Description Of The Car

2006 Audi A3 Review

This is a high performance car. The 2.0 turbo charged engine is quite powerful. 6.7 seconds from 0 to 60 miles is pretty close. The optional DSG allows both automatic and manual shifting and it adds a lot of fun to drive. To a very large degree, the DSG softens up the time lag from the turbo charge.



The design is very detailed. The look is very European and is quite noble. Compare to the Japanese car, Audo A3 give you the feeling and performance and a lot of fun. People who test drive this car will like the car immediatelySuggestion: go with DSG



News

The A3 revises option-package features for 2007, but is otherwise unchanged for its third season in America. A sporty S3 with a tuned V6 making around 280 hp is expected during the 07 model year, says a reliable Detroit-based source. Its already available in Europe. An A3-based 4-passenger convertible is also said to be imminent, though its timing is unclear.
Audi is said to be working on a smaller "A1" hatchback to compete with the BMW Mini and other upscale subcompacts. A decision on U.S. sale is some years away, however, as is the car itself. Sources dont expect it before the end of the decade.


New For 2006 Audi A3

An all-wheel-drive V6 model joins Audis 2006 lineup of premium-compact 4-dr hatchbacks. The A3 shares some underskin design with the Jetta and Golf from Audi-parent Volkswagen. Its slightly smaller and less costly than Audis other premium compact car, the A4. The A3 offers two models. The 2.0 T has front-wheel drive and a 200-hp turbocharged 4-cyl engine. Added for 06 is the 3.2 quattro S-line. It has AWD and a 250-hp V6. The 2.0 T comes with a 6-speed manual transmission. Optional on the 2.0 T and mandatory for the 3.2 is Audis Direct Shift Gearbox, a sequential manual transmission (SMT). A3s come with ABS and traction/antiskid control. Also standard are front side airbags and curtain side airbags. Rear torso side airbags are optional. Leather upholstery, sport front seats, alloy cabin accents, and sport-tuned suspension are standard on the 3.2, optional on the 2.0 T. Both have split folding rear seatbacks. Options include a navigation system and Audis Open Sky System, a glass roof with a sliding glass sunroof over the front seats.

2006 Audi A3 Review: Interior & Exterior

Dont feel alone if you have trouble telling apart an A3 from an A4 Avant; the shared trapezoidal grille and L-shaped taillights could confuse anyone. It might help to break out the ruler: the A3s 168.7-inch length, 69.5-inch width, 56-inch height, and 101.5-inch wheelbase are 11.9, 0.3, 0.2, and 2.8 less. In other words, its an A4 with a foot hacked off its butt.

Take that literally: nearly all of the A3s space penalties were concentrated on its caboose. Instead of the A4s spacious 27.8 cubic foot cargo hold, the A3 strands its owner with a far lower 12.4 - far from useless, but geez, a Corolla holds 13.5. Beaten by a compact sedan - thats gotta hurt.

But that means less hurting for back seat passengers (the sideways engine also helps), who enjoy an acceptably high-up seat with a firm cushion, nice leather, good room for feet, and marginally more room for legs than in the A4 (34.8 inches - livable). This being an Audi, everyone gets adjustable head restraints and 3-point belts with pre-tensioners; color me comfortable. As in the A4, the only real problem is the shin-banger hard plastic trays lining the backs of the front seats.

The fronts are still the best in the house - left more than right. Drivers in V6-powered A3s enjoy a seat that envelops them at the press of those power controls while passengers wrestle with Volkswagens dorky, stiff, Industrial Revolution-style crank knob for angle adjustment. Once set, though, its as firm and refreshing as any other.

Unless you must stare into the sun, think of skipping the Open Sky option. It looks pretty spiffy with two glass panes and all (the front one opens) but there were a few comments of a "low ceiling" among regular 510" guys, and the overly holey cover invites scalp-baking on a summers day. Its cool, but kind of a pain.

That goes for a lot of things. Like the air conditioner that makes you toggle through its 12 speeds (?!) with the "+" and "-" buttons (ditto for temperature: one degree at a time), has no Off button, and makes a racket on any of the top 9. Like the radio that forces you to scroll through presets by twirling a knob (thats clockwise for up, counterclockwise for down) and then pressing it each time. Want to pick a station manually? Enter another mode, twirl the knob over to highlight the virtual "up" button and pound your way there 0.2 MHz at a time. Sorry bub, only one knob in the house.

