On the brink..........

[steeve]

I'm on the brink of ordering a new A3 sportsback 184 diesel S line.
I've had a test drive and must say I was impressed at how refined the car was.

I'm looking for any comments from owners of similar cars............. push me over the brink!

 

[Schizophonic]

Its awful, stay away from them. Get a Clubman mini instead lol


Whats stopping you from getting this A3? Its the best in its class and if you've read the reviews its all praise. What else would you have gone for?

 

[arad85]

As far as I can see, you're down to 4 cars that are "similar" spec'd:

• Audi A3
• Golf GTD
• Skoda Octavia vRS
• Seat Leon FR

They are all similar as they are all built around the same chassis/engine and are built to the respective marques price points. IMHO, the A3 is the best of the bunch in the cabin and also to look at, but is also the most pricey. I'd go and sit in all 4 before making your decision (I've done this in the past 2 weeks) ergonomically and then test drive any you feel fit. Of the 4, I have driven an Audi 184 quattro and Skoda vRS (although the petrol engined version). Given I don't fit in the cabin of the Golf and find the Leon too much of a squeeze, my preference would be Audi, Seat (in terms of trim, not driven it), Skoda and then fit the Golf in where you feel it is right - I'm unable to form an opinion as I can't get in it!

I've also driven a Mini Countryman 1.9D in the last couple of weeks (and a Kia Ceed!). Whilst the Mini is surprisingly large inside (I'm 6' 8" tall and - umm - rather on the large side, so need a larger than average cabin) I think the cabin is horrible and it is an absolutely woeful drive. But it does say Mini on the front

Edit: BTW: I've put my money where my mouth is and just ordered the Audi A3 Quattro s-line...

 

[steeve]

Thanks for that, bought a car today,an A3 184 S Line.
Moving from a Countryman SD 2.0 litre.
The dealer found me a car of the spec I want thats in stock so should get it in a week or so. Why wait until March next year.

Glacier White, 184 Manual with the options I wanted. Good deal too.

 

[arad85]

Good news... Must havbe been the 2L Countryman I drove as it too was SD spec. The A3 is a significant leap up in driveability (if you haven't driven one yet). Why wait? No reason if they have the spec. you want, and you have the cash. Enjoy

 

[steeve]

I did have a test drive, and loved it. I've had a number of Audi's before and I must say I'm happy to be back.

 

[Allroad2013]

As far as I can see, you're down to 4 cars that are "similar" spec'd:

• Audi A3
• Golf GTD
• Skoda Octavia vRS
• Seat Leon FR

They are all similar as they are all built around the same chassis/engine and are built to the respective marques price points. IMHO, the A3 is the best of the bunch in the cabin and also to look at, but is also the most pricey. I'd go and sit in all 4 before making your decision (I've done this in the past 2 weeks) ergonomically and then test drive any you feel fit. Of the 4, I have driven an Audi 184 quattro and Skoda vRS (although the petrol engined version). Given I don't fit in the cabin of the Golf and find the Leon too much of a squeeze, my preference would be Audi, Seat (in terms of trim, not driven it), Skoda and then fit the Golf in where you feel it is right - I'm unable to form an opinion as I can't get in it!

I've also driven a Mini Countryman 1.9D in the last couple of weeks (and a Kia Ceed!). Whilst the Mini is surprisingly large inside (I'm 6' 8" tall and - umm - rather on the large side, so need a larger than average cabin) I think the cabin is horrible and it is an absolutely woeful drive. But it does say Mini on the front

Edit: BTW: I've put my money where my mouth is and just ordered the Audi A3 Quattro s-line...

Those are the four cars I've been testing and was all set to order the A3, until that is, I drove the Leon. Previous versions weren't nice, especially as they didn't appear to have any suspension to speak of and had a low quality dash/interior. But this latest one is a significant step forward and is very competitively priced.

Obviously the Leon isn't as nice as the A3 inside (or out, for that matter), but in my preferred spec. it's £7.5 to £8K cheaper.

Having had two vRS diesel estates I like the Skoda's, but no longer need the space (we also have an A6 estate). Initially I thought I'd end up going for the Golf, but having driven a fully loaded 184 dsg I came away slightly underwhelmed and became even more underwhelmed when I priced one up!
I just don't think the interior justifies the closeness in price to the A3.

So now it's a straight fight between the A3 and the Leon. Currently I'm leaning towards the Leon in the knowledge that I get to drive the A6 (a 2013 245 Allroad) whenever I want and so it makes sense to pocket the difference, but on the other hand, the A3 did drive very nicely and the interior is several steps up from the Golf, let alone the Leon.

