S3 S-Tronic Question

[Simon L]

Subaru v Audi S3 ...................hands down the most pointless comparison in the motoring universe!!

Totally different markets.............in every possible sense.

 

[Scott.T]

Subaru v Audi S3 ...................hands down the most pointless comparison in the motoring universe!!

Totally different markets.............in every possible sense.

But perhaps a certain Subaru owner is now maturing with age, but not quite ready for pipe and slippers.
For said person what car marque/model would you recommend. I thought I was in the right place for the more mature owner wanting a little pace ?

Funny how this thread has turned out. I ask a question about the S-tronic behaviour in manual mode and end up being ridiculed for owning a Subaru.

 

[Simon L]

But perhaps a certain Subaru owner is now maturing with age, but not quite ready for pipe and slippers.
For said person what car marque/model would you recommend. I thought I was in the right place for the more mature owner wanting a little pace ?

Funny how this thread has turned out. I ask a question about the S-tronic behaviour in manual mode and end up being ridiculed for owning a Subaru.

Hey, I'm not ridiculing anyone mate.............wasn't me that brought up Subby's!

.........but they are completely different markets. S3's are most definitely for the more mature owner wanting a little pace. Nothing wrong with pipes and slippers..................don't forget the horlicks too

 

[Scottyg]

I've been away for a few hours and this is now a Scooby v S3 debate!

 

[WarwickL]

No personal ridicule from me either ?

In terms of a DSG vehicle, the S3 is one of the best IMO.

Has its unicorns but far less than a Subie.

 

[WarwickL]

I've been away for a few hours and this is now a Scooby v S3 debate!

Damn unicorns.

DSG in manual mode, works great for moi.

Still, I knew that from the test drive before I purchased

 

[Scottyg]

Where in Queensland are you? Got a mate in Noosa Bay. I know it's a vast place.

 

[WarwickL]

Where in Queensland are you? Got a mate in Noosa Bay. I know it's a vast place.

Noosa Heads or Noosa ?

About 30 minutes away

 

[Scottyg]

TBH no idea. He's right on the beach next to a very plush looking golf course.

 

[WarwickL]

Sounds like Coolum. Just south of Noosa.

 

[h5djr]

Genuine question but I've driven for hundreds of miles non-stop in many manuals and never got out of any car thinking my legs ache due to all that clutch use. Do people really have a problem using their left leg? Do they find it tiring? Or is it seem as a chore?

Honestly, I'm curious!

Not so much on a long journey but definitely in stop start traffic. If I'm using ACC in traffic it works best in D.

 

[h5djr]

The 7 speed dry clutch DSG has a better response from standstill, compared to the 6 speed wet clutch DSG.

However. Both DSG's are slower (when not using LC) to exit busy junctions and roundabouts, compared with a manual gearbox.

This is irrefutable.

If we are talking about the S3 as the OP was, then it will be the 6-speed wet-clutch version as the S3 produces too much torque for the lighter 7-speed dry-clutch. I have a 6-speed in my 2.0TDI-184 A3 and my wife has the 7-speed in her 1.2TSI Polo and they both behave just the same from standstill. Perhaps there is a slight delay in D but in manual mode I don't get any delay pulling away in 1st gear. I usually let the s-tronic change up to 2nd as it comes up so quickly and then I take over after that.

 

[S32B]

Simples= S-Tronic lower ££ pcp...

If you go S-tronic it's more on a pcp not less, it costs £1480 extra to start with.

Over 3 years, 35 payments on an S-tronic are £822 more, it's more 'standard' 10% deposit £148 and then if you buy the car at the end it's £713 more on the final payment = +£1683 in total.

 

[Scott.T]

Well I think I have drawn my conclusion, and that is :
In 26 years of driving various vehicles I have never felt the need to complain about or question the abilities of a manual gearbox.
My experience of the S-tronic in an S4 and reading the comments above lead me to believe they all suffer from issues or compromise.
Why would you choose an S-tronic if you did not have long commutes, regular traffic issues or a disability. Probably the exhaust note noises and auto blips.

However sports manuals are now being configured to perform auto blips and flat foot shifting. So that S-tronic benefit over a manual will soon disappear.

I hear that the Manual option on the new BMW M2 is having quite a bit of uptake.

 

[........]

If you go S-tronic it's more on a pcp not less, it costs £1480 extra to start with.

Over 3 years, 35 payments on an S-tronic are £822 more, it's more 'standard' 10% deposit £148 and then if you buy the car at the end it's £713 more on the final payment = +£1683 in total.

Yeah hear ye,but the S-tronic has higher residuals way higher

 

[Simon L]

Well I think I have drawn my conclusion, and that is :
In 26 years of driving various vehicles I have never felt the need to complain about or question the abilities of a manual gearbox.
My experience of the S-tronic in an S4 and reading the comments above lead me to believe they all suffer from issues or compromise.
Why would you choose an S-tronic if you did not have long commutes, regular traffic issues or a disability. Probably the exhaust note noises and auto blips.

