2003 Audi A3 1.8T Sport
Discussion
Today is a good day.
I have been living in London for 3 years, carless. I had a great time, but missed having a car a lot. Even though all I had when I left was a 1.4 Seat Leon with 130k miles on it and plenty of dings and scratches.
A couple of weeks ago I accepted a job offer back in Dublin and am now living 23 miles from work. Opportunity knocks! A short commute with 10 miles of motorway driving equals little worry of fuel economy. My first port of call was a good auld trawl through the online ads to see what fitted my fancy. I do a lot of outdoor sports so coupés and convertibles were out. I cut diesels and anything over 2000cc out next. Insurance for a returning driver, even at 29yrs old means I had to stay reasonable, as does the ludicrous E900+ tax on cars with 2-2.2l engines.
So. I wanted a hatch or saloon (Not ready for an estate yet), with a petrol engine, not a mad amount of miles, preferably max 10yrs old. I had a budget of absolute max E4k (£3500ish). I refrained from putting up a "What car" thread because of an irrational prejudice against E46 BMWs. I realise they're great cars, I really do, I just can't picture myself driving one. No, not even a coupe. Weird, but that's it.
I narrowed my search down considerably by deciding I needed a car with a bit of shove. Bye-bye Mondeos, Mazda 6s, Focus apart from STs, and the pile of Vectras, 407s and C5s that blight the online car buying experience. My original plan to get a Fiat Panda 1.4 100hp was scuppered when I found out they had only sold a tiny handful in Ireland, and that the Suzuki Swift Sport prices had yet to fall to achievable levels. Booooo! Anyway...
My first serious viewing was a Saab 9-3 Vector Sport 1.8T. Quickish, not bad looking, comfy, lots of buttons on the dash, all of which seems to work. Seriously tempted. Decided to think about it over a weekend, dealer sold it to someone else. That's life eh?!
So, on to a Golf GTI 150bhp. Great engine, I thought (Remember, 1.4 Leon experience!). Not as quick I thought it would be, and the MkIV golf is the dullest looking car in dullcarsville. I couldn't bring myself to drop E3500 on a 10yr old grey car with a nice engine but tatty interior. So, it was out.
Another nice Saab came and went, the suspiciously worn steering wheel and seat belying a mileage of 75k miles and no SH. I was getting a bit annoyed. I have been trawling PH, Carzone.ie and Autotrader for 3yrs, seen loads of cars I'd love, but none were available in Ireland!
I have never been a massive Audi fan. I had driven my brother's A4 1.9 tdi 130hp and thought it was a nice place to sit, but not exactly special. So I went to view a 10yr old A3 1.8T more out of interest than anything else. I knew it had the same engine as the GTI I had driven. I looked it up and found it had much more useful 0-60 and weight figures, so I figured it was worth the look.
And it was!
Again, I stress, I do not have any experience in a fast car. I realise 150hp is a very...reasonable... amount of power. But it was a step up from anything else I had tried and also scrupulously clean, FSH and a very fetching shade of blue.
Saga ended. Happy days! Let's hope it lives up to my expectations...
Hmmmm. That went on a while. Sorry.
The end!
I have been living in London for 3 years, carless. I had a great time, but missed having a car a lot. Even though all I had when I left was a 1.4 Seat Leon with 130k miles on it and plenty of dings and scratches.
A couple of weeks ago I accepted a job offer back in Dublin and am now living 23 miles from work. Opportunity knocks! A short commute with 10 miles of motorway driving equals little worry of fuel economy. My first port of call was a good auld trawl through the online ads to see what fitted my fancy. I do a lot of outdoor sports so coupés and convertibles were out. I cut diesels and anything over 2000cc out next. Insurance for a returning driver, even at 29yrs old means I had to stay reasonable, as does the ludicrous E900+ tax on cars with 2-2.2l engines.
So. I wanted a hatch or saloon (Not ready for an estate yet), with a petrol engine, not a mad amount of miles, preferably max 10yrs old. I had a budget of absolute max E4k (£3500ish). I refrained from putting up a "What car" thread because of an irrational prejudice against E46 BMWs. I realise they're great cars, I really do, I just can't picture myself driving one. No, not even a coupe. Weird, but that's it.
I narrowed my search down considerably by deciding I needed a car with a bit of shove. Bye-bye Mondeos, Mazda 6s, Focus apart from STs, and the pile of Vectras, 407s and C5s that blight the online car buying experience. My original plan to get a Fiat Panda 1.4 100hp was scuppered when I found out they had only sold a tiny handful in Ireland, and that the Suzuki Swift Sport prices had yet to fall to achievable levels. Booooo! Anyway...
