Facelift Best S3 Saloon Spec. Under £40k ?

[Bristle Hound]

Just having a play around on the Audi config. thingy, honest

What, in your opinion, is the best S3 saloon spec. keeping the ROTR price under £40,000.00 for the more sensible VED duties

So far, mine is -

S3 saloon Black Edition
S-tronic GB
Ibis white
Black leather interior seat trim
19" 5-V spoke matt titanium
Extended Interior Upholstery Pack
Audi Parking System Plus
Hill hold assist

ROTR - £39,870.00

www.uk.audi.com/AVJC8EQT

 

[batch]

I got mine nailed. Huge spec, and managed to get it under £40k by GETTING A NICE SPORTBACK!

 

[Jassyo06]

Just having a play around on the Audi config. thingy, honest

What, in your opinion, is the best S3 saloon spec. keeping the ROTR price under £40,000.00 for the more sensible VED duties

So far, mine is -

S3 saloon Black Edition
S-tronic GB
Ibis white
Leather/Alcantara interior seat trim
19" 5-V spoke matt titanium
Extended Interior Upholstery Pack
Audi Parking System Plus
Hill hold assist

ROTR - £39,870.00

www.uk.audi.com/AUT4WYEQ

I think a few have managed in a spec same car with a pearl diver to spare from the £40k price threshold mate

Voodoo white is cheaper than ibis white though lol

 

[farmerpalmer]

Unfortunately manual is no longer available - this saved £1500, which allowed me to spec comfort and tech packs.

 

[Flying Pig]

Waiting for delivery in Dec. I got it to within about £40 of the £40k limit
SB STronic
Daytona
Tech Pack
Matrix LED
Super Sport Seats
Red Calipers
Folding heated door mirrors
20/40/60 rear seat

I did want the advanced Key but couldn’t justify the tax increase

 

[Audi Bairn]

Waiting for delivery in Dec. I got it to within about £40 of the £40k limit
SB STronic
Daytona
Tech Pack
Matrix LED
Super Sport Seats
Red Calipers
Folding heated door mirrors
20/40/60 rear seat

I did want the advanced Key but couldn’t justify the tax increase

Nice spec, not too long to wait now.
How'd you spec a rear seat that's 120% wide?

 

[Flying Pig]

Nice spec, not too long to wait now.
How'd you spec a rear seat that's 120% wide?

Lol - I couldn’t remember the split

 

[HulkRS3]

Mine was £39,925. Spec in description minus the res delete and dtuk box obviously.

 

[GW1]

Waiting for delivery in Dec. I got it to within about £40 of the £40k limit
SB STronic
Daytona
Tech Pack
Matrix LED
Super Sport Seats
Red Calipers
Folding heated door mirrors
20/40/60 rear seat

I did want the advanced Key but couldn’t justify the tax increase

Glad you went for the Daytona Grey all my Audi’s have been the same colour.

 

[GW1]

Just having a play around on the Audi config. thingy, honest

What, in your opinion, is the best S3 saloon spec. keeping the ROTR price under £40,000.00 for the more sensible VED duties

So far, mine is -

S3 saloon Black Edition
S-tronic GB
Ibis white
Leather/Alcantara interior seat trim
19" 5-V spoke matt titanium
Extended Interior Upholstery Pack
Audi Parking System Plus
Hill hold assist

ROTR - £39,870.00

www.uk.audi.com/AUT4WYEQ

Bin the Hill Hold Assist, the salesman at my dealership said that it was pointless as Stronic don’t need it, he was spot on I have never needed in the last two months of ownership, I can see that it would be useful on a manual.

 

[Audi Bairn]

Lol - I couldn’t remember the split

Ha ha I only noticed as I ordered the 40/20/40 split rear seat on mine

 

[Astraeus]

I tinkered extensively with mine. Ended up at £39.6k with:

Saloon, Ara Blue, S-Tronic
Folding mirrors, extended leather, privacy glass, HHA, Parking System Plus. Think that's it?

Would have liked the Tech Pack but couldn't configure it for under £40k.

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

 

[Flying Pig]

Ha ha I only noticed as I ordered the 40/20/40 split rear seat on mine

Ah - that’s the one!!

3 years of no rear cup holder and “Dad can I have my drink please” so I splashed £250 (?) for some peace and quiet. I’m sure it will be my favourite option.....

