A3 1.4 TFSI 150 SE DSG Cabriolet

An excellent economical tourer

I bought this car to replace a 2002 Peugeot 206CC 2.0SE. I factory ordered the standard wheels and tyres, which were Michelin Energy Saver 205/55x16, which gave the car a firmer ride than expected, and the 1.4TFSi 4 cylinder, rather than the 1.5 3 cylinder, on the basis that I found the engine to be very capable in other (rental) cars and am not fond of triples. I also ordered standard seats (with extra adjustments, perhaps should have got memory seats),
DSG automatic gearbox (superb generally, just move into neutral when stopped to reduce clutch wear, as I disconnect the auto engine start),
the auto parking (waste of money as neither my wife or I use it),
satellite navigation (expensive to keep updated, not as useful as Waze or Google maps),
the draught excluder (never used!),
heated seats with neck scarf (useful and should have got the heated steering wheel!), standard cruise control (very useful),
2 zone air conditioning (also useful),
spare wheel (a space saver, unused so far).
Servicing has been through Jack Barclay, Wimbledon and they were excellent until last year when it was decided they were not servicing Audis, which is a real nuisance.
Problems: occasionally the passenger side rear window won't close correctly, the solution to which is to repeat the opening and closure of the roof or, raise the rear window on the switch. I have had to replace the ball joints on the steering at 20,000 miles under warranty (would have been £400) because of the speed bumps apparently, tyres started to crack at 36,000 miles (5 years old) and I replaced them with Michelin Cross Climate 2 (more comfortable & slightly quieter, same economy). I also had the tracking done front and back and that made the car much smoother. Work to do at 41,000 is likely to be replacement brakes discs, replacement spark plugs (expensive), the electric water pump (probably expensive as well!).
So far the hood hasn't leaked and the car is quiet.
Fuel consumption on long motorway runs is 50-55 mpg (check tyre pressures!) and around 25mpg around central London. According to the computer since the car was delivered it has averaged 39mpg. Currently, I have used no oil between services but I tend to drive the car gently. It also only costs £30 annually for the Road Fund License. If Audi ever reads this summary (essay?) I would like a hybrid version for the prospective Zero Emission Zones in Europe, a boot that will take a full set of golf clubs & trolley (I use the folding seats currently) and maybe an extra inch or two of knee room for passengers in the back. Great little car!

Report as offensive