4 Month 8k miles Review

[ianfarnham]

I thought it might be worth setting out a few personal reactions now that I’ve had my 3.0TDi SLine for 4 months 8k miles.

Engine / gearbox – the 3.0 V6 is a dream – much quieter than my C6 2.7TDi and you’d be pushed to believe it is a diesel. Great flexibility and somehow Audi have brought back that pleasing engine/exhaust burble when you accelerate hard. I also love the Multitronic – at first it was a bit unusual getting used to a constant engine speed when accelerating.

Handling/Performance – there is a tremendous difference between Economy mode and Dynamic (especially if you pull it back into sport) – a bit obvious I suppose. In Dynamic + Sport when all the power goes down on the wheels you can feel them fighting for grip in most situations; guess a 4WD sorts this ! Steering is a little skittish on the straight – eg on the motorway slight surface defects can need steering correction; again a factor of suspension and tyre setup. On fresh snow this car was a lot better – last winter I couldn’t get my C6 up my road without external help – and no I haven’t got winter tyres.

Economy - can get 40mpg on my routes and, if careful 50 on long runs/ motorways – but it is also easy to get down to sub 10mpg on the meter if heavy footed. As with many posts elsewhere the consumption meter is favourable by around 10% compared with tankfull to tankfull measured at the pump.

Likes - the toys (Google Maps, wi-fi, etc, etc), styling/looks, very comfortable seats

Niggles – door mirror wind noise above 60mph, occasional rattles from the front seat adjusters, boot mechanism feels cheap and hit & miss on closing compared with previous models. And do we really need the sat nav screen flipping in and out every time you switch on?

I’ve hardly used the flappy paddles on the steering wheel – great fun initially but when the novelty wears off I don’t use them - when steering is away from straight line your hands cant find the controls anyway; and you can do the same thing with the gear lever anyway.

Driving – a decent step up compared with my old C6,

Overall I like it a lot - how are others finding theirs?

[shabazmo]

Hi Ian, Good to hear you like your new car. I was interested in your comments on the steering being a little skittish. There is no such problem with my A7 2wd multi with 18 inch wheels. Perhaps I am a gentle driver. What is your wheel size.

[ianfarnham]

Also 18inch. I think its that having been used to the standard SE suspension (soft and gentle with some wallow) with the SLine it is obviously a bit tighter so you notice the surface changes via feedback in the steering which you subconsciously correct. You might ask am I just confusing a more direct feel with "skittishness" !

[BigAid]

Hi Ian,

Glad your enjoying it!

I've been in mine 2.5 months - 5k miles.

I came from:
3.5yrs in an '07 2.0 S-Line
6months in an SE '09 2.0 tdie
(both on 18"s)

to an SE 3.0ltr Quattro (with DSG) with sports suspension and sports differential running on 20" wheels.

Engine / gearbox - Going from 130 to 245 and the big weight reduction means you just have oodles of power - definitely spoilt by it. I like getting back into the sports seats, sports suspension - feel much more in contact with the road.

Quattro / Sports Differential - just so much more grip and security when cornering sharply / accelerating out of a corner.

Handling/Performance – Agree with the huge difference between Economy mode and Dynamic/Sports - mainly in acceleration lag in Eco compared to immediate in Dynamic/Sports.

Economy - 480 miles max out of a 65ltr tank and that's on cruise on motorway miles not pushing it in Eco or dynamic - forget it of you tab into sports - your closer to 400 then.

I do average of 10 miles out of London then motorways after that - 20/25 in city traffic - goes to 35 on open road.

- biggest difference by far
Used to get 450 out of '07 2.0s-line
Got 650 out of '09 2.0se tdie
Get 480 out of 3.0se Quattro - however they did chop 5ltrs off fuel tank size from older models to newer one......

Also 0 REALLY means ZERO.........old A6s - when they said 0 had a good 5 miles left in them - new one doesn't - ran it close as was seeing what I'd get out of a tank exactly and then got in traffic on M11 - hit 0 on off ramp to A13 in queuing traffic (started bricking it and turned air-con & everything possible off) and just made it to Esso off roundabout - I put 65.00 litres into the car........... never again will I get that close/ ignore the shall I direct you to a fuel station 40m warning!

Likes - same as you + ACC cruise control - so much more comfortable than normal CC on motorway/lane assist, led headlights - so bright at night & night vision,

Niggles – iPhone crap interaction so have toys and can't use ********
Boot lid - totally agree - its composite of some sort as my diving magnetic cylinder sign now will not stick to it - I doubt a magnetic GB plate would either.........usually takes people 2 goes to do it as they're not firm enough the first time and then they always end up slamming it :(

Agree about the paddles - played for a couple of drives then can't be bothered - just tab the gear lever into sports and out usually.