 

[Bristle Hound]

Just having a play around on the Audi config. thingy, honest

What, in your opinion, is the best S3 saloon spec. keeping the ROTR price under £40,000.00 for the more sensible VED duties

So far, mine is -

S3 saloon Black Edition
S-tronic GB
Ibis white
Leather/Alcantara interior seat trim
19" 5-V spoke matt titanium
Extended Interior Upholstery Pack
Audi Parking System Plus
Hill hold assist

ROTR - £39,870.00

www.uk.audi.com/AUT4WYEQ

Just outta interest the best discount on this ^ spec I'm getting is thro' DriveTheDeal who are offering
£5100.00 off the ROTR price

Beating Coast2CoastCars, Carwow, Ornagewheels etc at the mo

 

[amb66]

Bin the Hill Hold Assist, the salesman at my dealership said that it was pointless as Stronic don’t need it, he was spot on I have never needed in the last two months of ownership, I can see that it would be useful on a manual.

The thing with hill hold assist is its got the wrong name, it's more accurately just hold assist. The reason I like it is because it puts the parking brake on for you automatically when you're stopped at traffic lights. Its just one less thing to do and for bone idle b******s like me it was one of the best 55 quids I've ever spent!

 

[Snake Pliskin]

Just having a play around on the Audi config. thingy, honest

What, in your opinion, is the best S3 saloon spec. keeping the ROTR price under £40,000.00 for the more sensible VED duties

So far, mine is -

S3 saloon Black Edition
S-tronic GB
Ibis white
Leather/Alcantara interior seat trim
19" 5-V spoke matt titanium
Extended Interior Upholstery Pack
Audi Parking System Plus
Hill hold assist

ROTR - £39,870.00

www.uk.audi.com/AUT4WYEQ

I had a play at this a while ago too

At that time manual was available so virtually same as your spec except virtual dash & super sport seats & folding mirrors added instead of s tronic.

The £40k threshold is at a really annoying point isn’t it. Had it been £50k it would have made a whole lot of cars easier to spec.

Not sure how I will feel about the tax bracket when I next change as it’s a flipping rip off.

All the cars I’m thinking off such as S4/S5 and Merc A45 AMG / C43 AMG would all carry the higher tax.

Not sure when a new platform S3 would be out ? Guessing could be as late as 2020 which would rule it out as I will be changing March 19 so I do need to start thinking next year.

Can’t even get a TTS under £40k !

 

[Bristle Hound]

Bin the Hill Hold Assist, the salesman at my dealership said that it was pointless as Stronic don’t need it, he was spot on I have never needed in the last two months of ownership, I can see that it would be useful on a manual.

@GW1 - I had HHA on my old manual B8 A4 & loved it
When I ordered my S4 new HHA was the 1st option I picked & I still love it. Works well with s-tronic IMHO
Must be a marmite option lol
PS What do you 'Car Sales Executive's' know anyway ...

I had a play at this a while ago too

At that time manual was available so virtually same as your spec except virtual dash & super sport seats & folding mirrors added instead of s tronic.

The £40k threshold is at a really annoying point isn’t it. Had it been £50k it would have made a whole lot of cars easier to spec.

Not sure how I will feel about the tax bracket when I next change as it’s a flipping rip off.

All the cars I’m thinking off such as S4/S5 and Merc A45 AMG / C43 AMG would all carry the higher tax.

Not sure when a new platform S3 would be out ? Guessing could be as late as 2020 which would rule it out as I will be changing March 19 so I do need to start thinking next year.

Can’t even get a TTS under £40k !

@Snake Pliskin - Like your spec for the manual S3 saloon
Agreed. The £40k VED threshold is madness. With the amount od annual mileage I do I just can not justify the extra £ in annual VED

 

[TDI-line]

Just folding mirrors and Daytona.

 

[DrEskimo]

A typical S3 deal on PCP is about £6k a year, made up approximately 30% interest charges and 70% depreciation.

An extra £300 a year on VED represents just 5% of the total yearly cost.

 

[kevpuk]

The VED threshold is annoying and not really the correct way to tax, IMHO......caused me much consternation when thinking what to replace my CLS with, and had decided I wouldn't pay the premium for >£40k car.
However, in the end, the S3 I have was offered with better discount than DtD (at the time, was £5.8k off same spec), was a 'stock' car that I could have within a couple of days and - at least in salesman speak - the 'extra discount' covered the +£310 for 2yrs VED (total discount just over £6.4k).

TL;DR I was all for principles....but in the end the right deal at the right team made me ditch them

 

[Bristle Hound]

A typical S3 deal on PCP is about £6k a year, made up approximately 30% interest charges and 70% depreciation.

An extra £300 a year on VED represents just 5% of the total yearly cost.

@DrEskimo - Playing devils advocate here Doc

Annual running costs for a ROTR £40k+ S3 saloon -

Insurance - £350
Servicing - £300 (averaging out 2 services)
VED - £450 (£140 standard part + the 'bonus' £310 for 1st 5 years for ROTR being over £40k)
= £1100

£1100 - £310 = £790
For keeping the ROTR under £40k

So you save around 30% (forgive my man maths) annually

Just saying ...