My first serious viewing was a Saab 9-3 Vector Sport 1.8T. Quickish, not bad looking, comfy, lots of buttons on the dash, all of which seems to work. Seriously tempted. Decided to think about it over a weekend, dealer sold it to someone else. That's life eh?!
So, on to a Golf GTI 150bhp. Great engine, I thought (Remember, 1.4 Leon experience!). Not as quick I thought it would be, and the MkIV golf is the dullest looking car in dullcarsville. I couldn't bring myself to drop E3500 on a 10yr old grey car with a nice engine but tatty interior. So, it was out.
Another nice Saab came and went, the suspiciously worn steering wheel and seat belying a mileage of 75k miles and no SH. I was getting a bit annoyed. I have been trawling PH, Carzone.ie and Autotrader for 3yrs, seen loads of cars I'd love, but none were available in Ireland!
I have never been a massive Audi fan. I had driven my brother's A4 1.9 tdi 130hp and thought it was a nice place to sit, but not exactly special. So I went to view a 10yr old A3 1.8T more out of interest than anything else. I knew it had the same engine as the GTI I had driven. I looked it up and found it had much more useful 0-60 and weight figures, so I figured it was worth the look.
And it was!
Again, I stress, I do not have any experience in a fast car. I realise 150hp is a very...reasonable... amount of power. But it was a step up from anything else I had tried and also scrupulously clean, FSH and a very fetching shade of blue.
Saga ended. Happy days! Let's hope it lives up to my expectations...
Hmmmm. That went on a while. Sorry.
The end!
NadiR said:
Got any plans for it? These 1.8T units respond incredibly well with mods.
New job, new place to live, busy busy! For the moment I'm happy to see how it goes, although the ditch-finders will be changed and the alloys refurbed pretty quick-smart. In a few months time I'll probably look at extracting ponies. It feels firm enough but the wheel-arch gaps might also get looked at, whether by a slight drop or increase to 17s. All in the future though. For now it'll be a daily driver and will do grand.Cost E2850 (£2380) so I'm pretty happy all round.
I had a 2001 model in black, enjoyed it enormously. It was the most competent all rounder I'd ever driven and had it not been a company car, I'd have kept it longer than I did.
It's the primary reason I'm back in an Audi today (S4).
Enjoy it! Audi just ditched the A3 hatch from the US market, the swines.
It's the primary reason I'm back in an Audi today (S4).
Enjoy it! Audi just ditched the A3 hatch from the US market, the swines.
Great looking car, these have aged very well. My last car was an A4 with the 1.8t engine and I thought it was great fun. Had it 4 years and only traded it in as an S4 Avant came up for sale close to me that I just couldn't ignore. I don't think you'll be disappointed with your choice.
but unfortunately out of my price-range. Looking forward to giving it a proper welcoming once I get work done for the week!So, a month in and not a whole lot to report.
The car is pleasingly quick, but no rocket-ship. I've averaged just over 30mpg (brim-to-brim x2 so far), which suits me just fine given my short commute and occasionally monstrous traffic. It's not exactly an engaging drive, feels a bit remote, but it turns in better than I expected given the Audi under-steer reputation. It's quite light as well.
I haven't done much for it so far. I've replaced the bare spring that was the remains of the old aerial with a new matt black stubby aerial that suits it fine.
The main thing though, is that I'm on the look-out for new wheels. Apparently the 1.8t came with 17" wheels as standard, but some bugger has switched mine for a set of 15s. With a 60cm sidewall! Now, that means it's more comfortable than an Audi sport model has any right to be, but it does look under-wheeled, even with the big sidewalls, there's a big wheel-arch gap. No interest in lowering the car to fit it, so putting standard/similar 17s on would suit me.
So...Any suggestions for nice 17" wheels for a 2003 Audi A3?
The car is pleasingly quick, but no rocket-ship. I've averaged just over 30mpg (brim-to-brim x2 so far), which suits me just fine given my short commute and occasionally monstrous traffic. It's not exactly an engaging drive, feels a bit remote, but it turns in better than I expected given the Audi under-steer reputation. It's quite light as well.
I haven't done much for it so far. I've replaced the bare spring that was the remains of the old aerial with a new matt black stubby aerial that suits it fine.
The main thing though, is that I'm on the look-out for new wheels. Apparently the 1.8t came with 17" wheels as standard, but some bugger has switched mine for a set of 15s. With a 60cm sidewall! Now, that means it's more comfortable than an Audi sport model has any right to be, but it does look under-wheeled, even with the big sidewalls, there's a big wheel-arch gap. No interest in lowering the car to fit it, so putting standard/similar 17s on would suit me.
So...Any suggestions for nice 17" wheels for a 2003 Audi A3?
