What options are/were mandatory for you and why?

[tommysmith]

Hi,

New member here and just wondered what options were important to you?

I picked up a lovely nearly new Scuba blue 65 plate 2.0 TDi S line quattro S tronic Sportback at the end of July and of course I would've preferred to have been able to purchase it from new to get my exact options specification, but alas my available funds would not allow for that.

However, for me, the deal breaker options were :

Quattro - purely for those tricky road conditions we can get during the winter or when parked on grass
Automatic - I've never owned an automatic before and was desperate to get my hands on the S tronic!
Full leather - I personally think they wear better than cloth if looked after and treated periodically
Heated seats - essential for those cold frosty days especially if seats are leather
Rear parking sensors - just to help prevent any scrapes and I was lucky enough to get parking plus
Silver roof rails - weird, but I just love the look of them!
Tech pack - for the higher resolution display, HDD, etc, etc
Low miles - for obvious reasons and luckily mine had less than 3k
Diesel - for the greater range

So I'm pretty happy really, although I would be over the moon if my car also had :

B&O sound system or even the upgraded Audi one as I only have the basic audio (which isn't too bad)
Folding door mirrors
Virtual cockpit as that thing looks amazing!
Interior light package as it seems to add an extra touch of class to an already very classy interior

So how about you guys/gals? (and apologies if a thread already exists discussing this)

 

[paradigital]

When I specced an A3 Saloon (before decided to throw caution to the wind and changing to the S3), my must have list was:

Full grey leather (I hate black on black with extra black and black highlights)
Heated Seats
Advanced Key (I refuse to go back to using a flip key in the steering column after my 2008 A6 and 2013 A4, shame the advanced key still looks awful)
Tech Pack (for the same reasons as you, HDD/Jukebox and bigger/better display)
S-Sport Suspension (for the 25mm lower ride, smaller arch gap)
Parking System Plus (had this in my A6 and A4, don't want to go without it any more)
Auto Dimming Mirror (again, not ever going back to a manually dimming mirror)
Hill Hold Assist
Quattro
S Tronic
2.0 TFSI

At the end of the day, the difference in cost between this and an S3 saloon was minimal (bar running costs), and I gained Magnetic Ride and the Audi Sound System. I've also now gained Virtual Cockpit, but that was a last minute addition to the spec, after ordering. I have however lost Hill Hold Assist from the spec, but I've not had that before so I doubt I'll miss out.

It also meant I got to spec Navarra blue rather than "settle" for Daytona Grey (not that I dislike Daytona, my A6 was Daytona).

 

[allanmb]

My absolute minimums are:

Quattro - I go skiing in Scotland and need it to get to the ski resorts
Satnav - Preferably full HDD and good quality screen
Good sound system
Rear parking sensors
Power and exhaust/engine noise

My big ticket items that I could live without if a good deal
Front parking sensors
Full Leather
Rain sensors

 

[KenL]

I have bought a totally basic A3 with zero options. It has everything I need but I appreciate that Audi has plenty options for people. Some of their options seem very expensive when ordering new.

Funny (for me at least) that parking sensors are important to people. Are we becoming de-skilled as drivers?

Really love the Quattro availability in a sensible car. I hate huge 4x4 cars!

 

[m4rv]

I recently picked up a 6 month old 8V S3.

The things I absolutely wanted (and I got) were:
Cruise control (not fussed about adaptive)
Auto wipers and headlights
S-tronic (although I would have considered manual if the right car came up when I was looking)
Sepang Blue

The car also came with:

Black styling pack - Which I quite like. I'm not a huge fan of the aluminium door mirrors on the S3 at all so the carbon fibre effect from the styling pack is a nice touch for me. I also much prefer the black front grille. It also adds privacy glass from the A-pillars back, which I don't care about either way.

Electrically folding door mirrors - Again, I quite like this feature. I have had people smash my wing mirrors off in the past with previous cars when I've been parked so I started always folding my mirrors in on the road side.

Rear parking sensors (just the basic system, is it standard anyway?) - I don't need parking sensors to park a LWB van, never mind a small hatchback, so these are superfluous. I'm hoping they don't make me lazy!

