rains and randomly comes on when it is bone dry!

 

[JohnM100]

Also, the MMI shuffle thing got me for a while. When you are selecting songs normally, pressing the MMI controller will select the song out of the whole list on the card rather than just that folder, so then if you use shuffle it will shuffle the whole card. If when browsing by folder though, you press the top left button instead to select either a folder or a track, it'll only load tracks in the same folder ('folder repeat mode'), and an icon will appear at the top of the screen showing that, and shuffle will work only on those tracks.

Thanks cemerson. Mine is not tech pack so is a little different bit I did find it eventually.

Non tech pack systems don't have a function assigned to the top left button at that stage. However you put me in the right direction...

The track vs folder vs whole card shuffle/random repeat can be found as follows:

When playing music from SD source, select settings menu. The list includes a random play tick box which must be checked.
Below that is a menu item called "Retry" (something lost in German translation maybe?? I think they mean "Repeat") and this allows you to select track, folder, card for repeat and then it shows the folder and circular arrow repeat icons at the top of the screen.

I think we have the start of a tutorial for the FAQ thread!

John.

 

[Daveotto]

I think we have the start of a tutorial for the FAQ thread!

great idea and with pictures/screen shots...thanks for volunteering:icon_thumright:

 

[monopole]

Oh, and given the behaviour of other drivers on the road, mine seems to have a big (but invisible to me) sticker on the back that says “race me”. Anyone else noticed this?

John.

Many reasons why I traded in my S3 last month, but 1 was this, like you say.

As much as I enjoyed embarrassing the person driving trying it on, it often led to license losing speeds. 90% of the time you can just ignore them, but occasionally, you know when its time to teach a lesson or two. Just not me any more. I dont care what people may come back with but a car isnt just for getting unwanted attention from macdonald frequenting tards and mercedes/bmw drivers with a complex.

Nice review btw

 

[Daveotto]

I dont care what people may come back with but a car isnt just for getting unwanted attention from macdonald frequenting tards and mercedes/bmw drivers with a complex.

Irrespective of how non PC that statement is - LMAO

Seriously, I am hoping that once the new A3 becomes a more common sight on the roads the amount of attention from boy racer types will go down big time.

 

[monopole]

NVM

 

[disco82]

One of the best features is the auto dim mirror makes these tailgating pests that much less annoying I just ignore them and tootle along. Only time I enjoy the cars relative power is on the open road with no one trying to race me.

 

[JohnM100]

It's not the fog light on the A3, it's a separate lamp in the headlight cluster for the static cornering light

In S-line trim it is the flog light (or bulb in fog light cluster) not main headlight cluster. Just checked.

John.

 

[cemerson]

Fair enough, another bonus of the Xenon light pack on sport then! You can still turn off the static cornering lights with the MMI though I think.

 

[JohnM100]

Thanks for the replies. To follow up on a few things:

Lack of storage compartment under passenger seat - Audi Sound System option explains that. Thanks.

Found my first aid kit in the boot in the tiny compartment where the manual fuel filler cap release, jack and wheel brace live....

S-tronic first gear. Agree totally with 97Catalunya that the 1st to 2nd gear change is involved in the potential lag. I haven't pushed mine from a standing start yet but it seems to use 1st gear pretty much for creep only as even when crawling in traffic it dumps into 2nd almost straight away.

John.

 

[JohnM100]

It's not the fog light on the A3, it's a separate lamp in the headlight cluster for the static cornering light

Just checked again tonight and you are right - its in the headlight cluster. My bad.
John.

 

[STERLING VOID]

Nice Review,

I have mine for almost 3 months, I drive mainly in Eco mode but I do use other modes when feeling a bit generous on weekends. I am however quite naive when it comes to the other drive modes and other aspect and my questions are:

Paddle shift vs tip tronic, when do you use either of them? are the gear changes better then normal auto?
Dynamic Mode, the steering gets tighter and something happens to the gear box, does this matter in the straight line?
Automatic mode, do I rather keep my car in this mode at all times to get the best of both worlds?
On my driver info display, If I have the mode in efficiency, I can change the dial to show something that looks like a digital fuel bar, but that thing is always empty, is this normal?

 

[JohnM100]

Hi Sterling Void.

To cover your questions, my preferences are as follows (but am sure everyone's are different):

Personally I use paddle shift and not the +/- on the gear lever. Sometimes full auto gear changes.

Auto mode (Drive Select) is a good compromise but have you tried customising the Individual setting in the MMI? I prefer the heavier steering, higher revs but slower gear changes combo and can configure that for this setting. I do wish I could add Coasting mode into Individual but sadly not possible as it is available in Efficiency mode only.

One of the difficulties I have found is settling into and knowing how the car will behave in each mode on the same piece of road, for example predicting auto gear changes for going around the same roundabout on a commute each day. Mainly my fault as i keep changing modes from day to day. Staying in one mode would help with that.

The DIS efficiency program with the fuel bar can give you an idea how much additional fuel the heavy duty gadgets are using; mainly aircon and heated rear window. With those off then the gauge shows close to zero.

John.

 

[STERLING VOID]

Hi Sterling Void.

To cover your questions, my preferences are as follows (but am sure everyone's are different):

Personally I use paddle shift and not the +/- on the gear lever. Sometimes full auto gear changes.

Auto mode (Drive Select) is a good compromise but have you tried customising the Individual setting in the MMI? I prefer the heavier steering, higher revs but slower gear changes combo and can configure that for this setting. I do wish I could add Coasting mode into Individual but sadly not possible as it is available in Efficiency mode only.

