Scumbag

Has anyone driven the Audi 230bhp Tdi engine with a manual gearbox?
I cant get a test drive of one south of Harrogate (and that's a used one, so by the time I get there it could have been sold!). Audi cant find me up with one closer (A4 or A6).
I've always hated auto gearboxes - that lack of control when tight manouvering, bloody awful 'creep' forward, and the wait to change down (yes, I know it's gone in the tiptronics, and probably even less in the DSG...but I'm prejudiced...I have a 330i Sport tiptronic at the moment & I detest it)

I want a quattro (if possible) due to the lack of traction I found when driving the 2.0 Tdi (170bhp), and cant really see the point of the 180bhp 2.7, when I can get a 230bhp 3.0.
Yes I've thought about the 330d, but the cabin is such a miserable place to be unless it is fully loaded...and then there's the BMW image problem (and those fekkin run-flats, and over-hard sport suspension). The OTT fuel consumption doesnt really worry me, as I get a fuel card from work (woohoo!)

So...come on, surely someone can give me a heads up on what should be quite a good engine/gearbox combination?

Cheers
SB

GMT

I've got a new A4 3.0 V6 TDI Quattro S-Line 6 speed manual....

Personally, I find it a superb combination... traction is obviously superb, 1st gear runs out very quick (but it would on any manual diesel this powerful), 2nd gear onwards the pull is great...

I've done 3,000 miles now, and I can feel it startening to loosen up a bit more... I am absolutely chuffed to bits with it...

On a motorway run, I average over 50mpg sitting at 70mph, and to and from work (bit of town and mainly A roads) I average 42mpg... with 0-60 in about 6.8 seconds.... and when you get used to the power, you can chip it to take it to approx 280bhp... what more could you want ?

Scumbag

Good man...thought it couldnt just be me that thought it would be a good combination

How do you find the need to constantly stir the gears? I think that is the only thing slightly worrying me - 2,500 rev powerband, and 6 gears probably means a lot of gear changing (although, probably not much different to having a peaky engine)

Did you knock the dealers down, or go to a non-franchised supplier (eg broadspeed)?

Cheers
SB

GMT

Don't find it too bad actually with the gears - you soon get used to it and "learn" which gear to sit in... I've come from a 530i Sport and don't notice the gear changes are any more frequent, apart from around town where it sits nicely in 3rd or 4th, but I try to avoid 2nd as it is so sensitive one little press sends you surging forward

3rd and 4th gear particularly just give you such superb overtaking ability....

I spent weeks looking at every broker I could think of, and a few main dealers.... drivethedeal.com gave the best price of them all (excluding micronet showroom but this looks as dodgy as a chocolate fireguard)... in the end bought it from my local dealer in Bedford as they (reluctantly) matched the best internet price ... after ordering about 3.5k of optional extras, I ended up haggling a discount of 11.5%

Scumbag

Well, I've ordered one (delivery due in May). Got an 11% discount including extras, but also got the sat-nav plus for £500 (current Audi UK offer), as well as reduced price on the S-line option - woohoo. Also (eventually) managed to get my local dealer down to the drive the deal and Broadspeed prices.

I've had a brief look around - but where can I get info on chipping/remapping it?

Cheers
SB

The Chief

REVO

DMS do it as well.

Try also Awesome Gti (i think they do Audis')

DMC12

Hi,

Does the Sport Suspension make a big difference on these? I'm personally not keen on the S-Line styling and don't really want Leather. The Sport trim seams a better bet for what I'm after, but it doesn't seam to have the sport suspension on the new models.

It's actually the 3.0 TDi Quattro Cab I'm interested in.

(apologies for the hijack)

Cheers

Steve.

scoobyjimbo

Yep, I have the new a6 3.0 tdi manual and love it.. great smooth engine, power when you want it and fruggle if you take it easy on the gas pedal..

J

Scumbag

Steve,
I prefer the sport suspension - I'm coming from a BMW 330 Sport which has a suspension that is far too harsh. My feeling is that the Audi equivalent isnt quite as filling-rattling.

The s-line styling isnt particularly different to the non s-line option - to me the biggest difference was the sports seats and sports suspension. I hadnt looked at all at the cabs, but it looks like there is the extra trim level of 'sport' that doesnt exist anywhere else in the A4 range. It doesnt look like you can add sports suspension onto the sport package (although the audi configurator can sometimes get the odd thing wrong, so you'd have to talk to a dealer). Also looks like they assume that everyone who wants the s-line cab will also want leather. You might be able to spec up the standard model with the bits that you want without having to include the leather, for a cheaper price. To be honest the only way to check out the suspension is to take it for a spin.
I would also say that I've thought wanting a diesel cab a bit unusual - start it up when cold, and you'll still know exactly what kind of an engine it is when you arent surrounded in a metal cabin...good luck



Cheers Chief - DMS werent advertising Audis on the website, but I'll drop them a line, I found Superchips had mapped a 233PS engine on a A6, and I'd only searched on A4s - should have known better - thanks

GMT

Glad to hear you went for it in the end sounds like you got a good deal...

Would be interested to see what you find out about chipping... I also saw the superchips graph... but would be interested to see what DMS etc could offer...

Done 4k miles now, was going to wait until about 10k so it is fully run in before going for a chip and it gives me more time to hide money away so the wife doesn't know how much it cost

Hanley

Will the chipping affect the Audi warranty in any way?