Yeah, I think the original alloys are supposed to be 17", some ads say 9-spoke, others 5-spoke. These seem to be the most common ones:
Or these:
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I can't find any for sale in Ireland, but any OEM Audi 17s or similar would be worth a look. Suggestions still welcome!
Or these:
I can't find any for sale in Ireland, but any OEM Audi 17s or similar would be worth a look. Suggestions still welcome!
Edited by Paraicj on Monday 14th October 23:06
I do like the S3 Avus wheels, and the 16" original TTs are also an option.
I have no intention of going over 17s, I don't the car has enough visual oomph for 18s or up. It's only little really! There are a lot of 16s and 17s out there but most of them are either skinny 5-spokes, MkIV Golf GTi or BBS replicas, none of which interest me. Can't afford real BBS!
Some of the Borbet options are nice though, keeping an eye out for a set of lightly used LS. Yum!
I have no intention of going over 17s, I don't the car has enough visual oomph for 18s or up. It's only little really! There are a lot of 16s and 17s out there but most of them are either skinny 5-spokes, MkIV Golf GTi or BBS replicas, none of which interest me. Can't afford real BBS!
Some of the Borbet options are nice though, keeping an eye out for a set of lightly used LS. Yum!
So I've had the car for nearly 4 months and done 2000ish miles in it, Quick update time!
Changes:
Little enough, haven't found affordable new wheels I like yet. Have put on a stubby aerial and bought Thule roof bars (A necessity for me!), which fit surprisingly well on a 3-door and are easily removed and attached.
The good:
I like the pace and the ease-of-use the turbo gives it. It's no racer but makes overtaking and motorway driving a lot more handy than my old 1.4 Leon. It isn't the most sensitive of drives but apart from occasional roundabout understeer, I enjoy it.
The colour shows up really well after a wash, but gets dirty easily. When it's clean it belies its 11 years of age.
The fuel economy is better than expected. Rarely drops below 30mpg. I drove 200 miles each way to the SW of Ireland with 2 kayaks on the roof for new years and still managed a credible 28mpg at a consistent 85mph on the motorway.
It also fits 2 small freestyle kayaks in the back with space for a front passenger, a definite bonus!
The bad:
Engine light came on about a week after the 3-month warranty expired. Code says temperature sender is the problem, have ordered a new one to fit myself.
Hopefully connected to that is grumpy cold-weather starting. Tends to cough and splutter for the first 30secs or so til it's running. We'll see if a new sender/sensor fixes that.
Driver's door trim is loose as of this morning but looks like a plastic clip job to fix, so no worries there.
All in all, mostly happy!
Changes:
Little enough, haven't found affordable new wheels I like yet. Have put on a stubby aerial and bought Thule roof bars (A necessity for me!), which fit surprisingly well on a 3-door and are easily removed and attached.
The good:
I like the pace and the ease-of-use the turbo gives it. It's no racer but makes overtaking and motorway driving a lot more handy than my old 1.4 Leon. It isn't the most sensitive of drives but apart from occasional roundabout understeer, I enjoy it.
The colour shows up really well after a wash, but gets dirty easily. When it's clean it belies its 11 years of age.
The fuel economy is better than expected. Rarely drops below 30mpg. I drove 200 miles each way to the SW of Ireland with 2 kayaks on the roof for new years and still managed a credible 28mpg at a consistent 85mph on the motorway.
It also fits 2 small freestyle kayaks in the back with space for a front passenger, a definite bonus!
The bad:
Engine light came on about a week after the 3-month warranty expired. Code says temperature sender is the problem, have ordered a new one to fit myself.
Hopefully connected to that is grumpy cold-weather starting. Tends to cough and splutter for the first 30secs or so til it's running. We'll see if a new sender/sensor fixes that.
Driver's door trim is loose as of this morning but looks like a plastic clip job to fix, so no worries there.
All in all, mostly happy!
It's interesting to see how you have developed your own opinion now rather than believe the "hype" on here about all Audis being understeery. I still don't understand how you can say the mk4 golf is dullest car in dullsville yet you have bought a mk4 platform car...
One other point, you said originally you were planning on upgrading the wheels as the current tyres are ditchfinders.... Perhaps instead of spending money on new wheels spend some on good tyres and get the alignment looked at. You can run a fair bit more negative front camber than they come with from the factory and upgrading the rear anti roll bar changes things for the better!!
One other point, you said originally you were planning on upgrading the wheels as the current tyres are ditchfinders.... Perhaps instead of spending money on new wheels spend some on good tyres and get the alignment looked at. You can run a fair bit more negative front camber than they come with from the factory and upgrading the rear anti roll bar changes things for the better!!
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