Audi S3 (2012-2014), S5 (2011-2014), A5/A7 3.0 (12-15)
Discussion
Hi all,
Bear with me please as first post on this part of the forum and hoping to lean on collective wisdom! So I've been looking for a new car for 3 months - to date I have had a '57 plate Punto, '10 plate 206, Mondeo, '13 plate Fiesta (first new car), and a '16 plate Range Rover Evoque (forgive me). In my search for a new car I have gone through looking at lease deals for anything from a CLA35, to a V90, to a Velar. Then I've thought long and hard about going EV - used Model S, new Model 3, 30kw Leaf, new 40kw Leaf, Ioniq, Zoe, and eGolf... None quite hitting the mark.
You may have gathered I am struggling with a decision here! What's stopping me as that I've always wanted an Audi, when I was a kid there was an A5 and a TTS in my street and I loved them both. In the last couple of years I've been influenced by pals with cars like the 350z, M140i, C63, Golf R, etc and find myself with a strong desire for something fun and sporty. I do have two kids though and can't really get away with a weekend car just yet, so whatever I go with needs to have a degree of practicality about it (according to the wife haha).
Hence my long-list above: S3, S5, A5 3.0 and A7. There are plenty of these around and I'm looking for any tips from owners on things to look out for when buying, plus views on a couple of specifics I'm keen on:
- Audi Adaptive Cruise Control: down of the models I've looked at have this. I can't find much about it online and wondered if it's any good - any views?
- Real world fuel consumption - you may be thinking 'if he's worried about fuel consumption then he's got the wrong list of cars!' which is a fair point, but I'd just like to get a reasonable idea of what I can expect. I'm aware none of these cars will be running at 50mpg, but just how bad is it? Are there any decent sites for real-world UK MPG data?
- I'd prefer auto - anything to worry about there?
- Sports steering wheel - as sad as it is, I love these and want to get a car with one. The Audi version is lovely. A lot of the A7s I've seen don't have it and the older A5/S5 don't have them either in some cases. How easy and risky is it to source a genuine one and switch it? Assuming there will be some faff with the airbag and likely would seek a professional to change it out, but anyone got experience of this?
- Keyless Go - some have it, some don't. It's something I like as a convenience, but in this kind of car I figure there is a higher risk of theft - so is it better to sacrifice the convenience?
I know some of these points are decisions I alone can make, but would love to get some feedback on experience of those out there, especially if you've owned a couple of the models mentioned and want to give a prod in a particular direction. Appreciate any opinions and experiences shared!
TIA,
John
Bear with me please as first post on this part of the forum and hoping to lean on collective wisdom! So I've been looking for a new car for 3 months - to date I have had a '57 plate Punto, '10 plate 206, Mondeo, '13 plate Fiesta (first new car), and a '16 plate Range Rover Evoque (forgive me). In my search for a new car I have gone through looking at lease deals for anything from a CLA35, to a V90, to a Velar. Then I've thought long and hard about going EV - used Model S, new Model 3, 30kw Leaf, new 40kw Leaf, Ioniq, Zoe, and eGolf... None quite hitting the mark.
You may have gathered I am struggling with a decision here! What's stopping me as that I've always wanted an Audi, when I was a kid there was an A5 and a TTS in my street and I loved them both. In the last couple of years I've been influenced by pals with cars like the 350z, M140i, C63, Golf R, etc and find myself with a strong desire for something fun and sporty. I do have two kids though and can't really get away with a weekend car just yet, so whatever I go with needs to have a degree of practicality about it (according to the wife haha).
Hence my long-list above: S3, S5, A5 3.0 and A7. There are plenty of these around and I'm looking for any tips from owners on things to look out for when buying, plus views on a couple of specifics I'm keen on:
- Audi Adaptive Cruise Control: down of the models I've looked at have this. I can't find much about it online and wondered if it's any good - any views?
- Real world fuel consumption - you may be thinking 'if he's worried about fuel consumption then he's got the wrong list of cars!' which is a fair point, but I'd just like to get a reasonable idea of what I can expect. I'm aware none of these cars will be running at 50mpg, but just how bad is it? Are there any decent sites for real-world UK MPG data?