However sports manuals are now being configured to perform auto blips and flat foot shifting. So that S-tronic benefit over a manual will soon disappear.

I hear that the Manual option on the new BMW M2 is having quite a bit of uptake.

Scott, if you've weighed everything up and a manual is for you that's great, but don't kid yourself manuals don't have issues. A quick search of this forum will tell you otherwise.

Personally I think you're overplaying the s-tronic 'issues' and 'compromises' as they really don't effect your enjoyment of the car day to day. They are simply things that could have been improved on in a perfect world!

 

[h5djr]

The other thing to consider is that the s-tronic in an S4 is a totally different model to the one that is fitted to an S3 or any other A3 model because of the longitudinal mounted engine in the S4 and the transverse engine in the A3 range. I should make sure you drive an S3 with an s-tronic before you finally make up your mind.

The last A3 I had with a manual gearbox had several different issues, mainly down to the synchromesh. It was not pleasant to drive which is one of the main reasons I was very keen to try an s-tronic when they first became available on the A3. After that test drive I have never looked back and would certainly never want another manual.

 

[S32B]

Yeah hear ye,but the S-tronic has higher residuals way higher

I wouldn't say it's way higher! it's £713 higher if you trade in, but it's cost you more than that for the time you've had it. £822 in extra payments and £148 more deposit = £970, so you are in fact £257 worse off.

Swings and roundabouts

For some strange reason on a TT it works out better to get the S-tronic, as the monthly payments are the same and the GFV is higher!!!

 

[........]

I wouldn't say it's way higher! it's £713 higher if you trade in, but it's cost you more than that for the time you've had it. £822 in extra payments and £148 more deposit = £970, so you are in fact £257 worse off.

Swings and roundabouts

View attachment 76487

For some strange reason on a TT it works out better to get the S-tronic, as the monthly payments are the same and the GFV is higher!!!

Well search the Audi UK used cars ex demo's the S-tronic commands more than the manual by a good margin spec for spec,very few punters spec the manual not popular at all, naively l nearly specced a manual but my son said no way,s-tronic better and are far more desirable in the second hand market,luckily enough l don't really need/worry about when it comes to change me car.
Least desirable used S3"'s are 3 door manuals....

 

[S32B]

lol sounds like you are trying to convince yourself there Either car is given a GFV, so when you take it back that is what you get...desirable or not for the next buyer It's a personal choice which you go for, as long as the person owning either is happy, then why worry about desirability for the next buyer? That's what GFV's are for

 

[Beery]

But perhaps a certain Subaru owner is now maturing with age, but not quite ready for pipe and slippers.
For said person what car marque/model would you recommend. I thought I was in the right place for the more mature owner wanting a little pace ?

Funny how this thread has turned out. I ask a question about the S-tronic behaviour in manual mode and end up being ridiculed for owning a Subaru.

I loved my impreza! With the big 5" can on the back and the dump valve up front it was great fun

 

[Scott.T]

I loved my impreza! With the big 5" can on the back and the dump valve up front it was great fun

I tried both. Were fun for a blast round the industrial estate but they were taken off a few days later. 98db from my Group 'N' system is enough for me. Thanks for the like btw.

 

[........]

lol sounds like you are trying to convince yourself there Either car is given a GFV, so when you take it back that is what you get...desirable or not for the next buyer It's a personal choice which you go for, as long as the person owning either is happy, then why worry about desirability for the next buyer? That's what GFV's are for

M
Don't need any self comvincement my son sells em for a living l just respect his opinion on the matters of car's

 

[Steve!]

Once warmed up I stick it in sport / manual... Didn't buy it to be smooth or economic so don't expect it to be .. Except on the motorway I leave it D and drive select on auto.

 

[S32B]

M
Don't need any self comvincement my son sells em for a living l just respect his opinion on the matters of car's

I've spent the last 20 years building them for a living, so I know a thing or two as well I always buy what I want, not what I think will be more desirable for the person who buys it from the dealership after me

 

[Scott.T]

One last thing I remember I didn't like about the S-tronic, although this is a general 'Automatic' issue.
When reverse or parallel parking I had to keep checking the stick position either at the stick or dash display to confirm I was either in 'D' or 'R' to manoeuvre. So not only are you looking all around you to check clearances and good parking alignment you also have to keep checking things internally to make double sure you are going to go back when you want to go back and forward when you want to go forward.

With a manual there is no need to check gear position as you know buy touch whether you are in 1st or reverse. This leaves you to concentrate on what's going on outside the car rather then inside.

This also explains why so many car of cliff, car leaves parking bay and ends up on railway line or car launches 3 floors out of a multi-storey end up being 9/10 times Automatic's.