And because the navigation system wants a piece of it too, youd better brush up on your Etch-A-Sketch skills. Browsing the area northeast of you involves the following: press the knob to call up the menu, twirl it down (counterclockwise, remember) to select scanning mode, press down, twirl the knob several times to go north, press down again, and now twirl it several times to go east. You must then zoom in deeply to see any useful information, which takes a few more clicks and twists in a different menu. Sure, all youd have to do in an Acura is grab the joystick and tilt it 45 degrees, but hey, tedious drudgery builds character, right?

The A3 has plenty such character-building exercises, like spelling out every destination by twirling that wheel like a merry-go-round of an alphabet, finding and clicking on one letter at a time. Oh, and because the nearly useless steering wheel audio controls (roller knobs!) cant change presets, youll be constantly switching between the map and audio menus. The windows also slip into auto-down mode too easily, and its too easy to confuse the turn signals with the cruise controls (the driver you high-beamed is always the first to know).

When youre as dumb as the A3, it really helps to be good-looking, and boy are the A3s innards beautiful. Its almost a replica of the A4 - an interior to copy if there ever were one - with a somehow tasty juxtaposition of buttery leather, classy aluminum, and even plastic thats so good its almost otherworldly. The shapes are interesting, the instruments crisp, the digital fonts seductive. Audis still the only automaker that knows the secret of making a BOSE stereo sound decent (even if they havent learned the secret of playing MP3s), and the woman trapped inside the navigation system is pleasant, articulate, speaks street names for you, and was apparently educated right here in Southern California ("take the I-10"). Nearly everything the hand touches gives that firm, decisive feedback that makes you want to touch it again.

Hmm, a car that jerks around your left brain while sending pleasure pulses up your right? So its true: Audis really are emotional.

When its time to shed the emotions, just tumble down the back seats and the A3 turns into a workhorse with 55.6 cubic feet to spare - not too high by wagon standards (the seats dont form a flat floor) but more than up to the task of everyday life.

Safety

A full complement of front and side airbags is standard on the A3, including torso-protecting side-impact airbags for front passengers, and head-protecting, full-length side curtains. Torso side airbags for rear passengers are optional. Four-wheel disc brakes with ABS and stability control are standard.

Powertrains and Performance

The heart of the front-wheel-drive A3 2.0T is a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine capable of 200 horsepower and 207 pound-feet of torque. Its enough to shoot the A3 to 60 mph in just 7 seconds. A six-speed manual transmission is standard, while Audis six-speed sequential-shifting DSG (Direct-Shift Gearbox) is optional. Offering even more performance is the A3 3.2 quattro, which features Audis 250-hp 3.2-liter V6 and the DSG transmission as standard. Audi claims a 0-60 time of 5.9 seconds for the 3.2 quattro.

Driving Impressions

With 200 horsepower on tap, the 2006 Audi A3 2.0T is certainly no slouch on the road. The 2.0-liter four doesnt suffer from turbo lag, and the optional DSG tranny effectively reduces BMWs SMG, Toyotas SMT and Ferraris F1-style transmissions to second-tier status with its smooth and fast gearchanges. The 3.2 provides even stronger acceleration, and drivers enjoy the same ultra-responsive DSG experience. The electromechanical steering does a superb job of dampening unwanted road vibrations and kickback without marring feedback, and the well-tuned suspension keeps the car buttoned down in the turns, even as midcorner pavement imperfections try to knock it off line. In typical Audi fashion, the ride is comfortably firm, and handling is just as sporty as its larger siblings.

overall review

Fun little car, with more room than the average sports car. The 4-cyl., 2.0 ltr engine means good fuel economy, especially for a 3,300lb car, and the turbo gives you awesome power with even better fuel economy. Easily zips in and out of traffic, and easily accelerates to 60mph in 6.5 secs or less, especially when you use the DSG sports drive, which puts the tach at 3,000rpms the moment you step on the gas, opens the throttle response, and eliminates the turbo-lag you get in normal drive. The only downside to playing with this little feature is that it does kill your gas milage, which is still good compared to most other cars.