Audi A3 TDI diesel wagon

Man I love those A3's. Tried for a bit to get the wife to want to get one but we really needed an SUV more since I tow my dirt bike trailer a bit and I can't with my work car.

 

I checked out the vw and audi. If audi offered an A3 tdi w quattro I'd be on it. Without the quattro its just a vw anyway so I may just get the golf.

 

What about the TDI Jetta coming out with the new design?

 

You don't think you could tow a small 2 rail trailer type thing with the A3?

 

The jetta (according to the sales guy) are all made in mexico. The golf and a3 are made in germany. I specifically asked because my ex gf had a mexican jetta and it was shit. That sealed it for me..... No jetta.

 

You could, the euros all do, but finding a hitch and then someone who'll install it in the US would be tough. Also, better look into the warranty about towing.

OP, do you have kids or is it just the two of you? Also, this may seem like common sense but, if you get the open sky roof, DO NOT get a black interior.

 

Now that's good info to know. Thanks for the heads up on that.

 

I saw those, but aren't they only bringing a thousand or so over? Looks pretty good, but these AWD 250hp-ish hatchbacks at the $33k price range just make me want to pony up a little extra and get an STi. Yea, I would have no soul, but I love the way they drive.

And I'll echo the other calls for the A3 with quattro and a manual. I can (and did) buy a quattro A4 with a manual and they tell me its worth less. That's fine with me because it also cost less. But the lower tier A3 or R32 doesn't even have the option. An A3 TDi with a 6 speed manual and quattro would be a pretty sensible car.

 

dont know much about the a3's, but my suggestion would be go with the quattro no matter what model you decide on.

got my allroad in january this year and love it, and the 318hp/382ftlb doesnt hurt

 

Is it exceedingly difficult to install a hitch on one? I expect it would be harder than on my GMC pickemuptruck, but I wonder how much? I wonder if one is even available, come to think of it. And then there's the wiring...

One 13 y/o kid, not full time. Shared custody. When she's with us we always take the truck (crew cab) because her Accord coupe is sooo damn small. Maybe I outta go see an A3 in person.

 

I've got a 99.5 Jetta tdi that I've pulled 2 bikes with on a 5x8 tilt bed getting 40mpg. I've even towed a 19' sailboat (1200lbs) and got 33-35 mpg. But it is well out of warranty! (220k)

 

It's not hard at all to install a hitch on most cars. I looked into putting a hitch on my mom's 2010 Golf, and it's really not hard at all, according to the instructions I found. It would be a smidge harder than putting a hitch on my Vibe, but only because the Vibe doesn't have anything in the way of anything else underneath the car.

The wiring is also easy-peasy. As I recall, I just had to splice into the appropriate taillight wires with the electronic doohickey that separates the signals so my trailer's blinkers and brake lights work correctly.

If I can do it, pretty much anyone who has ever opened a can with a can opener can do it...

 

Yep, plus towing with a car kinda sucks. We ended up with a GLK 350 that we both like better anyways. She really didn't like the look of the A3 and she is the one driving it 75% of the time so I wanted something she liked too.

 

Won't happen. Statistics are that less than 2% of the US auto-buying public has any interest at all in manual transmission vehicles, and that number continues to drop. If people won't buy manual transmission cars, automakers won't bring any to the US (or make them here). Expectations are that new-manufacture manual transmission cars will pretty much vanish from the US market over the next 5 years.

 

EVERYTHING should come with a hitch.







Good thread about installing a hitch on one of these here.

 

:down:

 

I've driven my buddies R32 with DSG....I think I hate it. The car is great, but man DSG can be shockingly harsh

 

We've had two Jetta Wolfsbrugs (Audi 2.0T motor and DSG). Awesome motor, but the first one had issues with the DSG. Car would roll backwards until it caught. The second one we bought (same config), was much better.

In the gas cars, the DSG gets significantly better millage, 24 vs. 21 city. For some reason, the TDI rates them both the same. Overall, you'll get much better millage than the window sticker says. VW actually published an independent report on their millage, claiming that their research showed at least 20% better millage than the EPA reports.

I'm trying to hold out for a Q5 Diesel, but it doesn't look to be coming to the US any time soon :-(

 

Even in the R8, it's a little bit abrupt. Maybe it would be better on a racetrack at full tilt, but around town it was a little bit much.

 

although you may not prefer it (id rather shift also) it is not garbage, but a very impressive design of pre selecting the following gear for extremely quick upshifting and rev matching downshifts.... once again audi using racing tech. to bring innovations to their production cars. Look at the TDI- amazing.... great mileage and gobs of torque- diesels now and not what we remember them as 20 years ago... slow, dirty and noisy.....