2012 Audi A3 20 Tdi Premium Plus Wagon Fwd Review
The Car Connection Expert Review
Editor
February 26, 2012
Likes
- Splendid Due south tronic transmission
- Versatile layout
- Handling and roadholding
- Fuel efficiency
- Fashionable outside
Dislikes
- Route dissonance
- Bluetooth is a pricey option
- $40k loaded
Buying tip
features & specs
4-Door HB Manual FrontTrak 2.0T Premium
4-Door HB Manual FrontTrak 2.0T Premium Plus
iv-Door HB Transmission FrontTrak PZEV 2.0T Premium
The fashionable, versatile 2012 Audi A3 is as deft for the city commute as it is at ease on the highway.
Every bit Audi's entry model for the U.S. marketplace, the Audi A3 pairs a practical hatchback body mode with finely fatigued lines and an interior that feels fashionable enough for the Audi badge. Yet information technology costs but a few thousand more than than a number of comparable mainstream-brand vehicles.
Audi'due south sleek A3 doesn't look much different than when information technology start made its U.S. debut for 2006; yet it still looks quite fresh and contemporary from the outside. Inside, it's first to await a scrap dated, mainly because most of the other Audi models accept been recently refreshed and taken a new blueprint direction, especially with respect to interior trim.
Drivers can choose from two different engines on the A3, and while their power figures are quite different, their operation is remarkably similar. A 140-hp, 2.0-liter turbodiesel inline-4 is narrowly our editors' favorite, considering it churns out loads of low-rpm torque, making highway trips a cakewalk, but the the 200-hp, 2.0-liter gas turbo-4 feels very eager and doesn't need to be revved high either to tap into the torque. In both, the dual-clutch transmission doesn't cut into the driving fun, the way conventional automatics can. All-bike drive isn't available in turbodiesels or on cars fitted with the manual transmission, then much of the A3 lineup is front-wheel drive. Savvy commuters will probably observe the TDI model's 42-mpg highway fuel economy irresistible.
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The A3 has steering that's pretty light, only it has expert roadholding and a refined driving feel overall. We recommend Audi's magnetic ride system, every bit it improves ride, handling, and the entire experience. In any case, the A3 hits a sweet spot in both maneuverability and quick response, even so relaxed highway cruising, so it'due south equally well-suited to the open road as information technology is for urban commuting.
Compared to whatsoever other vehicles approaching $30k, the A3 has a well-organized, exquisitely trimmed interiors. Tailored leather seats yield a low driving position, and could use more bolstering. The dorsum seat is just okay. Two adults will be fine back there, as long as those in front end are willing to requite up an inch or two of legroom. One of our only complaints-and one you'll need to listen for on the test bulldoze-is that road coarseness can sound into the cabin, and the ride with the standard pause can be harsh over Rust Chugalug potholes.
The A3'southward standard features-and especially its options-are also what help distinguish it from sporty mainstream entries like the Mazda 3 or Subaru WRX. Power features, automatic climate control, leather, keyless entry, and a 140-watt, ten-speaker audio system come up standard. Premium Plus cars get a power driver'southward seat, steering-cycle audio controls, and ambience LED lighting, with options for premium sound, navigation, and USB/iPod connectivity. Bluetooth isn't free on the A3: it'southward office of a $2,000 package.
The A3's impressively truthful to Audi's spartan styling language.
The Audi A3 blends the styling of a hatchback with the more elongated wait of a wagon, and although that may suggest it looks a trivial laurels, nothing could be further from the truth. The A3 should sit well with anyone who enjoys make clean German language design, and in item Volkswagen Golf game fans looking to upgrade to something a little more premium.
Audi added some sportiness to the A3 in 2010 by making some of the previously optional Due south line package standard. Items like the roof spoiler, reskinned bumpers and aluminum trim brand the A3 a lot more macho-looking than some of its rivals.
In that location'southward no denying that the A3 is starting to bear witness its age subsequently beingness on the market place for so long, merely a successor is planned for 2013 so some buyers may desire to resist buying the current auto.
The interior of the A3 is a very nice place to be, with round, chrome-trimmed air-conditioner vents and well laid out buttons all adding to the absurd German factor. The cockpit may seem to be well-anile at this betoken, merely in its price class it withal looks well-fitted and refined.
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The A3 isn't thrilling just it is a well-counterbalanced performer.
There are 2 different engines to choose from when buying the 2012 Audi A3, one of them diesel. Both are ii.0-liter iv-cylinder units that are turbocharged, nevertheless, the diesel fuel is the much more fuel efficient option.
The base unit is the gasoline one. It's rated at 200 horsepower and 207 pound-feet of torque, and will accelerate the A3 from 0-lx mph in 7.1 seconds with the standard six-speed transmission manual. Opt for the half dozen-speed dual-clutch gearbox, or 'S tronic' in Audi-speak, and you'll come across that acceleration figure drop to 6.ix seconds. For even faster acceleration y'all'll need to opt for the quattro all-wheel bulldoze, which together with the S tronic gearbox will meet your 0-60 times drop to a brief vi.7 seconds.
The TDI turbodiesel is the slower option but with the 0-sixty time taking less than 9 seconds information technology's still faster than some rivals. Where the TDI really shines is its stiff torque, which peaks at 236 pound-feet at merely one,750 rpm. This translates into strong off-the-line functioning, which counts more in the real world. Note, the diesel is simply offered with the South tronic gearbox.
