It has been a while since I've been in Audi products so I thought that it would be wise to start towards the lower end of the range with their A3 2.0T s-line ...Wait a minute, are you sure that they gave me the right keys?
It certainly doesn't look like a starting point to me. I guess that it could be termed a small hot hatchback, but compared to some others, the A3 starts where many of them end up.
My tester being white, it more or less jumped out at me in the parking lot. With its deep black Audi grille, a full black glass roof and some very nice looking 17 inch rims and tires, it all combined to make the white paintwork dazzle. Add to this some well placed s-line decals, and the A3 starts to appear very similar to its VW stable mate, the GTI.
That in itself is a problem for me. I'm going to have a hard time trying not to compare this with the GTI, which is a product of the same group and a vehicle I recently tested. Of course, there are other manufacturers who make these hot hatchbacks. There's the Mazda speed3 for a start, a vehicle that's getting a lot of attention lately, but I can't think of another German manufacturer who truly competes in this super-quick hot hatchback segment of the market.
The interior is also somewhat similar in style to that of the VW product. Yet, in many ways, it feels considerably more up-market. This strikes me as rather strange as these two vehicles aren't that far apart, cost wise, especially if you look at the base sticker price of the A3 to a loaded GTI.
Being an Audi, the interior has a certain air of quality to it. The leather sports seats appear well made and they offer good support in both comfort and body holding characteristics, although some might deem them a little "tight on the cheeks".
A stylish 3-spoke leather steering wheel compliments the dashboard and further adds to the sporty feeling of the cockpit. The instrument cluster is
equally racy, particularly at night, when together with all the switchgear, it is illuminated in a fiery red. Again, similar to the VW.
The controls seem well placed and have a nice feel to them. As with most Audi products now, the turn signal stalk has a one touch feature for passing. This sounds great, but if you happen to hit it by mistake, there appears no way of stopping it until it has run its course. If you try to cancel it, it just puts the other side on.
Sitting in the driver's seat looking over your shoulder, you discover that the A3 is a little roomier than it first appeared. The legroom in the rear is pretty reasonable for a vehicle of its size, especially when you consider the available luggage space. Of course, the rear seats fold down, should you need to carry larger items.
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| 2007 Audi A3 2.0T S line (Photo: Kevin Corrigan, Auto123.com) |
My tester being white, it more or less jumped out at me in the parking lot. With its deep black Audi grille, a full black glass roof and some very nice looking 17 inch rims and tires, it all combined to make the white paintwork dazzle. Add to this some well placed s-line decals, and the A3 starts to appear very similar to its VW stable mate, the GTI.
That in itself is a problem for me. I'm going to have a hard time trying not to compare this with the GTI, which is a product of the same group and a vehicle I recently tested. Of course, there are other manufacturers who make these hot hatchbacks. There's the Mazda speed3 for a start, a vehicle that's getting a lot of attention lately, but I can't think of another German manufacturer who truly competes in this super-quick hot hatchback segment of the market.
 |
| 2007 Audi A3 2.0T S line (Photo: Kevin Corrigan, Auto123.com) |
Being an Audi, the interior has a certain air of quality to it. The leather sports seats appear well made and they offer good support in both comfort and body holding characteristics, although some might deem them a little "tight on the cheeks".
A stylish 3-spoke leather steering wheel compliments the dashboard and further adds to the sporty feeling of the cockpit. The instrument cluster is
 |
| 2007 Audi A3 2.0T S line (Photo: Kevin Corrigan, Auto123.com) |
The controls seem well placed and have a nice feel to them. As with most Audi products now, the turn signal stalk has a one touch feature for passing. This sounds great, but if you happen to hit it by mistake, there appears no way of stopping it until it has run its course. If you try to cancel it, it just puts the other side on.
Sitting in the driver's seat looking over your shoulder, you discover that the A3 is a little roomier than it first appeared. The legroom in the rear is pretty reasonable for a vehicle of its size, especially when you consider the available luggage space. Of course, the rear seats fold down, should you need to carry larger items.