Xenon headlights - First time owning a car with xenons, they're great!
Auto dimming mirrors

The other things I really would have liked:

Front fogs - I really don't understand how a car of this calibre can come without front fogs as standard. I'm not one of these muppets who uses them when they aren't needed, but I really think I'll miss them when I really do need them. I've never owned a car without front fogs, but then again I've never owned a car with xenons, so maybe they'll make up for it.

B&O Sound system - I am a fairly serious audiophile and I've always spend a fair bit of money on sound system components for my cars (for quality, not just to be loud). The basic Audi sound system is UTTERLY TERRIBLE and I really would have liked the B&O. I have to decide wether to live with it in favour of not playing around with the car too much and installing my own system.

Interior lighting pack - When I see photos of this I'm always a little jealous.

Adjustable lumbar supports - The seats are pretty comfortable without but I think I might miss the lumbar support on longer journeys.

Things I'm not really bothered about, but would have been nice:
Sun roof
Adaptive cruise
LED headlights
Cornering lights
mono.pur (maybe - I'd have to try it to see if I'd prefer it)
Advanced key

 

[allanmb]

I forgot about cruise control. I couldn't live without that! I've driven the wife's car so many times and miss it greatly! No front fogs on the S3? Really? Man that sucks. That and the basic key have caught me out

The B&O is a massive improvement over the Audi sound system. Although I think I still prefer the Bose system that was in my previous A4...

I don't even know what this Mono Pur is!

 

[allanmb]

Funny (for me at least) that parking sensors are important to people. Are we becoming de-skilled as drivers?

No, but it sure does make getting in and out of tight car-parking spots much easier

 

[m4rv]

I forgot about cruise control. I couldn't live without that!

Yeah, I added it myself to an Astra I had a few years ago (really simple task on that car). Can't live without it since then!

The B&O is a massive improvement over the Audi sound system.

Yeah, I think for now I'll upgrade the door speakers with some decent ones I took out of my previous car and see if I can live with that. Otherwise it'll have to be a more comprehensive install.

I don't even know what this Mono Pur is!

As far as I understand its basically just soft leather (almost faux suede?) sections replacing what would be plastic parts on some of the door parts, and centre console. Perhaps someone can clarify...!

 

[S32B]

If I go for another S3- as there is now more as standard the only option boxes I'll tick are the parking sensors and the folding mirrors.

A mate of mine sold his car at the weekend, they gave him the price and then he said what about the £7000 worth of options the car has? They altered the price and gave him £300 more! Luckily the car was a company car before he bought it off them, so it wasn't his loss.

On a side note, he got £1200 more going to Fords of Winsford, when I took my car there I got £1000 more than Audi had offered.

 

[Jassyo06]

Many threads on this

If I go for another S3- as there is now more as standard the only option boxes I'll tick are the parking sensors and the folding mirrors.

A mate of mine sold his car at the weekend, they gave him the price and then he said what about the £7000 worth of options the car has? They altered the price and gave him £300 more! Luckily the car was a company car before he bought it off them, so it wasn't his loss.

On a side note, he got £1200 more going to Fords of Winsford, when I took my car there I got £1000 more than Audi had offered.

So pray tell what the facelift has more standard equipment when they charge you £700 for front&rear sensors and £125 for a rear view mirror...and nearly every other ****** option has increased around 20%....l paid £950 for a pano-roof its now nearly £1100....my car as it is...facelift is £2k more...kidology

 

[vacant]

Cruise Control - to stop me being naughty when traffic is clear.

Lot's of other stuff mine has, and a few bits more I'd like, Supersport Seats would have been the finishing touch I think.
Audi's approach to optional equipment is hilarious really, I'd be tempted to buy a New S3, but adding 4k to it just rules it out completely, meaning I'll need to buy a nearly new one, but that means the interest rate goes to some 2007-Era nonsense, which means....I might as well keep what I've got!