- I'd prefer auto - anything to worry about there?
- Sports steering wheel - as sad as it is, I love these and want to get a car with one. The Audi version is lovely. A lot of the A7s I've seen don't have it and the older A5/S5 don't have them either in some cases. How easy and risky is it to source a genuine one and switch it? Assuming there will be some faff with the airbag and likely would seek a professional to change it out, but anyone got experience of this?
- Keyless Go - some have it, some don't. It's something I like as a convenience, but in this kind of car I figure there is a higher risk of theft - so is it better to sacrifice the convenience?
I know some of these points are decisions I alone can make, but would love to get some feedback on experience of those out there, especially if you've owned a couple of the models mentioned and want to give a prod in a particular direction. Appreciate any opinions and experiences shared!
TIA,
John
That's a lot of questions! I'll try to help as best I can....
S5 (presume you're looking at Sportback with 2 kids?) is quick in a straight line (they're all 7 speed s-tronic autos which are fine if serviced on time and you learn how to get the best from them) and good enough round the bends to be amusing. Lots of low spec examples about and the options to make it a bit more entertaining are hard to find (the ADS diff in particular). Ride is fine without adaptive damping (ours is on factory 20s). Expect 20-22mpg tank average from pre-facelift cars, with 26mpg on a run. The facelift cars gain stop-start and a different supercharger and are apparently good for an extra 5mpg more or less across the board. Tank is tiny so fuel stops are frequent.
A5 3.0 - presume diesel? Does the job as a daily, but sounds like a tractor and the DPFs are expensive (as well as being right up behind the engine - close to the bulkhead)
A7 - very different - enormous car (as wide as an A8). Looked at S7s and if they did a 5 seater version I'd have been tempted. Since it's 4 seat only (as is the S5 in pre-faclift - think it went to 5 on later cars) for such a big car it's just daft. Boot isn't any bigger than the S5, but the electronics add a lot of weight, plus the tailgate is electric. I'd say far more of a cruiser.
We've had our S5 Sportback for 5 or 6 years now - it suits us well and the boot is big enough (the slope of the hatch means it's a bit limiting to get big stuff in without folding the seats)
John-9ey9e said:
Hi all,
I do have two kids though and can't really get away with a weekend car just yet, so whatever I go with needs to have a degree of practicality about it (according to the wife haha).
Hence my long-list above: S3, S5, A5 3.0 and A7. There are plenty of these around and I'm looking for any tips from owners on things to look out for when buying, plus views on a couple of specifics I'm keen on:
Not particularly keen on that era of S3 - they're generally lower end on spec and just not that engaging.I do have two kids though and can't really get away with a weekend car just yet, so whatever I go with needs to have a degree of practicality about it (according to the wife haha).
Hence my long-list above: S3, S5, A5 3.0 and A7. There are plenty of these around and I'm looking for any tips from owners on things to look out for when buying, plus views on a couple of specifics I'm keen on:
S5 (presume you're looking at Sportback with 2 kids?) is quick in a straight line (they're all 7 speed s-tronic autos which are fine if serviced on time and you learn how to get the best from them) and good enough round the bends to be amusing. Lots of low spec examples about and the options to make it a bit more entertaining are hard to find (the ADS diff in particular). Ride is fine without adaptive damping (ours is on factory 20s). Expect 20-22mpg tank average from pre-facelift cars, with 26mpg on a run. The facelift cars gain stop-start and a different supercharger and are apparently good for an extra 5mpg more or less across the board. Tank is tiny so fuel stops are frequent.
A5 3.0 - presume diesel? Does the job as a daily, but sounds like a tractor and the DPFs are expensive (as well as being right up behind the engine - close to the bulkhead)
A7 - very different - enormous car (as wide as an A8). Looked at S7s and if they did a 5 seater version I'd have been tempted. Since it's 4 seat only (as is the S5 in pre-faclift - think it went to 5 on later cars) for such a big car it's just daft. Boot isn't any bigger than the S5, but the electronics add a lot of weight, plus the tailgate is electric. I'd say far more of a cruiser.
said:
- Audi Adaptive Cruise Control: down of the models I've looked at have this. I can't find much about it online and wondered if it's any good - any views?
