Things that slightly rankle after 3 years of ownership

Vertigo1 said:

Just blip the right paddle and it'll switch to M7, then you can accelerate as hard as you like without it shifting down. A short while later it'll switch back to D7 (or S7) of its own accord.

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Great suggestion - however I must admit that in my opinion it shouldn't be necessary.

Vertigo1 said:

Just blip the right paddle and it'll switch to M7, then you can accelerate as hard as you like without it shifting down. A short while later it'll switch back to D7 (or S7) of its own accord.

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Interesting suggestion, I shall try this on the way home tonight. I assume you won't get the kick down providing you don't go past to 'stop' point on the throttle peddle?

Lehn said:

Great suggestion - however I must admit that in my opinion it shouldn't be necessary.

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I agree, but I've been flicking the lever over to manual on the motorway. I do get concerned about the clutch and loading it with the beans in 7th gear however...

Mark_86 said:

Interesting suggestion, I shall try this on the way home tonight. I assume you won't get the kick down providing you don't go past to 'stop' point on the throttle peddle?

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In manual it shouldn't change down unless you let the revs drop to the point of stalling or change up unless it's bouncing off the limiter.

I agree, but I've been flicking the lever over to manual on the motorway. I do get concerned about the clutch and loading it with the beans in 7th gear however...

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The FL has the new box with wet clutches which can easily handle the load, hence why they give it more torque than the manual

I think 7th is an overdrive anyway so it's likely dropping to sixth is more efficient in some cases.

Vertigo1 said:

Not sure what utopian alternate reality you live in but I keep my doors locked when I'm in the house.

You do realise this doesn't do the car any good as it takes far longer for the oil to distribute around the engine than if you drive off immediately after starting or at least after a minimal amount of idling.

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Fortunately my utopian paradise is a place far away from the city where I'm not so paranoid that I have to lock my doors at all times.

Did you know that acceleration and the internal stresses it causes also short lifes engines? Blipping the accelerator to make the exhaust pop and bang? You should never rev an unloaded engine. A killer. As for the damage that every "launch" does to an S3 engine and drive train ... But I didn't buy an S3 to mollycoddle it or expect it to last forever.

Will the car flag up to Audi if I have mistreated it by letting it idle for five minutes on a cold morning so invalidating any future warranty claim?

Think I'll risk warming it up to clear the windows so that I can see properly before I set off on a frosty morning. And if I could do it without the DRLs on I'd be even happier.

You know, this past couple days, I keep remembering what my Audi salesman told me about getting an S3 over a Golf R, and how a couple grand of my money would get me a "more luxurious well refined package, with a little more head turning appeal."

BUT I COULD TURN A ******* HEATED WINDSCREEN ON

In all seriousness though, I love my S3 but only because it provides just what I was looking for, decent interior tech (bit of a sucker for that), moderate amount of space (small family), and as much performance as I could get for my budget.

Anyhow, it ticks all those boxes so I love it for that. Virtual cockpit is a joy to have, its roomy enough for me and when pushed, it doesn't half shift for a small engined car.

But in almost all other aspects I do feel like we get fobbed off a little bit. It's all the little things that for a range topping model, you would expect as standard, which sometimes aren't even an optional extra, that on some lesser cars you can get.

For example, the heated windscreen I have already winged about, this morning I was frantically scraping away at my £40k S3 while matey a couple doors down hopped in his Golf (basic trim) whacked on his windscreen, popped back in to grab his coat and it was ready after he waited in the car for a minute or two after that. My mates Ford Fiesta also has it.

Many many hatchbacks now come with some sort of safety/advanced cruise control when selected in an automatic transmission, ****** Vauxhall are more up together on it than Audi.

Things like through loading/rear centre armrest or anything like that. Rear cup holders (like I said small people in the back every now and again it isn't uncommon to want to store a drink in the back). All things you have to pay for which, by the time I had spent the money the big expensive extras which I can justify (tech pack, comfort pack, parking pack), I just couldn't bring myself to tick. I mean yeah sure you could say it's my fault for going for a model that I couldn't afford to tick every box, but blimey we are talking about a 25% bump in price of the vehicle!!!

