Lesser of two diesels

[Pork]

Ok so it’s time to start the game of tennis with the dealer that is buying a new car, put it off too long and missed out on the 9.25 or whatever you want to call it so am stuck with the touch screen.
My MY17 had a few boxes ticked and now find myself having to spec a Vorsprung to get the options I want - the first quote came as a bit of a shock but I’ve calmed down now and am thinking logically again.
Anyhow, my question relates to the 35 and 40 diesels. Currently I have a 190 and love it, unfortunately to go with the same again it now only comes as a Quattro which I’ve never felt I’ve needed grip wise. It has another gearbox to service/weighs 100kg more and is barely 0.5 second quicker to 60 than mine not to mention dearer to tax. The 163 is marginally down on torque but it sits sort of half way between mine and the new 40 I guess, gets similar economy to mine and is 2k cheaper.
So let me hear your thoughts on what side of this fence you would be on - if you’ve gone from a 190 to a 163 I’d love to hear your feedback, dealer only had a 30 demonstrator so couldn’t test one.

 

[HMG1K]

I've moved days ago from a 2018MY A5 Sportback S-Line 40 TFSI petrol (190PS) to a 2020MY A5 Sportback S-Line 35 TDI diesel (163PS)

Honest appraisal (and I am fussy) - I cannot fault the diesel in any way. Smoothness, drive, noise, as good as the 190 petrol.

Yes, the 40 TFSI may be a second quicker than the 35 TDI. I don't care. You certainky don't miss that second when you put your foot down.

The 'pick up' to be aware of is the 40 TFSI has a higher torque from start. Whereas the 35 TDi has it in the mid range instead - so faster pick up in the 50 mph upwards range.

Are you buying outright or PCP / PCH lease?

 

[pagenotfound]

Had a 35TDI A5 Sportback s-tronic as a courtesy car recently. I'd struggle to commend it unless you are covering a lot of miles and the mpg is your main criteria. Sluggish performance, yet capable of spinning up the fronts on a damp road attempting to get off the line at a tricky right hand turn junction. With quattro, no traction issues. Just press and go.

 

[monkeyhanger]

I got a nearly new A4 Avant "40" TDI Quattro about 6 weeks ago.

I've had a string of new performance VWs (Scirocco / Golf / Polo), and the A4 is only my second DSG / S-Tronic, not through any real choice as VAG seems to be doing all it can to obsolete manual gearboxes. The A4 replaced a 200ps 2018 Polo GTI+.

The Polo came on Bridgestone tyres and spun up the front wheels in the dry with 30% throttle from a standstill. Having a deep dislike for Bridgestone tyres, I replaced them sharpish for Michelin PS4, which improved things a lot, but you can still get the front wheels tramping at 60% throttle.

So Quattro is great, no spin up at all
, no matter the throttle input. First taste of it (or VW equivalent) was on the Golf R I bought in 201ĺ5.

For a variable system that has a strong FWD bias, there's a small mpg penalty, but no wheelspin.

If you can stretch to it, the 190TDI (204ps post facelift, to match the forthcoming MK8 Golf GTD?). It feels a lot stronger than the smaller output unit.

Are you dead set on buying brand new?

I looked at the depreciation profile for the A4 before I bought mine and decided against new. The initial depreciation is hefty. Mine is a £41.3k when new and I bought my 10 month old example for £25.2k, £16.1k less than list. Realistically you can get about £8k off list through Drivethedeal, that's still £8k lost in year 1. My 10 month old one will lose £3k a year over the next 3 years (basing that on PCP illustration GFV + £1000). Mine's bought outright, but if you are PCPing you'll pay a lower APR% on a new one. The 35 TDI generally sees better discounts on Drivethedeal, up to £12k off list.

If I was insistent on buying new, with my own money, the 35 variant could be £7k cheaper than the 40 by the time you factor in the better discount.

