# My new A3 is in!



## jp455 (Jun 1, 2010)

Hello all...as here in the UK we are starting to get the new A3 I figured I would post a couple pics of mine which I just got last week. I only have a couple phone pics right now but here they are. Soon Ill be adding some one off wheels to it! Still deciding on the color but Ill post as soon as they're on...stay tuned!


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## djdub (Dec 30, 2001)

Damn, that is so hot. Congrats sir! :thumbup:

Jealous from the US. :banghead:


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## jp455 (Jun 1, 2010)

Thanks! Well you guys will get yours soon enough. So far though Im enjoying being the only one on the road with this thing! I havent seen a single one yet. Its so subtle though that most people have no idea its the new A3. Oh well...hope the new wheels will give it some more pop.


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## djdub (Dec 30, 2001)

How do you like the overall feel of the car? Does it feel lighter? Handling? Is the interior quiet? How's the Stereo and creature comforts? :thumbup:

P.S. When you get new wheels, you can send me yours if you want? :laugh:


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## Fellow Gaucho (Aug 3, 2011)

Looks beautiful :thumbup:

Congrats.

Can't wait to see more pics ic:


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## jp455 (Jun 1, 2010)

The car feels great. Theres tons of grip but in classic Audi fashion there isnt a bunch of feel through the steering wheel. I have yet to really drive it in anger to see if I can feel it as it starts to understeer but Ill get to that soon. Overall it feels quite stiff but its not jarring. I have 18s on now (debating on whether to go 19s or stay with 18s) with 40 profile tires and the ride is never harsh. The brakes are great, theres a little travel up top where the brakes get squeezed just a little for a smooth stop and then the pedal gets quite firm when you really want to brake hard. 

The one thing that impressed me is how quiet it is on the highway! I was really surprised...almost no wind noise, zero engine noise, just a great long distance cruiser.

The stereo is really nice too. I dont have the full blown upper end speakers but the interface is nice, and the sound even in this medium pack is really good. the nice thing about this model is that the dash only has the A/C controls on it, no radio screen or anything. that pops up from the dash only when you need it so the dash is really clean and minimalist.

All around a great car!


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## Travis Grundke (May 26, 1999)

That's some great feedback, thanks. From what I understand (please correct me if I'm wrong), Audi is offering three suspension options: standard, sport and S-line, with the s-line being the most aggressive. 

In several reviews I've read people have pointed out that the sport suspension really is the best of both worlds for the majority of drivers as the S-line suspension becomes too jarring and brittle over bad roads. 

My biggest complaints about the 8P A3 have always been suspension harshness and excessive road/wind noise. I'm glad to hear that Audi appears to have addressed these issues. 

It's a shame about the steering - this is the one area where Audi really needs to step up its game. 



jp455 said:


> The car feels great. Theres tons of grip but in classic Audi fashion there isnt a bunch of feel through the steering wheel. I have yet to really drive it in anger to see if I can feel it as it starts to understeer but Ill get to that soon. Overall it feels quite stiff but its not jarring. I have 18s on now (debating on whether to go 19s or stay with 18s) with 40 profile tires and the ride is never harsh. The brakes are great, theres a little travel up top where the brakes get squeezed just a little for a smooth stop and then the pedal gets quite firm when you really want to brake hard.
> 
> The one thing that impressed me is how quiet it is on the highway! I was really surprised...almost no wind noise, zero engine noise, just a great long distance cruiser.
> 
> ...


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## jp455 (Jun 1, 2010)

Hi Travis...I actually got the Sport. I think the S-line might be too harsh for every day driving. 

In any case this brings and interesting point...right now I have 18s on the car with 225/40 tires. There is plenty of space for them without looking like Im driving an SUV. I would assume that the RS versions will have 19s which would fill in the remaining gap nicely if it keeps the 40 series tires (incidentally im leaning towards this option with the new wheels). So, if the S-line is lower than the Sport, and the RS is lower still and IF they do go with a 19 inch wheel they will have to at least have a 35 series tire. I can only imagine that suspension will be very rough.

On the other hand...I used to have an RS2 a long time ago (about 10 years ago) and that car had the tires under the fender (stock wheels and tires) and actually rode quite well.

I guess we will find out when the RS comes out!


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## Travis Grundke (May 26, 1999)

Ah, that's good to know!