It does the job - not the quickest to recognise somebody pulling out into lane and suddenly halving your stopping space. Copes well with fluctuating traffic speed. It is VERY rare as an option - learn to spot the difference in front end pics as a lot of dealers don't mention it, even if it is there! On the A/S5 it's a '3rd foglight' on the inboard side of one of the foglight covers. said:
- Real world fuel consumption - you may be thinking 'if he's worried about fuel consumption then he's got the wrong list of cars!' which is a fair point, but I'd just like to get a reasonable idea of what I can expect. I'm aware none of these cars will be running at 50mpg, but just how bad is it? Are there any decent sites for real-world UK MPG data?
Impossible to say in realistic terms - I generally take a mid point between urban and extra-urban quoted figures and assume that's about as good as it'll get in real life. said:
- I'd prefer auto - anything to worry about there?
Nope, they're fine. If s-tronic make sure the oil and filter are changed on time (35-40k miles depending on model, typically). The ZF proper auto boxes are very solid (you'll find those in the A7 IIRC) said:
- Sports steering wheel - as sad as it is, I love these and want to get a car with one. The Audi version is lovely. A lot of the A7s I've seen don't have it and the older A5/S5 don't have them either in some cases. How easy and risky is it to source a genuine one and switch it? Assuming there will be some faff with the airbag and likely would seek a professional to change it out, but anyone got experience of this?
I like the look of it, but find it intensely irritating to use (reminds me of the Austin Allegro 'quartic' steering wheel!). It wasn't fitted at all on pre-facelift S5s (and I assume the same on similar age S3) and from memory was offered with 'Black Edition' models as a reasonably priced option. You can swap them IF you can identify the right part number (steering wheel controls is the main sticking point) but you'll only know if the airbag is all good if you need to call on it in an emergency....... said:
- Keyless Go - some have it, some don't. It's something I like as a convenience, but in this kind of car I figure there is a higher risk of theft - so is it better to sacrifice the convenience?
If they've got the gear to steal a keyless go car, they can just as easily unlock the car and code a blank key to start it - I wouldn't worry unduly. It's quite a regional problem (although it moves about depending on where gangs are operating) but if you can't keep it vaguely secure or you're aware of a lot of thefts by this method, I'd steer clear of any performance Audi. said:
I know some of these points are decisions I alone can make, but would love to get some feedback on experience of those out there, especially if you've owned a couple of the models mentioned and want to give a prod in a particular direction. Appreciate any opinions and experiences shared!
How about a Golf R estate? ACC as standard and enough space for the kids etc. Go for a subtle colour and they blend in quite well. As above though, if you live somewhere where cars are forever getting taken, probably one to avoid!We've had our S5 Sportback for 5 or 6 years now - it suits us well and the boot is big enough (the slope of the hatch means it's a bit limiting to get big stuff in without folding the seats)
Want to give a massive thanks for the lengthy and detailed reply above, really good of you to take the time. Apologies for not replying sooner with my gratitude!
As it went, I took the Mrs to test drive both an A5 and an A7 and she and I both loved the A7. I've now put a deposit down on one and am picking it up tomorrow. Best of all, I have a good long drive in her back to Edinburgh from Chelmsford, awesome to get a long drive straight away. 2013 model, under 35k miles, the 242bhp variant. Got my preferred colour (Daytona Grey) too, so a happy man!
Thanks again for all the advice!
As it went, I took the Mrs to test drive both an A5 and an A7 and she and I both loved the A7. I've now put a deposit down on one and am picking it up tomorrow. Best of all, I have a good long drive in her back to Edinburgh from Chelmsford, awesome to get a long drive straight away. 2013 model, under 35k miles, the 242bhp variant. Got my preferred colour (Daytona Grey) too, so a happy man!
Thanks again for all the advice!
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