I hate the 7-speed S-Tronic's pickup of 1st gear at a standstill. Clutch engagement seems to take forever. Way more sluggish than the 6 speed DSG on the Polo GTI+. I assume it's set up that way for comfort (smoothness) and/or clutch preservation.

 

[Sibmets]

Ok so it’s time to start the game of tennis with the dealer that is buying a new car, put it off too long and missed out on the 9.25 or whatever you want to call it so am stuck with the touch screen.
My MY17 had a few boxes ticked and now find myself having to spec a Vorsprung to get the options I want - the first quote came as a bit of a shock but I’ve calmed down now and am thinking logically again.
Anyhow, my question relates to the 35 and 40 diesels. Currently I have a 190 and love it, unfortunately to go with the same again it now only comes as a Quattro which I’ve never felt I’ve needed grip wise. It has another gearbox to service/weighs 100kg more and is barely 0.5 second quicker to 60 than mine not to mention dearer to tax. The 163 is marginally down on torque but it sits sort of half way between mine and the new 40 I guess, gets similar economy to mine and is 2k cheaper.
So let me hear your thoughts on what side of this fence you would be on - if you’ve gone from a 190 to a 163 I’d love to hear your feedback, dealer only had a 30 demonstrator so couldn’t test one.

Just a note - quattro doesn't have "another gearbox to service" - it has rear differential which is sealed for life, needs no maintenance.
And, for resell value, quattro also usually goes for higher price - not that it offsets the initial price difference when buying new, but if You would be looking at used market, You could see that.
Quattro usually also gets better suspension at rear - anti-roll bar, wheel bearings etc.
But I'm biased, 3 out of 5 my Audi's have been quattro's, only my first audi was and my wife's audi were FWD.
I'd go with quattro, it feels more special, at least in my opinion.

Audi A4 B9 3.0 TDi quattro 200 kw

 

[Pork]

Thanks for the feedback guys - really useful info, should’ve thought about about that pulling away in the wet thing!
It’s going to be a PCP, I‘m up for buying nearly new but there are very few Vorsprung A4’s around for sale (ie none)

 

[muffindell]

The A4 is heavy, you need at least 190bhp to get it going!

 

[harvey.nott]

The A4 is heavy, you need at least 190bhp to get it going!

I hope thats sarcastic , the 35tdi is perfectly fine.
Its smooth and quiet and I don't find the gearbox sluggish.
Its swift enough and mpg is good.

And I have a v8 a flat 6 and a French tin can 172 cup to jump in .

I have driven both the 35 tdi and 40 and honestly if you get the spec you want in a 35 for the right money I don't think you will be disappointed.

Everyone's view will be different and their reasons varied.



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[muffindell]

I hope thats sarcastic , the 35tdi is perfectly fine.
Its smooth and quiet and I don't find the gearbox sluggish.
Its swift enough and mpg is good.

And I have a v8 a flat 6 and a French tin can 172 cup to jump in .

I have driven both the 35 tdi and 40 and honestly if you get the spec you want in a 35 for the right money I don't think you will be disappointed.

Everyone's view will be different and their reasons varied.



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Not really, I have a B9 with the spec I wanted, I went for the 150bhp engine tune. It wasn't long before I had it mapped to 190bhp which just about makes it a little bit of fun instead of a lazy barge, just my opinion.

 

[harvey.nott]

Is yours a 150 TFSI or TDI , the diesels alway feel a little more grunty.

I have a 163 TDI so feels ample , and still feels so when I Jump out of our 4.2 S4 into the TDI ...

Spec on where you sit can be more of an annoyance than a little less grunt.

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[muffindell]

Is yours a 150 TFSI or TDI , the diesels alway feel a little more grunty.

I have a 163 TDI so feels ample , and still feels so when I Jump out of our 4.2 S4 into the TDI ...

Spec on where you sit can be more of an annoyance than a little less grunt.

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Yeah it's 150 TDi, agree with where you sit matters most of the time, especially if you are cruising, but hacking cross country power matters more.