 

[cuke2u]

Personally, if you've got the money now then invest it. The residuals for the Seat will be poor and plastics inside the Leon aren't that good at all. I've looked at them all and the A3 comes out best...

 

[arad85]

Personally, if you've got the money now then invest it. The residuals for the Seat will be poor and plastics inside the Leon aren't that good at all. I've looked at them all and the A3 comes out best...

£7-8k more in an equivalent A3 over Leon?

I'm 6' 8" tall. If the Leon had been an inch or two bigger in the front, it would have been incredibly hard to justify the A3 price to myself (especially as I'm on the wrong side of £30k in a s-line Quattro....).

 

[Allroad2013]

Personally, if you've got the money now then invest it. The residuals for the Seat will be poor and plastics inside the Leon aren't that good at all. I've looked at them all and the A3 comes out best...

Surprisingly that's not the case. The GFV is roughly 50%, same as the A3. Problem with the A3 is lack of standard equipment, meaning plenty of £'s on options, which don't add anything to GFV and little to resale price.

Agreed that Leon plastics aren't up to A3, but then nor are the Golf or Octavia's, so the A3's bound to come out top in the poke and prod test. The problem is I'm struggling to justify the extra £7.5K and consequential higher monthly payments, especially as I'm looking at getting a third car for sunny days and weekends.

I need a longer test drive in the Leon, but I have to say after the the first round of drives it was the one that surprised me the most, probably because my expectations were so low.

 

[Allroad2013]

£7-8k more in an equivalent A3 over Leon?

I'm 6' 8" tall. If the Leon had been an inch or two bigger in the front, it would have been incredibly hard to justify the A3 price to myself (especially as I'm on the wrong side of £30k in a s-line Quattro....).

After discount, the Leon would be about £21.5K, whereas the A3 was coming out around £29.5K. That's Leon FR 184 with extras vs A3 SB Sport 184 with extras.

 

[RobbieWebs]

Really depends what route ur going with either finance or pcp.
If ur paying the car finance ul get a lot more money come resale than the Seat.
If it's a pcp deal then if u like the Seat then go for that.
Personally the Audi is in a different class.
Yes u pay for a lot of extras than other brands from the same group give u standard but I don't think they are that overpriced tbh.
If u were going for an Audi I'd go for the s line everytime.
Better spec and I'm sure will be worth more in resale.
When I was playing around speccing a car on orange wheels I managed to get a 184 s line manual in glacier white with heaps of options for £30632. That included comfort pack, satnav, b&o and pano roof

 

[steeve]

Surely there's more than price?
There is for me, and the one I decided on which met all my requirements was the A3. What you are looking for isnt going to be the same for every one.

 

[Cumbrian_bob]

If its price go for the seat, at the moment that package they have with the lower apr, the free satnav and led and its a new model car.

If its quality then the A3 would be better, really is a nice car, and so far I dont even own one. But you have said you have an A6 as the nice car, so the savings would help towards a nice weekend car. Frankly I would get a hyundai i10 and save even more. Buy a nice second hand TT, lotus, s2000, mr2, mx5 etc etc.

I cant really have more than one car, so the S3 satisfies the practical, sporty and luxury I want right now.

 

[Allroad2013]

If its price go for the seat, at the moment that package they have with the lower apr, the free satnav and led and its a new model car.

If its quality then the A3 would be better, really is a nice car, and so far I dont even own one. But you have said you have an A6 as the nice car, so the savings would help towards a nice weekend car. Frankly I would get a hyundai i10 and save even more. Buy a nice second hand TT, lotus, s2000, mr2, mx5 etc etc.

I cant really have more than one car, so the S3 satisfies the practical, sporty and luxury I want right now.

The S3's are very, very nice, but I can't justify one, even if I can afford one. Hyundai i10's are designed for a certain type of person. I'm not that certain type of person!

The A6 is only 6 months old so it serves as the "nice" car in the family fleet, the Leon/A3 would simply be a second car that one of us would use when the other is using the A6, so it 's down to whether I spend the extra on that, or put the extra towards the third car, of which the current top of the pile is a 928 S4.

Decisions, decisions !!

 

[Cumbrian_bob]

I can see how things are a bit dificult, I am guessing a 928 will either be both expensive to buy or expensive to buy and run. A nice car choice with the Porsche.

You might of course get a bigger discount on an A3 being a multiple car household, so the cost might not be too bad if the salesman wants to help.

I think its going to be a hard decision for you. Moving between the A6 and A3 should be pretty easy for a drive, Im guessing they would be simpler to move from one to the other with the controls.