Autocar RS3 review

Kind of Flopped ..really.....But if somebody gave me one for free .......Then I'll be happy .:happy:..lol

Over Priced too.......
 
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W3STY said:
It just doesn't look anything special.
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I sort of agree, it's almost a sleeper! The styling changes are mega subtle - except the rims lol.. But I gotta say, I'm a fan of the engine.. It looks very tuneable..
 
They've sold out of all units. If they offered another 500, they'd sell out of them too.

It's got a great engine, but it's on an ageing platform, interior is solid, but getting dated, it looks like an S-Line (as does the S3) to all but the trained eye, it'll cost a small fortune to spec it to an acceptable level. It'll go like stink, but the ride will no doubt be harsh on UK roads and it'll understeer like a dog.

The whole episode harks of them using up all left overs from the 8P parts bin albeit apart from the front wings and splitter, to generate a final lump of cash on this model. I truly hope Audi learn from the exercise, take note of their customers feedback and go mental on the next platform.

I wait in anticipation for the new model next year. Better handling and styling, an S3 with a detuned 2.5 (approx 300bhp) and a loopy RS3 with its wick turned right up (380bhp+). You just need to look at the Worthersee A1 concept to see where this engine could go. Ditch the chav-tastic Max Power styling and go back to the drawing board, but ensure a picture of the B7 RS4 is close at hand. :eyebrows:

I haven't ranted in the RS3 sticky, so that's my tuppeny's worth right there. I'm a marketing man's dream though and will no doubt throw a healthy deposit towards the new S and RS whatever it looks and drives like. I just can't see myself in anything else right now.
 
For the same money.. What you gonna choose tho.. The BMW M1 coupe? It's slower (and a bimmer)
 
quattro 1981 said:
For the same money.. What you gonna choose tho.. The BMW M1 coupe? It's slower (and a bimmer)
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I'm a brand snob, so will probably always pick an Audi over a VW, despite them being pretty much the same car. Ford's, Renault's, Honda's I don't like. The wife has a 1er, it's a fantastic drive. I actually like the styling of the 5 door. It's well put together, comfy albeit a bit bland inside, but with my location and the recent weather, rear wheel drive doesn't work, so any derivative or model, M or otherwise isn't an option for me. Size-wise, the A3 is fine for me, I like the interior as that's where I spend most of my time. The new interior should be decent too, certainly will if the sketches are anything to go by.

The point I'm trying to make is, for me, the new model will be a safe bet. If I actually bothered my erse, I'm sure I could find a "better" car for my list of requirements for £35/40k. I've had 3 8P's now, so this RS already looks dated in my eyes. It's also not RS enough. As a minimum it should have had twin oval pipes, but apparently they couldn't do it because of lack of space back there, yadda, yadda. It bothers me now that the S3 is the only S car not to have twin pipes on each side. Look at the TT; with the recent facelift even the 2.0TFSi now has single pipes each side a la the 3.2. Just looks better.

I could go on and on, but you're not interested in that. This RS3 IMO isn't RS enough, so I hope the next one is. Let's just hope they make one.
 
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\\\\\\\\\\\\fact is a TTRS looks just the same as a TT cooking model. thats just how audi do things
 
Rico
interesting posts from you. The real trouble is the ever diminishing market for your envisaged S3 and RS3. Those cars will be extinct in a few years. Even people here are trading S3s for dervs now and thats a recent thing. When my 3.2 expires i doubt i will be looking at £400 tax and 20mpg cars again. Its only going to get worse from now on. remember anyone buying an RS3 is already paying nearly £10k tax on it which is money down the plug !!!
 
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paddy said:
Rico
interesting posts from you. The real trouble is the ever diminishing market for your envisaged S3 and RS3. Those cars will be extinct in a few years. Even people here are trading S3s for dervs now and thats a recent thing. When my 3.2 expires i doubt i will be looking at £400 tax and 20mpg cars again. Its only going to get worse from now on. remember anyone buying an RS3 is already paying nearly £10k tax on it which is money down the plug !!!
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Pretty much bang on really. Fast petrol cars are fun to drive for the 10% of the time that you can but financially crippling for the remaining 90% of traffic and town driving.