So to summarise and to remind myself why I sold the S4 :

1. The approach down my road requires a low gear and a degree of clutch control. An S-tronic that can't decide whether to use 1st or 2nd makes this awkward.
2. The S-tronic in Auto mode decides to change gear just as I start to enjoy/feel the torque curve increase. Hence dropping me out of the torque zone.
3. In Dynamic mode or manual mode an occasional clunk into 1st as you draw to a holt is not something I expect from a £45000 car.
4. Pull away out of a T-junction into a 40mph zone was either casual or full bore, no middle ground.
5. Double checking of drive selection position during parking and lack of clutch control could make tight parking condition quite fraught. I would be able to get in a much smaller gap in a manual.
6. The temporary override of Auto seemed to have no logic that I could fathom regarding when it would drop out of Manual override and back to auto. Sometimes it played the game and held in Manual. Other times it dropped back to Auto too soon.

 

[........]

One last thing I remember I didn't like about the S-tronic, although this is a general 'Automatic' issue.
When reverse or parallel parking I had to keep checking the stick position either at the stick or dash display to confirm I was either in 'D' or 'R' to manoeuvre. So not only are you looking all around you to check clearances and good parking alignment you also have to keep checking things internally to make double sure you are going to go back when you want to go back and forward when you want to go forward.

With a manual there is no need to check gear position as you know buy touch whether you are in 1st or reverse. This leaves you to concentrate on what's going on outside the car rather then inside.

This also explains why so many car of cliff, car leaves parking bay and ends up on railway line or car launches 3 floors out of a multi-storey end up being 9/10 times Automatic's.

So to summarise and to remind myself why I sold the S4 :

1. The approach down my road requires a low gear and a degree of clutch control. An S-tronic that can't decide whether to use 1st or 2nd makes this awkward.
2. The S-tronic in Auto mode decides to change gear just as I start to enjoy/feel the torque curve increase. Hence dropping me out of the torque zone.
3. In Dynamic mode or manual mode an occasional clunk into 1st as you draw to a holt is not something I expect from a £45000 car.
4. Pull away out of a T-junction into a 40mph zone was either casual or full bore, no middle ground.
5. Double checking of drive selection position during parking and lack of clutch control could make tight parking condition quite fraught. I would be able to get in a much smaller gap in a manual.
6. The temporary override of Auto seemed to have no logic that I could fathom regarding when it would drop out of Manual override and back to auto. Sometimes it played the game and held in Manual. Other times it dropped back to Auto too soon.

My car....never clunk's into first gear, as for the Reversing thing.......????

 

[NickyF]

Sounds like you like to have complete control over the engine / gearbox so I think you've made the right choice. I get the parking thing BTW.

On a thrash around some empty roads, I think the S-Tronic is better and more fun. The problems come with the day to day boring stuff like parking, t-junctions and driving normally in D where I think the achilles heals that Simon explained (basically changing gears at the wrong time) really let it down. I think if I lived somewhere remote where most of the driving was fun I'd probably go for S-Tronic but living and working where I do (London) the irritants affect a large proportion on my driving and so manual is the way to go.

 

[WarwickL]

A fair amount of alcohol consumption in this thread it seems.

 

[veeeight]

S-tronic hell is doing a 5 or 6 point turn in a busy area.

The delay between R and D and R and D and R and D and R and D can start increasing in proportion to the shortness of temper.

 

[WarwickL]

S-tronic hell is doing a 5 or 6 point turn in a busy area.

The delay between R and D and R and D and R and D and R and D can start increasing in proportion to the shortness of temper.

Must be a UK thing.

Weird as mine is running a UK tune and yet no delay between D and R (well, mostly it lives in M or S)

No clunks or this reversing palaver about not knowing what direction the car is likely to go in - sounds like driver skill or lack of.

 

[........]

A fair amount of alcohol consumption in this thread it seems.

Yip

 

[NickyF]

That kind of pouring requires some skill that it turns out I do not have. Sobriety for me I'm afraid.

 

[pburv]

That kind of pouring requires some skill that it turns out I do not have. Sobriety for me I'm afraid.

It might be cheaper to sniff?

 

[........]

View attachment 76587 It might be cheaper to sniff?

You not acquired the gif force yet.........

 

[pburv]

You not acquired the gif force yet......... View attachment 76588

Nope Starting to feel a little left out master Yoda

 

[veeeight]

Must be a UK thing.

Weird as mine is running a UK tune and yet no delay between D and R (well, mostly it lives in M or S)

No clunks or this reversing palaver about not knowing what direction the car is likely to go in - sounds like driver skill or lack of.

Nope not a UK thing.

The DSG is well known for being useless at rocking between D and R to extricate when stuck (yes even quattro) - in this instance a manual or traditional torque converter is streets ahead.

DSG is good at many things, but instantaneous engagement between D and R and vice versa (especially on an incline) is not one of them.

 

[S32B]

REAL MEN DRIVE MANUALS FULL STOP.





Quick close the thread before anyone can reply

 

[h5djr]

REAL MEN DRIVE MANUALS FULL STOP.





Quick close the thread before anyone can reply

Too late.... What is the definition of a REAL Man? apart from a someone who likes MANual gearboxes.

 

[S32B]

Still has hot blood running through his veins, full use of both legs and arms and doesn't get a free bus pass

Edit* Forgot the main one: Real men keep hold of the TV remote = they are in control