S3 Test drive today
 

Been for a test drive in an S3 Cabriolet DSG today.


Good bits.
Engine is really good. Was surprised how strong it was. Certainly felt a lot stronger than my old 300BHP 2005 STI PPP.


Obviously the build quality is spot on, and even in Cabriolet form, it handled pretty well.


Given the greasy roads, grip was unbreakable. Even booting it mid tight corner didn't get anything other than ultimate grip.


DSG Gearbox. Makes accelerating seamless. Can understand why lots of people go for DSG.


Ride quality. Even in it's harshest setting, it never felt too harsh. Nothing more than what I've been used to. And certainly nothing I couldn't live with every day.


Bad Bits
DSG Gearbox. Although it makes accelerating seamless, and makes the most of the engine, is was over eager to kick down under full load, when all I wanted was to accelerate hard in 6th. Same as the flappy paddles. Used them once, then got bored. Maybe my fingers aren't long enough, but I was compromised holding the steering wheel while operating the paddles. And the trip tronic part? Cr@p. It's upside down. Push forward to change up, and pull down to change down. I want to pull back to change up, and push to change down. Why they have it that way I don't know?


Road noise. Not sure how it was effected by the cabriolet version, but on certain roads, the tyre roar was very load. Maybe the Saloon will be slightly quieter?


Verdict
Very nice car. Drove well, handled well, gripped for England, accelerated more than well. Proved by coming up behind a BMW M3 (V8). He saw me, booted in on a dual carriageway, and acceleration was identical. Did it 3 times off roundabouts, and nothing in it (and yes he was trying).
The S3 will be an enjoyable everyday car. And in Saloon version, looks excellent. Proven this morning when there was a customer Sepang Blue S3 Saloon parked outside (same colour as I want), and it looked mint!


In the end, they made me an offer. But no where near as good as I could get elsewhere. Bit of haggling later, got within a whisker of the best offer I'd had elsewhere, and without the hassle of having to travel down south to pick it up. Deal agreed, deposit paid, pick up March/April.


Just need to sell my Golf GTI, and R8 now.

Are you getting a manual? Was ride and refinement as good as the R8? Does the interior feel as special as the R8? Did it feel as quick as the R8?

Good write up.
I've used DSG in an S4, a diesel CC and a Caravelle; it really don't get on with it but maybe it's just me.
Otherwise great stuff; going to feel a bit staid after the R8 but probably not da off for point to point pace.

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts when you get it!

Interesting

I ordered a 3 door S3 hatchback with DSG as I fancy a change from a manual, as I seem to spend a lot of time in traffic, not sure how I'm going to get on with it, will see. Should be delivered in March,
Did you go for the super sport seats ?
Tyre roar may be the Conti sport contact 5, personally I don't like them, they do seem to be noisy on certain roads, and wear rate seems to be poor, approx 14k miles and then they are shot.
I don't think the interior is special on a Audi R8 its a combo of other Audi's, rest of the car has aged well, but the interior is starting to look dated now. I'm guessing the new R8 will have the LCD dash and buttons from the new shape TT.

I have the Conti sport contact 5 on the S8 and they are quieter than the Dunlops on the less extreme tyred A8. However, the S8 has active noise cancellation so it isn't a level playing field, but the A8 could kick up a surprising amount of road noise on some surfaces. Both sets of tyres are at similar wear levels though.

I've been asking the dealer what tires it will come with and get a don't know answer, I want to change them to Goodyear eagle F1's which seem to have a better wear rate and just as much grip and quieter.
Could just me, as I can remember when tires lasted 25K to 30K miles.

Yes, getting the manual. The ride and refinement is better than the R8. On bumpy roads, the R8 can feel overly stiff. Pot holes car jar your filling out.


The interior is not that special on the S3. The Golf's interior is better TBH.
And it's certainly not as special as the R8's interior.


It's not as quick as the R8. I think on a back road, it'd easily keep up, but once the R8 got on a decent wide road with long straights, or even a dual carriageway, I think it would open a gap up.


Think its true to say a DSG S3 is really good at accelerating. Think a Manual version wouldn't be as quick, but (from a personal point of view) be a lot more enjoyable to drive.

I think you may regret getting the DSG. It just felt over eager to kick down all the time, especially in sport setting. Drive around in sport, and your fuel bills will be hit hard. On the plus side, it does accelerate really well as the gearshifts back home seamlessly.


But, as you say, you spend a lot of time in traffic, so think the DSG will work good for you.


Yes, went for the Super Sports seats. Sat in the before, and well worth the extra money over the standard seats.


My spec was
manual
Sepang Blue
Satnav
Hill Hold assist
Extended mono.pur interior finish
Internal lighting pack
Parking system plus
B&O Sound system.

Very similar spec to what I have ordered, didn't bother with the hill hold as ordered the DSG but it does work well on the manual I drove.
Comfort pack and reverse camera are the 2 other options I went for.

My anxiety with a manual on a fast car is that the gearchanges come thick and fast. Or is it not that manic? Both my AWD cars need a gearchange every few seconds below 100mph. Even using the paddles is difficult to time.

Is the Audi and Volkswagen gearbox the same, as VW is DSG where as Audi in S-tronic?? But Audi S3/Golf R are pretty much the same car engine wise/brakes/suspension etc, its just the gearboxes have different names!!

March/April delivery date not bad on S3, ive been waiting 3 months on the VW Golf already and got a build date for March 16th!!

Yes. S-tronic is DSG. Just like Quattro on a S3 is the same as the 4Motion on the Golf R (Haldex).

Road noise, if it wears Bridgestone RE050s on the back, then you will get a fair bit of cabin noise. That said, some models based on the same chassis can suffer more road noise, so it could be a cabriolet thing as well. Lots of models share the same chassis suspension, so its interesting that some variants get road noise whilst other do not - i.e Our Altea is a hell of alot noisier than my R32.

There's a few good threads on the American VAG forums about suspension parts interchangeability between various PQ35 and PQ36 platform cars from various years. Wished I had seen it earlier - as my R32 would now be wearing Audi TT lower arms which has adjustable camber on the balljoints (R32 is fixed - camber is adjustable by moving the subframe, which is an arse, as it tends to move by itself anyway once its been disturbed). Having forked out on a new set of arms and balljoints already, I'm slightly peeved I could have got the TT versions for just a just few quid more.

Must admit, when accelerating hard, the gears were thick and fast. A DSG equipped S3 would be faster than a manual S3.


0-60 is 5.3 (Manual) vs 4.9 (DSG) and that probably just one gear change.


But I just prefer changing gears myself. Would have ordered an RS3 had it had a manual gearbox. Could have even overlooked the fact it's only a Sportback.

No way I could change gear as quick as my auto does but the ratios are fey short.