I commend companies like Ford with the Focus, they all come with the same standard gear and there's a couple of packages that you can tick that have all the extras conveniently grouped, if you go on the configurator there really isn't that many options. I just feel like all the extra little things should be on an S3, and just make for example, a tech pack, comfort pack, drivers convenience (storage/windows etc) and then assistance (lane assist/parking plus etc). I really would feel like I was driving that premium package they bang on about.

Oh, and it rattles like ****

SamP97 said:

In all seriousness though, I love my S3 but only because it provides just what I was looking for, decent interior tech (bit of a sucker for that), moderate amount of space (small family), and as much performance as I could get for my budget.

Anyhow, it ticks all those boxes so I love it for that. Virtual cockpit is a joy to have, its roomy enough for me and when pushed, it doesn't half shift for a small engined car.

But in almost all other aspects I do feel like we get fobbed off a little bit. It's all the little things that for a range topping model, you would expect as standard, which sometimes aren't even an optional extra, that on some lesser cars you can get.

For example, the heated windscreen I have already winged about, this morning I was frantically scraping away at my £40k S3 while matey a couple doors down hopped in his Golf (basic trim) whacked on his windscreen, popped back in to grab his coat and it was ready after he waited in the car for a minute or two after that. My mates Ford Fiesta also has it.

Many many hatchbacks now come with some sort of safety/advanced cruise control when selected in an automatic transmission, ****** Vauxhall are more up together on it than Audi.

Things like through loading/rear centre armrest or anything like that. Rear cup holders (like I said small people in the back every now and again it isn't uncommon to want to store a drink in the back). All things you have to pay for which, by the time I had spent the money the big expensive extras which I can justify (tech pack, comfort pack, parking pack), I just couldn't bring myself to tick. I mean yeah sure you could say it's my fault for going for a model that I couldn't afford to tick every box, but blimey we are talking about a 25% bump in price of the vehicle!!!

I commend companies like Ford with the Focus, they all come with the same standard gear and there's a couple of packages that you can tick that have all the extras conveniently grouped, if you go on the configurator there really isn't that many options. I just feel like all the extra little things should be on an S3, and just make for example, a tech pack, comfort pack, drivers convenience (storage/windows etc) and then assistance (lane assist/parking plus etc). I really would feel like I was driving that premium package they bang on about.

Oh, and it rattles like ****

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Agree. A freaking VW UP got more safety features as standard than an S3. I didn't spec any safety features because why should I when I would have to get rid of eg. Matrix LED, B&O or Pano roof - no way that would happen...

I sometimes regret not having the Audi Driver Assistance Package with all the goodies but then I just think about the price tag of £4.500 (danish price) while I turn the volume up on the excellent B&O sound system, opens the pano roof and hope no one steps out in front of me since the car doesn't have Pedestrian Protection or something like that

My comments are based on ownership of ten A3s of different models. I purchased a second 2.0TDI-184 Sport s-tronic quattro after owing the first one for the previous three years so I must like the car. The only thing that I think is now very dated is the MMI system. The setup in my wife's Polo is much better than the A3. The setup in the new A8 and A7 is much better and more advanced so I hope the next A3, due out in 2019, will have a similar setup.

I don't know if things are programmed differently here in Canada, but I can turn off my DRLs by putting the lights into the "O" position and setting the parking brake. Not a single exterior illumination when doing that.
Also, maybe they aren't as prevalent in UK, but in Canada, remote car starters are fairly common. This is one of the first add-ons I did after receiving my car new and they are pretty amazing. The one I have installed is from Compustar ( https://www.compustar.com/remotes/pro-t11/?systemId=26 ) and gives a 3-mile range with two-way communications so I can tell it's started and even what the temperature is inside of my car. I've actually used it coming back from vacation in the middle of winter at -20 and had my car started just as the plane touched down and it was toasty warm by the time I got out to the parking lot! IMHO, the cost of one of these far outweighs the stress of leaving your car unlocked and unattended to warm it up, not to mention the deductible or lack of insurance if something does happen.