Another question for you - one complaint I always had was with the hip and leg room for the driver. Any thoughts on that with your new A3?



jp455 said:


> Hi Travis...I actually got the Sport. I think the S-line might be too harsh for every day driving.
> 
> In any case this brings and interesting point...right now I have 18s on the car with 225/40 tires. There is plenty of space for them without looking like Im driving an SUV. I would assume that the RS versions will have 19s which would fill in the remaining gap nicely if it keeps the 40 series tires (incidentally im leaning towards this option with the new wheels). So, if the S-line is lower than the Sport, and the RS is lower still and IF they do go with a 19 inch wheel they will have to at least have a 35 series tire. I can only imagine that suspension will be very rough.
> 
> ...


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## jp455 (Jun 1, 2010)

The only complaint I have room wise is the foot rest. I know its sounds trivial but it seems to me that getting my foot past the clutch pedal to rest it on the foot rest is really tight. I have to think about it instead of simply moving it sideways. This might just be because its a right hand drive car, not sure.

Other than that its good! I drove a 2012 Golf for a few months and it was definitively tighter than this all around.


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## TobyG (Oct 30, 2012)

Congrats and welcome to the club (got mine a couple of weeks ago - see separate thread on here).


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## jp455 (Jun 1, 2010)

Saw that...pics look good! Certainly a lot more detail than mine haha! Unfortunately I lost my camara during the Olympics. Ill see about posting better pics once the wheels are done and mounted.


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## TobyG (Oct 30, 2012)

I'll chip in my thoughts on some of the questions too if I may 



djdub said:


> How do you like the overall feel of the car? Does it feel lighter? Handling? Is the interior quiet? How's the Stereo and creature comforts? :thumbup:


It feels more refined than my old 8P, in all regards. It's quieter, better insulated and less road noise. The 2.0TDI is slightly noisier than the 170PS unit in my old 8P but that could just be because it's new right now. I have the B&O sound system and it's amazing. Only had it just beyond half volume so far but that was enough to shake my insides 



Travis Grundke said:


> From what I understand (please correct me if I'm wrong), Audi is offering three suspension options: standard, sport and S-line, with the s-line being the most aggressive.
> 
> In several reviews I've read people have pointed out that the sport suspension really is the best of both worlds for the majority of drivers as the S-line suspension becomes too jarring and brittle over bad roads.
> 
> My biggest complaints about the 8P A3 have always been suspension harshness and excessive road/wind noise. I'm glad to hear that Audi appears to have addressed these issues.


I have the sport suspension which is standard on the Sport and S-Line models. My last 8P was an S-Line and the suspension is very much improved over that. Still firm but nowhere near as harsh or jiggly as before - a major improvement.

That said, I'd be very surprised if the suspension wasn't tweaked somewhat for the US market, due to your differing roads and possibly even the America preference for softer suspension.



Travis Grundke said:


> Another question for you - one complaint I always had was with the hip and leg room for the driver. Any thoughts on that with your new A3?


I have the perforated leather/alcantara sports seats in mine and there's certainly a decent amount of room in them, possibly a little more than the seats in my last car. One thing I've noticed is that you don't seem to sink down into them quite as much as before, which may be a good or bad thing. Might also be just because they're new and will wear in a bit.

As for foot space, I can't say I've noticed much difference, nor had any trouble with the clutch foot rest. Doubt that'd be a problem in the US anyway as they'll be left-hand drive cars, which always have more space to the left of the clutch, and I'd also imagine the vast majority will be autos anyway, if not all of them.

One difference I've noticed is they've done away with the old floor-hinged accelerator, it's now a "drop-down" pedal like the others.


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## jp455 (Jun 1, 2010)

Precisely for this reason I think I will go with 19 inch wheels (keep the same 40 profile tire though), because I think this suspension will be able to handle it.

We shall see...


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## jp455 (Jun 1, 2010)

Well I decided on the color for the one off set...Ill only give a hint for now but they will be blue. Ill post pics when they're done!


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## Dave Bro (Jun 2, 2012)

Looks good.


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## jp455 (Jun 1, 2010)

Thanks! I think it will look even sharper with the new wheels. Got an extremely rough photoshop of it and it looks good so far...


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## CanadianTurbo (May 9, 2001)

Looks amazing in white!! Congrats on the new car!!


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## jp455 (Jun 1, 2010)

Thanks! The white does look on it. The one shame is that the metallic is so subtle that it doesnt come out unless its really sunny. And you know what that means in the UK


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