Road noise on Audi A3 S-Line

[Theclarinettist]

So I recently rented an A3 for the weekend, and was amazed by the amount the road noise. On anything less than than perfect tar, and anything over 30MPH it was quite disturbing. This was the new model, and even though a more sporting variant, I found the level of noise to be unacceptable. Anyone experienced similar?

[Silenoz]

Owned a 2018 one for a couple of years. All I can tell you is it was a lot quieter than the older models!

[The spinner of plates]

Big wheels and wide tyres don’t help.

[Macron]

Wide tyres per chance? I had a V40 for two days, some fancy sporty spec despite being some diddly engine. It was dire. I really wanted to like it, fab seats as Volvo always do, but the noise was a shocker.

[Theclarinettist]

It had 225/40 on 18 inch wheels. Interestingly, I checked there was no carpet under the spare wheel. When I previously rented a ŠKODA Octavia, this was the same whereas the golf has a carpeting.

Some aspects of the car where very impressive though, I liked the electronic freewheel, where the engine would cut off when coasting, but come back as soon as you touch the brake. The stop start was also very smooth.

[AI1601]

Beginning to warm to the looks of the new A3. What was the interior fit and finish like?

[Theclarinettist]

I didn’t note any issues with interior quality. But there is a fair amount of glossy black plastic eg around the gear selector and screen. I can imagine this could pick up scratches over time.

The top of the dash and door caps use the squidgy type of moulding, there is also some actual thread stitching to break up the area on top of the dash.

Another good point was the automatic gear selector, I found this easy and intuitive to use.

[the-photographer]

Manufacturer of tyre can also have a big impact