The Due south tronic is worth a mention on its own. It tin exist fully automatic or manually-operated and it'southward more fuel efficient than a conventional manual. It also shifts very speedily and decisively.
The Audi A3 driving experience is a joy in almost respects: light, directly, and refined. Audi's magnetic ride system is available on the A3. The adaptive-action shock absorber control organization uses voltage to electrify a magneto-rheological fluid in the shocks to modify their response within milliseconds, allowing the intermission to quickly change character from soft to firm, depending on driving or route weather.
Yous accept the choice betwixt Normal and Sport programs, which can exist toggled with the flip of a switch. The electric power steering system doesn't wind and unwind quite like a traditional hydraulic system would, though it provides the A3 with good maneuverability and a combination of crisp response at depression speed and adept stability on the highway.
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The A3 splits the quality difference between luxury cars and budget sedans.
Audi is a leader when it comes to quality interiors and its A3, despite being on the everyman rung of the automaker's U.S. lineup, has none of the signs of cost cut that some rivals are guilty of with their entry-level offerings. The buttons are all well laid-out and exquisitely crafted and the materials have a premium look and feel to them.
The standard leather-trimmed seats are very comfortable, though some may find they lack side sufficient side support. You lot likewise sit very low in the A3, which can brand getting in and out a scrap tough for older drivers, but the plus side is that you have dandy visibility out front.
There's no denying that cabin space in this five-seater is tight. For the segment, rear-seat accommodations are just adequate, allowing you to squeeze a pair of adults in there--provided the passengers in front end don't mind scooting frontward an inch or two.
Storage space in the trunk is also disappointing. The hatchback provides 19.v cubic feet of storage when the rear seats are upwardly, merely fold these down using the 60/40-carve up and you lot have a nearly flat storage space that expands to 39 cubic feet.
While cabin ambiance is generally dainty in the A3, road noise--and the thrum of the rather low-profile tires--tin be intrusive on coarse surfaces, and ride quality with the standard suspension tin be somewhat potent.
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Crash-test scores have been excellent in the A3.
If you're in the market for a small car and vehicle safety is a priority for y'all, then the 2012 Audi A3 should be high on your listing of cars to test drive. It comes generously equipped with almost of the latest safety gear as standard, including stability control, anti-lock brakes, front-seat side-affect, full-length head-pall airbags, and rear side-thorax bags.
At that place are likewise three-bespeak safety belts with pretensioners, a hill hold assist to forbid your vehicle from rolling backwards when you lot left of the brakes, and even compression protection for passenger compartment windows.
We recommend opting for the added traction of the quattro all-wheel bulldoze organization if you live in an area where winter driving requires you to alter your tires.
The federal government's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) hasn't tested the 2012 A3 though the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has, finding it to score the highest rating of 'good' in its frontal starting time, side, and roof bear upon crash tests.
Adding large options can enhance the A3'due south cost big-time.
At the end of the day the A3 is a luxury machine, and when information technology comes to luxury you usually have to pay actress for features. That said, the A3 comes reasonably well-equipped for its segment simply if y'all want some niceties be prepared to pay for them.
The good news is that even in base of operations 'Premium' trim you go 17-inch alloy wheels, daytime running lights, sportier S line body trim, a leather-wrapped steering cycle, leather upholstery on the seats, a 10-speaker (yes, 10 speakers!) stereo, and dual zone climate control.
Pay a little more for the 'Premium Plus' and you go Audi's funky LED detailed headlamps with bright xenon bulbs. You lot also get an ambient lighting bundle for the cabin, controls for the sound volume, Bluetooth telephone and audio seek functions on the steering bicycle, and a powered driver's seat.
The downside is that several tech features that are increasingly included as standard on much more affordable cars-like a Bluetooth hands-free interface-remain optional on the A3. Bluetooth is offered every bit role of a $600 Bluetooth Value Package (that doesn't seem like value to us) on the base of operations A3, though as mentioned above it's included as standard in Premium Plus models. But otherwise the options list is very long, including a Sport Package that'south more than appearance (it also includes a sport suspension) and an open-sky sunroof. Just on acme Premium Plus models, y'all tin can quickly load the A3 up past the $40k mark.
If you tin can afford it, we recommend getting the high-cease Bose sound arrangement as well as navigation and the iPod integration kit.
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The 2012 Audi A3 TDI is a very green pick, with i of the highest fuel-economy ratings of whatsoever luxury-brand vehicle.
Both engine options in the 2012 Audi A3 are fuel efficient but when it comes to mileage supremacy, the two.0-liter TDI diesel fuel is the mode to get. The diesel-powered A3 volition go you an EPA-rated mileage of thirty/42 mpg urban center/highway or 34 mpg combined, which is comparable to some hybrid models. In real world testing our editors have seen more than 45 mpg in long-booty interstate cruising and even depression 30s in stop-and-go situations.
If you have to live with gasoline the regular 2.0-liter engine will however impress yous with its economy. In its most fuel efficient front-wheel drive setting with the Southward tronic gearbox, yous'll get 22/28 mpg metropolis/highway or 24 mpg combined. Opting for the quattro all-wheel drive will only run across your city mileage drop 1 mpg and so we recommend you add this feature for its extra condom and performance.
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