Don't mean to hijack but I recently took the etron for a spin in early December after sitting on my hands for the past 6 months waiting to purchase a new car. Having lived in central London for close to 10 years I've had little need for a car and I've probably cycled at least what I've driven in that period alone. However time has come to upgrade my '96 micra for something a little more luxurious
As mentioned before the silent pull away is eerie but once you are above 10mph you sort of forget that you are driving a hybrid, let alone an automatic. The transition between petrol and electric engine appeared seamless and had to keep on checking the display to see what was powering the car. Granted that the A3 is not a luxury executive car, but the interior (on the test drive model) felt like you were being well catered for with heated leather seats, panoramic sunroof and plenty of electronic displays to keep my inner geek happy. I had around 30 mins to drive both local roads and jump on a dual carriageway. The etron was certainly quick (I guess anything is quicker than a 998cc micra). My only comparison/experience in performance would be to my father's golf GTD which I'd say would be similarly matched. In summary I really enjoyed driving the etron and felt very similar to a TDI I test drove a week earlier, so much so i returned in the new year and placed an order in monsoon grey
The only disappointing part for me was the sheer lack of movement on price or any extras the dealership would throw in even though I went a little crazy and pretty much ticked all the extra options . Went as far as to speak with the manager who gave me the "it's a very new car and you'd be only a handful of people driving one in the UK, plus with the government grant you are getting a very good deal already" spiel. Will probably throw in some accessories like iPhone cable, boot mat and tank of fuel/electricity - but this was off the record!! FYI I was going in as a cash buyer, finance was offered at their standard 7.4%
Just waiting for a delivery date now
As mentioned before the silent pull away is eerie but once you are above 10mph you sort of forget that you are driving a hybrid, let alone an automatic. The transition between petrol and electric engine appeared seamless and had to keep on checking the display to see what was powering the car. Granted that the A3 is not a luxury executive car, but the interior (on the test drive model) felt like you were being well catered for with heated leather seats, panoramic sunroof and plenty of electronic displays to keep my inner geek happy. I had around 30 mins to drive both local roads and jump on a dual carriageway. The etron was certainly quick (I guess anything is quicker than a 998cc micra). My only comparison/experience in performance would be to my father's golf GTD which I'd say would be similarly matched. In summary I really enjoyed driving the etron and felt very similar to a TDI I test drove a week earlier, so much so i returned in the new year and placed an order in monsoon grey
The only disappointing part for me was the sheer lack of movement on price or any extras the dealership would throw in even though I went a little crazy and pretty much ticked all the extra options . Went as far as to speak with the manager who gave me the "it's a very new car and you'd be only a handful of people driving one in the UK, plus with the government grant you are getting a very good deal already" spiel. Will probably throw in some accessories like iPhone cable, boot mat and tank of fuel/electricity - but this was off the record!! FYI I was going in as a cash buyer, finance was offered at their standard 7.4%
Just waiting for a delivery date now