 

[S32B]

Many threads on this



So pray tell what the facelift has more standard equipment when they charge you £700 for front&rear sensors and £125 for a rear view mirror...and nearly every other ****** option has increased around 20%....l paid £950 for a pano-roof its now nearly £1100....my car as it is...facelift is £2k more...kidology

Sat nav, interior led lights now standard, yes the book price is more, but through carwow etc. the price with my options added is coming in less than what I paid for mine with a few things less on it. So in my case more = less.

 

[Jassyo06]

Sat nav, interior led lights now standard, yes the book price is more, but through carwow etc. the price with my options added is coming in less than what I paid for mine with a few things less on it. So in my case more = less.

sd satnav was standard prior to the facelift? interior leds was only £150 bangers,yeah i am talking list price...the S3 is just getting stupidly expensive for a medium sized hatchback...but all these big discounts...via carwow...etc....yer still paying for these.....through residuals and the GMFV...IF the discounts where less the residuals would be higher

 

[gamegenie]

I almost ended up getting a C-Class C250 but passed on it when I realized the W204 was long in the tooth and about to go away.

Then it came down to A4 vs A3, at the time A4 too was long in the tooth and it's interior looked old. So A3 was it.

Bare minimum requirements for me was:
Quattro - got to have All Wheel Drive for a luxury IMO.
Automatic Headlights - My previous two cars didn't have this. It's a pain having to do this manually.
Rear Parking camera - When I saw my sister's Infiniti G35 have this, I remember thinking my next car must have this.
Push Button start -- this two was the next big thing, one of my sister's 07 Lexus IS had this, and so did my other sister's Nissan Altima Hybrid.

Didn't necessarily need it, but the longer I thought about it as I was building it made sense .
MMI Navigation + this completed the look, as the non Nav had a tiny screen and I remember when I went to the dealer to look at the A3s on the lot, none of them had nav, and I remember pressing that "i" button and seeing on the dash it read "Nav not installed". I was instantly like my A3 won't have that barrier, ticked the MMI Navigation.

Sports Package - almost didn't go with this, in fact it shouldn't even been included because I begged for it not to be on because I was fearing the lower ride height, so glad the dealer kept it on, because the Sport seats, Drive Select, Paddle Shifters as well as the lower height completes the look as well.

 

[Jassyo06]

I almost ended up getting a C-Class C250 but passed on it when I realized the W204 was long in the tooth and about to go away.

Then it came down to A4 vs A3, at the time A4 too was long in the tooth and it's interior looked old. So A3 was it.

Bare minimum requirements for me was:
Quattro - got to have All Wheel Drive for a luxury IMO.
Automatic Headlights - My previous two cars didn't have this. It's a pain having to do this manually.
Rear Parking camera - When I saw my sister's Infiniti G35 have this, I remember thinking my next car must have this.
Push Button start -- this two was the next big thing, one of my sister's 07 Lexus IS had this, and so did my other sister's Nissan Altima Hybrid.

Sibling Rivalry....then...eh...lol

 

[vacant]

but all these big discounts...via carwow...etc....yer still paying for these.....through residuals and the GMFV...IF the discounts where less the residuals would be higher

Nailed.

The bit that everyone forgets, these sites and cheap lease deals, or pushing tons of cars to Motability etc....absolutely shaft residual values, which is why significant numbers of people are in negative equity.

 

[S32B]

sd satnav was standard prior to the facelift? interior leds was only £150 bangers,yeah i am talking list price...the S3 is just getting stupidly expensive for a medium sized hatchback...but all these big discounts...via carwow...etc....yer still paying for these.....through residuals and the GMFV...IF the discounts where less the residuals would be higher

No sat nav wasn't standard before the FL, yes led's were only £150.

What I'm saying is I can get more things on the FL S3 than what I have on mine, the discounted price is lower than what I got mine for and when you put the figure in the Audi site the monthly payments are also slightly lower. So the FL for me would be a good thing I just noticed I'd also get Audi Smartphone Interface which I haven't got now. I'm not bothered about the GFV as long as I'm happy with what I blow each month on the car, that is the main thing for me. As soon as I break even I'll switch, I only put £1000 down, so I see it as I switch from a near 2 year old car into a brand new FL one with more things on it for £1000 and the monthly payments stay the same/less.