Driving – great, still loving it after some 7hr drives.......just getting used to going to petrol station a lot
more - turns out i'd really got used to the decrease in visits with the 200m extra range in the eco engine.






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[Timothy Nathan]

I was amazed to get 50 mpg at a steady 75mph on the motorway, and that's on a tight new engine (3.0 TDI Multitronic) and with three adults aboard.

My other impressions have all been good. Quiet, smooth and comfortable. The cabin noise at 75 is no greater than at 35.

The multitronic gearbox is great at forward driving, I love it, but I find that it needs a surprising amount of welly in reverse...do others find that?

Both the Adaptive Cruise Control and Active Lane Assist take some getting used to, but are great once you have. ACC used in stop go traffic is not much help, but it's a great toy to play with. On the motorway it's just brilliant. I found Active Lane Assist very disconcerting at first. It's as if the passenger has leant across and grabbed the wheel, but once you know it's going to happen, it makes driving much more relaxing.

The HUD is wonderful. I find myself almost never looking down to the MMI or DIS.

Not convinced by Side Assist. It goes off when your wing mirror is full of car, scarcely very helpful.

Also can't much see the point in Google Earth maps, though they are pretty.

Overall, I love it so far.

[ti rich]

I cant get 50MPG at 75mph out of my 2.0 TDi S-Line manual. at that speed it averages about 43ish. I am beginning to see that Audi have the gearing all wrong on the manual box. At 70mph its about 2100rpm - to just high.

I really think that if you do a lot of motorway miles you will get better MPG out of the bigger engine!

[shabazmo]

Timothy, 50mpg is about right at 70mph, but if you do a brim to brim check, you will find that 50 mpg = about 47 mpg, so there is come errors the computer calculation. The best I have ever had in gentle driving is 47 and that was when my dash was reading 50.

I haven't noticed any delay in reverse but I will pay more attention next week and comment.
Like you I thought the HUD was fantastic and relied on it for 6 months. But for some reason my brain seems to use it less now. Not sure why.
I agree with you on Google Earth. Greatto show friends as a party piece, but practically its not worth bothering about.
I can't comment about the other options you have as I don't have them. I know I miss not having High Beam assist.
I have driven 12 miles on zero miles of fuel, so there is some slack in the tank.

[Timothy Nathan]

I won't do a brim to brim check, as I want my wife to think that it's as frugal as possible.

12 miles after empty? You're a braver man than me!

[ianfarnham]

Agree with your comment about reverse (not a delay) it feels like a very low gear ratio - must be a design feature of the multitronic.

[shabazmo]

I won't do a brim to brim check, as I want my wife to think that it's as frugal as possible.

12 miles after empty? You're a braver man than me, Gunga Din!

Gunga Din! Where are you comming from with that comment?

[Timothy Nathan]

.

[shabazmo]

I am aware of Kipling and the character. I just could not see the connection.

[Timothy Nathan]

It's just a turn of phrase, which I have never known to cause offence, but have now removed.

[nealeb]

Being a bit slow on the uptake, I've just realised that the 2WD 3.0TDI comes with a multitronic and the DSG is only on the Quattro. So I had a quick look at the Audi brochure, and I see that the multitronic looks a good bit more economical than the DSG. I wonder how much of that is the gearbox technology, or the overall gearing, or the slightly different engine tune between the two? If I compare my DSG consumption with the numbers that other people have posted here, I don't see as big a difference as Audi suggest (in other words, I seem to do a bit better) but that may just be down to keeping it in E mode and just lying back and enjoying it!

I also see the "it needs a bit of welly in reverse to get going" effect (I've posted elsewhere on my experience at trying to reverse on to my drive up a slight kerb) with the DSG so maybe it's a more generic A6 characteristic and not just the multitronic?

[shabazmo]

Interesting, I had parked the Audi outside last night whene the temp was 2C, and I did notice that I needed a lot of revs this morning before the car moved off. Normally the car is in the garage, so I guess that the multi responds slowly when the temperature is very cold.

Regarding fuel consumption, the 2wd is lighter than the quatro by not having a rear and centre driveshaft, along with some improvement in mechanical losses, and I do beleive that the multi box is a bit more efficient. The 2wd cars are also fitted with Goodyear Efficientgrip tyres, so the combination of all these probably helps achive the improved CO2 figures.