Matt Classic

Hi folks, looks like I may be about to move away from my Scoob, guttted to be selling but needs must and all that stuff, and the wife hates the newer shape

Looking at an Audi S3, 3 years old 22k on the clock, 18"s etc so good spec. (about £17.5K)
Also thought about a Golf R32 but been put of that from fuel consumption and general slating of it by everyone who seems to have had one

I appreciate its going to be less frantic than my 00MY with tek2, however, i'm looking for more of an all rounder. Anyone had any experience / nightmares of them etc.? Trying to make sure i dont sell and then regret it deeply.

I've looked on a few other Audi / VW forums but they seem a little biased, as you can imagine.

Cheers for any help you can offer

NWMark

Heres my biased advise too

Ive got an S3 chose this over a subaru simply due to insurance costs.

never regretted it, chipped they're a suitable match for standard Sti's. Interiors are superb, recaro seats also superb.
Very reliable car with great safegaurds built in.
servicing costs very reasonable, tyre wear remarkably good (Goodyear F1's are superb)
excellent motorway cruiser too 70-75mph at 2500rpm yet put your foot down and theres loads of torque there.

few bad points worth considering.
It is a VERY small car in the back though, that raised height floor large front seats leave very little room in the back for adults. i only ever ferry around a 9 year old kid though so its not an issue for me.
Suspension is a little soft but has loads of travel and is well damped.
Brakes will fade after a few heavy stops or slow corners, if you plan to track it upgrade the brakes.

Id go and test drive a few and if pos get a drive in a chipped one as its a whole different car so much more eager.

Mark

Matt Classic

Sounds good so far. It wont get tracked or driven that hard, bit like my Scooby really, like the straight forward power and cornering, never really stand on the brakes.
I guess the re-map is very simialr to the experience I had with the scoob, a differenet car afterwards, loads of torque.
Is it a good engine to re-map or are they prone to failure ?

Thanks

Ralph Wiggum

i thought the s3 when i drove one was yawn o rama like alot of 'hot' audis , not even quick really

J4CKO

iTrader: (1)

I drove a chipped one, was very quick, it left me a bit cold, very effective but a bit clinical, a bit too good and devoid of personality. Dont doubt that it would have grown a bit on me and it would be quite easy to live with but it wasnt a lot of fun.

NWMark

very good engine to remap, two versions of the S3 engine either 210 or 225, both chip to 260-270.

Only ones ive ever read about that have failed are the lesser model variants (150/180 bhp) that have had the big turbo upgrade (350bhp) with no uprated internals,(and ive only read about 2 of those) there are loads of S3/TT's running this upgrade and i havent heard of one go pop yet.

Mark

NWMark

Agree with most of the above.

You certainly wont get the 'hard' edge of the subaru you had previously, it is much softer and quiter, but this makes the car so much easier to live with on a day to day basis. Yet with the performance still there if you want to go for a fast spin around and about.

Can be a bit of a sleeper too if you get a normal colour and no chrome mirrors.

Mark

Matt Classic

Cheers for the replys, its not put me off, having drove it today I must say its as I expected, a quieter, refined ride, fairly rapid but just short of what my un-mapped scoob was.
Build wise its a different league and is so well put together.

Will get it mapped (REVO'd) within the first month, out of interest what sort of MPG you getting Mark ?

Surprised the insurance group is 1 higher (18) but actually £150 cheaper than my Scoob @ £370 for the year, full NCD protected and £220 excess.

Bonus

wanted

I've driven 2 of these, one standard and one chipped,exhaust etc. It was a quick car but more like a uk scoob with just an exhaust, definatly not a match for an sti.

NWMark

0-60 yes the Sti is quicker due to superior launch ability, but try 30-120+ and theres nothing in it.

Mark

NWMark

Matt if you get a 210 model (2001 and earlier) its insurance group 17 and even cheaper. but at £370 a year wont be much difference for you. Insurance is for some reason is very cheap for the S3 and the group its in.

When i was looking, the insurance quote for the 210 S3 was £1100 and for a Sti was £2200, and for a 225 S3 was £1500, so chose i 210 facelift model for the insurance saving.

Mine is Revo'd and on my normal daily driving (i.e. very short trips back and too to work only 4 miles each way, traffic, town driving) i get about 22-24mpg. Long motorway runs get 32mpg consistantly.

Mark

Terminator X

iTrader: (7)

NWMark.

Is the S3 a proper 4 wheel drive or is it like some of the other "4 wheel drive" Audis that are really FW drive and just revert to 4W when they get into trouble?

X.

NWMark

They are Haldex 4WD, hence almost entirely FWD (some people say entirely FWD but others say at least 10% always goes to rear wheels, never found a definate answer) until slip is detected at the front then power shifts to rear aswell.

In reality though you dont notice, doesnt matter on surface dry or wet, foot down and car just goes without spinning wheels. the amount of slip required to start shifting power to rear must be so tiny.

Mark

mattvortex

having regularly driven my brothers recently sold S3 225, I can say that compared to my classic uk turbo, it certainly lacked the steering "feel" of the impreza and genrally felt less responsive to hussle around.The motoring press came to the same conclusion as well. What i prefered with the S3 was the superior response at lower revs and the quality was leagues above.Also had a somewhat higher image as well!