 

[Jassyo06]

No sat nav wasn't standard before the FL, yes led's were only £150.

What I'm saying is I can get more things on the FL S3 than what I have on mine, the discounted price is lower than what I got mine for and when you put the figure in the Audi site the monthly payments are also slightly lower. So the FL for me would be a good thing I just noticed I'd also get Audi Smartphone Interface which I haven't got now. I'm not bothered about the GFV as long as I'm happy with what I blow each month on the car, that is the main thing for me. As soon as I break even I'll switch, I only put £1000 down, so I see it as I switch from a near 2 year old car into a brand new FL one with more things on it for £1000 and the monthly payments stay the same/less.

Sat nav was standard on the MY16 PFL cars at the same time they dropped the price of the technology package down from £1795 to £1495

 

[Gordo77]

No sat nav wasn't standard before the FL, yes led's were only £150.

What I'm saying is I can get more things on the FL S3 than what I have on mine, the discounted price is lower than what I got mine for and when you put the figure in the Audi site the monthly payments are also slightly lower. So the FL for me would be a good thing I just noticed I'd also get Audi Smartphone Interface which I haven't got now. I'm not bothered about the GFV as long as I'm happy with what I blow each month on the car, that is the main thing for me. As soon as I break even I'll switch, I only put £1000 down, so I see it as I switch from a near 2 year old car into a brand new FL one with more things on it for £1000 and the monthly payments stay the same/less.

How close are you to breaking even on the equity?

 

[S32B]

Sat nav was standard on the MY16 PFL cars at the same time they dropped the price of the technology package down from £1795 to £1495

Yes you're right, I remember now it came as standard about 12 month after I got mine.

How close are you to breaking even on the equity?

I owe 24k as of today and getting a buy price off Mike Brewert of £23,700. FoW are getting back to me tomorrow.

 

[Gordo77]

Yes you're right, I remember now it came as standard about 12 month after I got mine.


I owe 24k as of today and getting a buy price off Mike Brewert of £23,700. FoW are getting back to me tomorrow.

You are practically even. I reckon a dealer would cover that small amount and still give you a significant discount on a new S3.

 

[Gordo77]

Sat nav was standard on the MY16 PFL cars at the same time they dropped the price of the technology package down from £1795 to £1495

Did they not do that shortly after BMW announced all models in their range would have Sat Nav as standard?

 

[Georgeinabz]

Lumber support , back needs it , free with Volvo and Golf mind you


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[gamegenie]

I hated how LED headlights became available for Premium Plus trim A3s after my model year.
and on how it's standard on new A4 in the same trim.

-- The only caveat to that was finding that LED headlights on the pre-facelift 8V were worst than Xenon.

I also didn't like the fact that the S3 had headlamp washers equipped and the A3 didn't.
- But now it seems that Audi is moving away from headlamp washers all together.

I don't like how Audi purposely left out the High Beam Assist for US. But I'm going to figure out how to activate it once I get my ODBeleven.

 

[WarwickL]

Performance Pack (Australian offer) that gave use all we wanted such as LED headlights (much better pattern than xenons and a cleaner light), B&O, mag ride, red calipers, black inlays, mono pur, SS seats and 19 inch wheels. The PP here in Aussie is $AUD 4,900 so a no brainer considering what you get.

We added the black optics and folding/heated wing mirrors. It is laughable that folding mirrors are an option when Hyundai's here get them as standard.

None of the other options were of any interest except pe.rhaps the rear seat armrest and cupholders but wasn't worth the money optioning them (funny how our Golf R had them st standard)

The 'Assistance Package' was pathetic and easy to cross off our list. We detest sunroofs/moonroofs so easy to drop the pano roof off our list.

 

[leosayer1]

Mandatory for me and the missus was:

Autobox and petrol engine because of short journeys in heavy traffic
Sport seats for the bolsters and seat base tilt function
Lumbar support
Audi sound system
Rear parking sensors
Rear side airbags
Xenon headlights