 

[DrEskimo]

@DrEskimo - Playing devils advocate here Doc

Annual running costs for a ROTR £40k+ S3 saloon -

Insurance - £350
Servicing - £300 (averaging out 2 services)
VED - £450 (£140 standard part + the 'bonus' £310 for 1st 5 years for ROTR being over £40k)
= £1100

£1100 - £310 = £790
For keeping the ROTR under £40k

So you save around 30% (forgive my man maths) annually

Just saying ...

Ha!

Yea but you cant ignore the depreciation and interest costs...depreciation is the typically the largest running cost on a car!

Interest charges on a PCP is £2k if you pay it off after 2yrs. It's £4k if you buy it on a 4yr PCP. There ya go, just saved you £500 a year over 4yrs!

 

[Bristle Hound]

Ha!

Yea but you cant ignore the depreciation and interest costs...depreciation is the typically the largest running cost on a car!

Interest charges on a PCP is £2k if you pay it off after 2yrs. It's £4k if you buy it on a 4yr PCP. There ya go, just saved you £500 a year over 4yrs!

@DrEskimo - BUT I'd still prefer to save £310/year 'coz I would actually 'see' the saving's annually my ex-supercharged friend

 

[DrEskimo]

@DrEskimo - BUT I'd still prefer to save £310/year 'coz I would actually 'see' the saving's annually my ex-supercharged friend

Oh absolutely. The VED thing is a farce, so save the money where you can.

It was just a tongue in cheek comment about putting the extra cost into perspective....

So many rant and rave about giving an extra £310 a year in VED, yet don’t bat an eyelid about paying £1000 per year more in interest charges....!

“Ex-supercharged friend”.....

 

[Bristle Hound]

Oh absolutely. The VED thing is a farce, so save the money where you can.

It was just a tongue in cheek comment about putting the extra cost into perspective....

So many rant and rave about giving an extra £310 a year in VED, yet don’t bat an eyelid about paying £1000 per year more in interest charges....!

“Ex-supercharged friend”.....

@DrEskimo - Agreed !
& me too
& too true
Still a friend, just not supercharged anymore ...

 

[paradigital]

I'd definitely leave out the HHA as the retrofit is simple, it's also not really worth it, as the standard hill hold (couple of seconds worth of brake-hold with S-Tronic) is more than enough.

I'd aim to get VC in there.

Mine was under £40k, but I am aware that the prices have changed.

 

[MattW]

Waiting for delivery in Dec. I got it to within about £40 of the £40k limit
SB STronic
Daytona
Tech Pack
Matrix LED
Super Sport Seats
Red Calipers
Folding heated door mirrors
20/40/60 rear seat

I did want the advanced Key but couldn’t justify the tax increase

Mine due in Jan

Navarra
Sportback S Tronic
Tech Pack
20/40/20 split
Folding / Heated door mirrors
Matrix LED
Comfort Pack
Privacy

Would really love to add the 19s (and Mag as a result) but the 40k limit is giving me a nice restraining limit.

 

[Jassyo06]

**** the high VED tax ye only live once, all the options l have got some might say it's stupid and l can see there point but l get a real buzz from them.....

 

[Astraeus]

It looks from some of the specs above as though Audi have changed prices since I ordered mine in mid-September as there is no way the Tech Pack, Folding Mirrors and metallic paint could be had on an S-Tronic for under £40k.

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

 

[Bristle Hound]

**** the high VED tax ye only live once, all the options l have got some might say it's stupid and l can see there point but l get a real buzz from them.....

@jassyo06 - I hear what your saying mate
BUT I'm sorry I just can't/couldn't justify £450/year VED for 5 years, unless I win the lottery lol
If I have to compromise on spec/colour etc well so be it

I suppose the world would be a boring place if we were all the same mind ...

PS Just sent an enquiry off to DtD for my preferred spec S3 saloon as of post #1
Interested to see what they come back with

Oh & I changed the spec from alcantara/leather interior to full black leather interior

As for a S3 Sportback. I did a couple of quotes for 1 with my preferred spec & it comes back close enough for me to still go a S3 saloon TBH

 

[Jassyo06]

@jassyo06 - I hear what your saying mate
BUT I'm sorry I just can't/couldn't justify £450/year VED for 5 years, unless I win the lottery lol
If I have to compromise on spec/colour etc well so be it

I suppose the world would be a boring place if we were all the same mind ...

PS Just sent an enquiry off to DtD for my preferred spec S3 saloon as of post #1
Interested to see what they come back with

Oh & I changed the spec from alcantara/leather interior to full black leather interior

As for a S3 Sportback. I did a couple of quotes for 1 with my preferred spec & it comes back close enough for me to still go a S3 saloon TBH

I saved £170 on the insurance for the saloon it was way cheaper than the Sportback it was £520, so a saving to keep for road tax, also the discount l got was only £5700. Car was £48k so if anyone is getting a £5k discount off a sub £40 car there doing really well

 

[AndyB-S3]

Cracking spec on your car Jassy. Interested to see how the voodoo will look...