One of the difficulties I have found is settling into and knowing how the car will behave in each mode on the same piece of road, for example predicting auto gear changes for going around the same roundabout on a commute each day. Mainly my fault as i keep changing modes from day to day. Staying in one mode would help with that.

The DIS efficiency program with the fuel bar can give you an idea how much additional fuel the heavy duty gadgets are using; mainly aircon and heated rear window. With those off then the gauge shows close to zero.

John.

Thanks for the insight Johnny. I too am having difficulty with and only because Jeremy Clarkson mentioned the the whole different driving mode settings on these new cars is just a gimmick. He mentioned that Stig took the new GTI around the track in Eco than is Sports Mode and it made the exact time in both modes. So are we being misguided??

On the fuel bar issue, I don't recall monitoring it with those gadgets on. I will test it again, but something tells me mine does not work. I guess I will have to see..

Also, I started a thread on the centre console arm rest and I didn't get a response, maybe you can help me. I need to understand how do I get it to lock on the higher level? No matter how many times I open and close it, it just does not lock on that level, only sometimes when I am lucky.

 

[BigD289]

Thanks for the insight Johnny. I too am having difficulty with and only because Jeremy Clarkson mentioned the the whole different driving mode settings on these new cars is just a gimmick. He mentioned that Stig took the new GTI around the track in Eco than is Sports Mode and it made the exact time in both modes. So are we being misguided??

I'm not so sure about this - we are talking about the Stig driving so he was probably driving with the accelerator fully depressed on acceleration. If you do this then the car gives you full power anyway, bypassing the Eco mode. It wouldn't surprise me if the lap times were similar.

 

[JohnM100]

An update to this review now that the miles are racking up.

Fuel Gauge.
After some huffing & puffing, I have made peace with with LED bar style fuel gauge.
Tracking some metrics on pump fill volumes and miles vs mpg for a given number of bars, it is pretty damn accurate.
The only limitations being 8bars - 7bars and 2bars - red bar; the former seeming to hold on to 8-bars for too long and 2-bars to red being very short - no surprises there though.
I haven't yet tried to go as far as flashing red bar.
Curiously, Stop/Start seemed to disable itself when low on fuel and thats exactly when you have the greatest need to be economical. Go figure. I can only guess this is to avoid the situation where Start/Stop kicks in at a junction and the fuel level is flagged as too low to allow then engine to restart.

Storage space.
Noted as limited in the original review but starting to get frustrating now. And thats with the Storage pack.

Flat bottomed steering wheel.
Like the look and barely notice the flat part whilst driving, though it is good for giving orientation to the gear change paddles, since they rotate with the steering wheel.

S-Tronic
I don't know whether it is learning my driving style or we are meeting in the middle as I may also adapt to it, but the box seems to be learning not to keep changing up at the first opportunity. After some acceleration followed by accelerator lift off, it leaves in gear for a few seconds at high rpm before changing up. Nice. Also, after using another Drive Select more for a while, it seems to forget these nuances and has to relearn.
Manual mode and kick down switch on WOT. Seems to jump down too may gears and kicks down to a gear sending the revs to the red line without much headroom. Not much power there in mass-production turbocharged engines either so it doesn't accelerate much. Being in Maunal mode it won't then change up itself so you have to do it yourself which results in next gear 5k rpm and LOTS of power. Would make a lot more sense if the kick down switch didn't change down quite as far and instead dumped you nearer 5krpm with some headroom, rather than at the red line. Thats my only big critcism of the S-Tronic box.
It has had the 24AB update and it seems to be better coming out of junctions (though that is apparently not the primary purpose of the update).
I generally drive in manual flappy paddle mode and nudge over to full Auto in long queues or lots of stop-start traffic. Great Combo & also significantly better fuel economy than in full auto mode.
Snow: Not had any yet but only time will tell.

Drive Select
Rarely change Drive Select modes now as I have set up Individual the way I like it.
Would probably only consider Efficiency mode in the snow.

Start/Stop
Can come to a stop on the brakes with just enough pressure for Hold Assist to kick in but not enough to activate Stop/Start. Great if you will only be stationary for a few seconds.

Hold Assist.
Still brilliant; Going back to a car with a mechanical handbrake is tricky now......

Headlight switch.
Still prefer the twist/pull design for the fog lights from previous models. With the new design it is impossible to see the status lights whilst driving.

Ride/Comfort
I don't know whether the suspension is settling down, a change to my driving position (see separate section) or just getting used to it but seems to be less bouncy.
Really looking forward to better weather with dry tarmac and some filled in pot-holes to make the roads feel less like they have fallen victim to a strafing run......

Driving Position including pedal reach.
Finally cracked this one.
Angled the seat base so it tips back more (like a bucket seat) and lowered the seat. More comfortable and less bounce.

Audi Sound System
Better quality and louder than I will ever need in a car. Job done.
Still haven't worked out to get Additional Info/Radio Text to appear by default when selecting a new radio station; either on DAB or FM.

Rattles, creaks and squeaks.
Only the one from the panel under the steering wheel with the knee airbag and along to the headlight switch.
Though I have noticed a slight 'tinkling' from the engine 1500-2500 rpm which sounds like a small twig in the spokes of a bicycle wheel. Nothing stuck in the engine bay and doesn't sound like the 1.4 122 turbo rattle though.

 

[glospete]

What settings do you use for the Individual Mode of Drive Select?

 

[JohnM100]

From memory:

Steering: Dynamic. I like my steering slightly heavier but the amount of steering assistance is speed sensitive so it helps more at slower speeds and parking is not heavy on the steering.

Engine/Gearbox: Auto (which dictates speed of gear changes & engine load for gear changes, as opposed to Automatic vs Manual mode which is dictated by position of the gear lever).

John.