I had to own an S3 because I just really wanted one .... but sometimes wish I.d been sensible and bought a 2.0TDi 170 Quattro!
 
N8 said:
I do love the TT-RS tho :wub:
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So do I :wub:

jsh said:
Pretty much bang on really. Fast petrol cars are fun to drive for the 10% of the time that you can but financially crippling for the remaining 90% of traffic and town driving.

I had to own an S3 because I just really wanted one .... but sometimes wish I.d been sensible and bought a 2.0TDi 170 Quattro!
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So do I sometimes. I've done 32k in mine since Feb 09. That is a LOT of petrol money. But it does make up for it every time I open her up :wub:
 
paddy said:
Rico
interesting posts from you. The real trouble is the ever diminishing market for your envisaged S3 and RS3. Those cars will be extinct in a few years. Even people here are trading S3s for dervs now and thats a recent thing. When my 3.2 expires i doubt i will be looking at £400 tax and 20mpg cars again. Its only going to get worse from now on. remember anyone buying an RS3 is already paying nearly £10k tax on it which is money down the plug !!!
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Except for me pad! I don't pay vat on new cars:whistle2:
 
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paddy said:
Rico
interesting posts from you. The real trouble is the ever diminishing market for your envisaged S3 and RS3. Those cars will be extinct in a few years. Even people here are trading S3s for dervs now and thats a recent thing. When my 3.2 expires i doubt i will be looking at £400 tax and 20mpg cars again. Its only going to get worse from now on. remember anyone buying an RS3 is already paying nearly £10k tax on it which is money down the plug !!!
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It's a fair comment Paddy, but the diminishing market isn't a few years away. There will always be people around to buy them. I love Audi's despite the fact that I greet and moan about everything from dealer attitude and behaviour to the fact that I get a soggy arm when it's raining and I drop the driver's window. Having driven 2 S cars, I for one wouldn't want to drop down, sorry, but that's flash, brash old me and I'm not afraid to admit it. Let's not forget that the S, RS and M models for that matter are supposed to be exclusive, limited numbers. I agree that in recent years this has become blurred/diluted, producing more models, softer models if you will, to sell more units. It's become more of a marketing gimmick.

I believe the fact the Focus RS existed and BMW were to release the 1M influenced Audi to release the RS3 partly. There was always a market for it, But what we got was an ever so slightly revised S3 Sportback with a 2.5 lump and the RS badge on the back.

I'm not going to wave my w!lly at anyone, but like others, I've always aspired to an S3 and I'm lucky enough to be in a position to buy and run one. I hope to be able to do so in the future too. Now they have an RS3, I would love to go for it. Problem is, I don't like the styling and as I said earlier, it's an ageing platform, so I really hope the new model is styled well, drives and handles well. If I like it, then I'll buy it as all my basic requirements will be ticked off. If it has a 2.5 engine in it, then I'll be super happy. I'd go for a TT-RS if I could, I had a test drive arranged and had the dealer searching for one, but having been brought to my family senses, it wasn't practical and so my wait goes on.

It's all personal opinion obviously and that's the beauty of forums. If we all agreed it would be a dull place and we'd all drive the same bland box.
 
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I'm in the S3 Sportback / RS3 target market and would consider the latter car - warts and all -if I hadn't just got the former!

Spec'ing a Golf R 5-door to S3 levels gives you a car that costs more to lease or buy than the S3, so there is room for the RS3 in the market. It also helps sell end-of-line 8P3s and give headroom for 2012 A3 prices and residuals all round.

It's just a shame that Autocar (whom I trust) find the RS3 wanting. Other mags, like Car, have found the RS3 better than the 1M.
 
