I don't get Audis
Discussion
NB: This is all just personal opinion and not a personal attack on anyone who has bought an Audi.
So over the last week I've been using company pool cars a lot. We have a fair old chunk of nice middle-of-the-road metal in the pool at the moment and so far I've sampled the following:
There wasn't much in it in the interiors but I think I could comfortably argue that the various buttons and switches in the BMWs were better placed than the mess of the A5.
Oh, and the A5 loses 20 PH points for having an electronic handbrake, of which I'm sure its only purpose is to fill me with enough paranoia that I had to stop twice whilst walking around from the car to make sure it definitely wasn't rolling backwards.
These are my thoughts. Feel free to shout at me and call me a moron and stuff.
So over the last week I've been using company pool cars a lot. We have a fair old chunk of nice middle-of-the-road metal in the pool at the moment and so far I've sampled the following:
- '10 BMW 320d SE
- '11 Audi A4 2.0TDi
- '11 Audi A5 2.0TDi S-Line
- '08 BMW 320d M Sport
There wasn't much in it in the interiors but I think I could comfortably argue that the various buttons and switches in the BMWs were better placed than the mess of the A5.
Oh, and the A5 loses 20 PH points for having an electronic handbrake, of which I'm sure its only purpose is to fill me with enough paranoia that I had to stop twice whilst walking around from the car to make sure it definitely wasn't rolling backwards.
These are my thoughts. Feel free to shout at me and call me a moron and stuff.
The Crack Fox said:
Never mind the modest VAG group underpinnings, it's all about the quality of the interior materials, so they say...
Heh, given the amount of praise Audi interiors get I was expecting to be enveloped in an interior created from sculpted swans beaks and eagle down but, no, just lots and lots of grey plastic.Hmmm... Zanussi or Hotpoint?
Edit: Seriously though, if I analyse my driving it's mostly city centre 30 limit stuff, or longer M/A/B road journeys with the baby in the back. The opportunities for me to appreciate the finer points of handling balance etc are severely limited, so other things become more important - is it a good place to sit, does it have the toys I want, is it frugal enough etc.
Faced with the choice of what family car to get, we considered BMW, Audi, Merc and went for... Volvo Much nicer interior for the money, good kit, fairly efficient, and most importantly of all, the OH really likes it.
Obviously others will have other priorities, and I do have access to a proper drivers' car for fun drives.
Edit: Seriously though, if I analyse my driving it's mostly city centre 30 limit stuff, or longer M/A/B road journeys with the baby in the back. The opportunities for me to appreciate the finer points of handling balance etc are severely limited, so other things become more important - is it a good place to sit, does it have the toys I want, is it frugal enough etc.
Faced with the choice of what family car to get, we considered BMW, Audi, Merc and went for... Volvo Much nicer interior for the money, good kit, fairly efficient, and most importantly of all, the OH really likes it.
Obviously others will have other priorities, and I do have access to a proper drivers' car for fun drives.
Edited by ewenm on Tuesday 7th June 10:54
Call me a chav, but I think the Audi a4 is a much nicer looking car than the 3 series, with the options usch as the S line kit and 18" wheels. Interior wise I dont think there is much in it, but probably if anything I prefer the layout of the BMW slightly, even it is less superficially 'stylish'
We have a couple of A4's and a 3 series here as company cars, having driven both (A4s are 140 2.0 diesel, 3 series is a 320d) neither are exactly sports cars and in normal driving I didnt find much in it.
The Audis have 18" wheels, which makes the steering feel very wooden by comparison to the bmw on 17"s, I drove an A6 with 17's and it was much better.
I just think the BMW is very boring to look at and given that the rest isnt really a big deal I'd go for the Audi. I am very biased towards looks, I appreciate most people dont buy a car on this basis however !
edited to add : I do however fking hate the electric handbrake, WHY Audi, WHY !?
We have a couple of A4's and a 3 series here as company cars, having driven both (A4s are 140 2.0 diesel, 3 series is a 320d) neither are exactly sports cars and in normal driving I didnt find much in it.
The Audis have 18" wheels, which makes the steering feel very wooden by comparison to the bmw on 17"s, I drove an A6 with 17's and it was much better.
I just think the BMW is very boring to look at and given that the rest isnt really a big deal I'd go for the Audi. I am very biased towards looks, I appreciate most people dont buy a car on this basis however !
edited to add : I do however fking hate the electric handbrake, WHY Audi, WHY !?
Edited by OllieC on Tuesday 7th June 10:48
Little Toast said:
All of the above comments have mentioned how 'nice' they are, I do want nice but I think I want a bit more than 'nice' for my own car. I have a 1 series for day to day (which is nice) and my tuscan for more than nice.
Lets face it there all bland mobiles compared with a 'proper' car. I think 'nice' is a perfect word to describe them Rawwr said:
I don't dislike it but I think it's massively oversold for what it is, and that's ignoring some of the dubious ergonomics.
I find Audi interiors to be very very dull. Went to the showroom a month ago, and of all the used cars outside and the new ones inside, there was only 1 car that did NOT have a black interior. That was an A7 in grey and it looked good. Shame that the rest look like the inside of a german coal mine.the biggest thing imo is that years ago an audi was the individual choice. it was different to the bmw or mercedes norm. But everyone thinks they are special and individual an audi caught onto that (and they have done very well tbh) so instead of bmw's people bought audi's a brand which imo WAS seen to be below bmw but is now equal. Standards of living have risen but car prices in general havn't. (probably the one consumer product that hasn't) So audi's and bmw's became more affordable to lower and lower parts of the market nae "mondeo man" and the "poverty spec" bmw slur was more widespread. Bmw's more tradition market (the high end) didnt want to be seen in similar cars as the lower market and thus the chelsea tractor was born. A bmw or audi that cost considerably more than the rest of the range without a "poverty spec version"
Other manufacturers realised that the "bottom end" of the market want to be seen in these cars and hence the renault, ford, peugeot and hyundai versions at "poverty spec" bmw money became available.
all of the above is my own opinion and may be wrong or just a rambling but i think in the corperate world some of it must hold true.
Other manufacturers realised that the "bottom end" of the market want to be seen in these cars and hence the renault, ford, peugeot and hyundai versions at "poverty spec" bmw money became available.
all of the above is my own opinion and may be wrong or just a rambling but i think in the corperate world some of it must hold true.
taylor172 said:
swings and round abouts for me,
i much prefer my z4 over my old TT, yet id want an A5 over a 3 series in the current model range.
oh and i work for one of them
funny you should say that.i much prefer my z4 over my old TT, yet id want an A5 over a 3 series in the current model range.
oh and i work for one of them
a mate of mine had a tt soft top. all the toys. perfect all round car for him, capable in the snow great on a sunny day etc. he chopped it in for a z4 coupe. the z4 is a nicer looking car but it doesnt have the quirks of the tt. it hasnt a soft top isnt 4wd for winter but its far better to drive. for someone who is a total poser i was surprised by his choice however having driven both it was the right chioce to make for him.
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