 

[Jassyo06]

Cracking spec on your car Jassy. Interested to see how the voodoo will look...

Hello Stranger? It's a bit of a Chameleon type of colour mate, it can look quite Nogaro.... ish in a lot of lights but quite bright in others... Prefer it when it looks lighter but my phone camera can't really capture the true colour

 

[Flying Scotsman]

@jassyo06 - I hear what your saying mate
BUT I'm sorry I just can't/couldn't justify £450/year VED for 5 years, unless I win the lottery lol
If I have to compromise on spec/colour etc well so be it

I suppose the world would be a boring place if we were all the same mind ...

PS Just sent an enquiry off to DtD for my preferred spec S3 saloon as of post #1
Interested to see what they come back with

Oh & I changed the spec from alcantara/leather interior to full black leather interior

As for a S3 Sportback. I did a couple of quotes for 1 with my preferred spec & it comes back close enough for me to still go a S3 saloon TBH

Just my opinion.....I approve ( the rare "Dougie Seal of Approval"!!! ) of removing the alcantara/leather removal to full leather. Alcantar looks good when new but does not wear well on frequently used surfaces, unless you like really shiny surfaces with wear, and leather is way easier to clean and care for.

 

[Bristle Hound]

Had a call back from DriveTheDeal on a S3 saloon in my preferred spec (see post #1)

3 year PCP with a £5k deposit on a purchase price of £34,770 (£5100 discount) 8000 miles / year
£349 / month
I didn't even get as far as the GFV lol

Was just a thought ...

I'm sticking with my cheapo PCH deal, altho' with all the probs in Catalonia at the mo I think my prov BW7 of 2018 is going to be pushed back
http://www.audi-sport.net/xf/threads/bhs-mystery-blue-mk3-seat-leon-cupra-300-5-door-manual.340323/

 

[Jassyo06]

Mate your deal /PCH delivery can be got within weeks, as l have been sent emails from a few leasing companies, but hey if a March delivery is your plan it all makes sense waiting

 

[Bristle Hound]

Mate your deal /PCH delivery can be got within weeks, as l have been sent emails from a few leasing companies, but hey if a March delivery is your plan it all makes sense waiting

@jassyo06 - When I ordered the Cupra it was on the basis of a January delivery, but TBH a March/April delivery would work better for me

 

[Snake Pliskin]

@jassyo06 - I hear what your saying mate
BUT I'm sorry I just can't/couldn't justify £450/year VED for 5 years, unless I win the lottery lol
If I have to compromise on spec/colour etc well so be it

I suppose the world would be a boring place if we were all the same mind ...

PS Just sent an enquiry off to DtD for my preferred spec S3 saloon as of post #1
Interested to see what they come back with

Oh & I changed the spec from alcantara/leather interior to full black leather interior

As for a S3 Sportback. I did a couple of quotes for 1 with my preferred spec & it comes back close enough for me to still go a S3 saloon TBH

What’s happening with the Seat mate ?

I get ya on the tax as it grates at me too.

I was playing with the configurator and dropping manual screws me up big time in terms of cash available for other options to keep it below £40k .... I’d have to have the virtual cockpit & B&O though personally - oh and privacy glass & folding mirrors - and I like Navarra ... but ibis is free. I like the extended leatherette too & know not having it would annoy me ... grrrr

 

[Snake Pliskin]

Had a call back from DriveTheDeal on a S3 saloon in my preferred spec (see post #1)

3 year PCP with a £5k deposit on a purchase price of £34,770 (£5100 discount) 8000 miles / year
£349 / month
I didn't even get as far as the GFV lol

Was just a thought ...

I'm sticking with my cheapo PCH deal, altho' with all the probs in Catalonia at the mo I think my prov BW7 of 2018 is going to be pushed back
http://www.audi-sport.net/xf/threads/bhs-mystery-blue-mk3-seat-leon-cupra-300-5-door-manual.340323/

Lol just read this post

Plenty of time to keep working on S3 deals then

 

[Pook]

Bin the Hill Hold Assist, the salesman at my dealership said that it was pointless as Stronic don’t need it, he was spot on I have never needed in the last two months of ownership, I can see that it would be useful on a manual.

I thought that about the Stronic until I drove the missus’ DSG golf with HH. For £75 it will be first on my list next time, it is very useful. Obviously not to stop rolling back as it’s an auto, but when you stop the HH holds/releases the car in an instant so no need to sit with foot on break at lights or in traffic etc. Trust me, it’s handy. Just shows what drivel the salesmen/women are capable of.