I follow the Audi used car site most days and the one thing i have noticed is the amount of new S3's on there. Cancelled orders and cars a few months old but now £6-7k down on list Camberley have had a Sprint blue now for 6 months and the price has dropped and dropped. the Orange one at Epsom has dropped £2k in 3 months. Its not just a matter of cash. Like you i am lucky enough to be able to buy anything i want but their comes a point where with VAT and showroom tax, the idea of paying 25% extra is hard to swallow, add to that the dealer cut and the importers and manufacturers slice and the reality is you are getting a £20k car for your £40k. At this point you start to think well ok thats the market but if i am going to spend this money then i want value for money, one way or another be it and exclusive mark or a keen price and a good resale. Audi's do not really tick either of those boxes. I cant help but wonder what the owner of that S3 at Camberley got for his car in trade in ? Its a £34k car at under £27k now. i suppose what i am saying is if i am going to do 20mpg i want to do 20 mpg in a 997 or a V8 vantage not a small heavily compromised estate with a cast iron 5 pot in the front.
The problem is that those that can afford a new S3/RS3 will probably continue to be able to afford a new S3/RS3 but the second hand market will collapse as can be seen now because those who have to stretch to buy their dream second hand will be hit by running costs that do not bother those that can buy new. this depreciation will then become a factor for some of those buying new. I suppose what i am saying is the defining line between rich and poor will increase, Porsche are doing better than ever in their history..so are KIA !! but those in the middle like Audi and BM ?? Yes there is a market for an 1M or a RS3 but remember Audi and BM limited the number available to what ?? 200 was it ? They dont do that if they think they can sell 2000 !! Petrol will soon be £1.50 ltr, as soon as the next mini crisis hits the middle east or Nato has another little war..oil will rocket again. In a couple of years it will be £2 a ltr and that is why i think the market is diminishing for these cars.
 
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I'm in no position to be spending £40k on a new car, so any opinion is just that, but I guess I can throw in my two cents?

I love my S3, and the idea of an RS3, but don't see this car being that idea in the metal. B7 RS4 was the car that sealed my love of Audis... and that's where my RS goal-posts lie. The RS3 seems more like what the next S3 should have been/should be, but it feels like they tried to rush it in for the 8P run out, and to go up against the 1M and other less-direct rivals (Focus RS, Scooby 400 etc).

Rico was right about dual oval exhausts, surely an RS-must! And although "extreme" styling is very much not the Audi way, they seem to have tried to follow M's poor example of bigger vents, random colour/material flashes etc to stand-out from the droves of SEs and S-Lines; but I just don't like the look of the thing. There are at least 3 SBs on here that I think look a LOT better than Audi's attempt, and probably cost significantly less to achieve (fair enough they may not have the pace to keep up).

Also, why is just only available as a SB? Is that Audi's attempt to regain some RS-retro cred like the Avant only B5? From what I've read it's a very similar machine - all pace, heaps of grip, but atrocious understeer. Personally I'd take an S5... or a used RS4 and £15k!
 
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audi upgrades
I did think about an RS3 but i was put off by the DSG so it would be either a BMW 1M or a used porsche 911 turbo, the Golf R is far to close to the S3. I could do an RS4 or if they did an S3 with the same engine that would be intresting
 
brough74 said:
I did think about an RS3 but i was put off by the DSG so it would be either a BMW 1M or a used porsche 911 turbo, the Golf R is far to close to the S3. I could do an RS4 or if they did an S3 with the same engine that would be intresting
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Don't let the s tronic put you off mate... It's pretty good tbh, and nowadays a much faster way to fly than a manuel.. (cue all the manual owners harping on about "fun" and "control") lol
 
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Might as well put RS3 on your 2.0 Quattro.................thats what you are advocating with the BOSE thread :sorry: Save a load of money and fool everyone but yourself.
 
paddy said:
Might as well put RS3 on your 2.0 Quattro.................thats what you are advocating with the BOSE thread :sorry: Save a load of money and fool everyone but yourself.
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:moa: yes pad! Stunning idea...! But seriously: Personally I don't like it when people badge something up if that's not what it is.. Lol aren't my speakers harman kardon? I think I need to change them to bowers and Wilkins? Or maybe b&o grilles? What you think? :wtf:
 
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