Audi A3 2.0T: Executive-class hot hatch

A nice longterm test report about the Audi A3 2.0T.

We're a little tardy telling you about one of the newer members of our fleet. It was Halloween when we took delivery on our trick new long-term Audi A3, and it’s been a treat ever since.

After some break-in miles around Detroit, the A3 carried us over the Mackinac Bridge and through the woods to the western portion of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, where the weather gets bleak early and where we affirmed that mere front-drive is quite sufficient—opting not to wait for a quattro model is no big loss, except perhaps in terms of bragging rights.

In regular commuter duty, we’ve also been satisfied with the car’s DSG (after introducing the DSG under the technically descriptive “double-shaft,” Audi now seems to prefer calling it “direct shift”) and the 2.0-liter, 200-hp turbocharged four. It was fun even during the break-in period, when new owners are cautioned against high-rpm and full-throttle operation, because the turbo four’s wide torque band and the quick and easy selection among six gear ratios makes it responsive enough to be entertaining.

In this sense, though it has similar horsepower and performance, the A3 separates itself from the likes of the Cooper Works Mini or even the GTI. The Audi is less frenetic, less an eager puppy begging you to come play, and more a friendly companion equally willing to cruise along easily or go quite quickly if that’s what you have in mind. Credit the quieter cabin and the DSG for emphasizing the difference.

Some of us have no hang-ups about the notion of a luxury hatchback, but some do, and that these staffers are already expressing pleasure in the driving experience bodes well for the year ahead. Unlike the Scion tC the A3 nominally replaces in our fleet, the Audi is a grown-up car with plenty of room for cargo and that set of rear doors to make the back seat truly useful.

Related news: GermanCarBlog, Audi A3

Source: AutoWeek

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