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Has anyone here owned either of these? Until a dew days ago I ran a lowly 2010 A3 diesel, which was ok. Totally uninspiring but adequate for it's intended purpose. Just wondered if anyone has any thoughts...my preference is RWD. But then it would be.
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I owned a BMW 120d Coupe for three years.
Pros:
* Quite nippy.
* Refined engine.
* Looked good (to me).
* Comfy seats.
Cons:
* Handling was ALWAYS unpredictable. I don't know if it was a tracking issue (BMW say not) or the tyres, or the suspension) but on long sweeping bends the wheel would aggressively snatch to the side taking considerable strength to hold straight. It was unpredictable and almost impossible to reproduce.
* It always pulled to the left.
* The fuel economy was terrible - 40-ish on a long run at 70.
* The ride was abominable over anything other than smooth roads - the suspension couldn't keep up so if you went over a pothole at speed you had to wait while the traction control finished intervening on the bouncing wheel.
* The basic level of kit is pretty poor. The stock radio is useless. No cruise control as standard.
* The entire ABS / TCS / ESP module packed up on mine just out of warranty. BMW not interested despite the local specialist saying that it was a remarkably common fault and that BMW now sold them the specific component to rectify the problem. They charged me £300, BMW quoted £800+ and wouldn't consider a goodwill gesture.
* Don't even think about taking it on ice. Or snow.
* The auto box wouldn't shift into 4th until you exceeded 34 mph, so you had to drive around town at about 2200 rpm.
After that I dumped it back at the dealer under the return clause on the PCP and swore I'd never have another BMW.
I had a ride in a friend's A3 the other day. Got 72 mpg, refined, comfortable, decent level of toys and VAG reliability. Get the Audi.
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Thanks for the informative reply FF.
Would your 120d have been the Mk1 version? From what I have read, the Mk 2, with it's longer wheelbase, wider track and improved suspension, is a far better handling car. HJs road test of the 125d is positively glowing. And a friend raves about his 235i.
Oh dear, I can feel a bad dose of 'man maths' rearing it's ugly head.
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"Man" maths?
For a 1 series?
You sure?
Girl maths maybe...
Hey maybe it's different in Yorkshire.
;-)
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Runfer, you are quite correct.
Once my current subscriptions expire, it will be farewell Vogue, Tatler & Grazia. I need to get a grip.
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We had a mk1 120d SE in 2006, which was a lovely little car to drive. The 6 speed gearbox was a bit notchy, and the ride was choppy to say the least. The interior was a bit plasticky, but 167bhp in a small RWD hatchback was fun :). It was replaced in 2008 by a new petrol A3 (only a 1.6) which had a nicer interior and was a far more relaxing drive.
As a drivers car I prefer the 120d; I can't recall there being any issue with the handling on ours, though it was just an SE on 16 inch wheels. Interestingly the ride on the A3 (on its optional 17" wheels) was still better than the BMW.
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Reading with interest because both these are on the list of candidates to replace the S60. A3 would make more sense, of course - four passenger doors and a hatch, room for three and occasionally four - but part of me is really curious about the BMW.
Not the ugly 1, of course, but the 2 which, from what I've read but not yet experienced, is as long as previous 3 coupés and has a decent boot and at least a usable back seat. It's also available with that rich red leather interior (cue caustic remarks from Humph) that BMW does rather well - more practical than ivory and a change from dreary black. And I really want to try that eight-speed automatic that everyone, our own DP included, rates so highly.
Must be the lounge lizard in me but I've always fancied a two-door coupé, right back to the Rover 220i in about 1992. Trouble is, being more of a lounge Komodo dragon, I never found one I could both afford and fit into; and then family and Being Sensible came along and it slipped off the agenda. Now it would make quite good sense as an economical solo car with enough power and presence for the motorway and a bit of weekend fun potential. Midlife crisis, anyone?
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Looks great WdB. Probably best to check the boot size first though. It'd be disappointing if the the mobile hairdressing equipment didn't fit in.
;-)
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Having just swapped from a bunch of hybrids to a Volvo S60, Wil, I just completed a 40 mile journey with the thought that I only wish it had been longer. Not something I've thought when driving for some time.
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What decided you to change back to a "normal" car Crankcase?
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Number of factors, mostly to do in my shallow way with such things as some toys I now have that are not available in the Toyota range at any price, a desire for a bit more waft and a more solid driving feel.
None of those were available to me in hybrid form, or not at a price I could afford.
I will inevitably miss the ludicrously low running costs, but so far the cumulative experience is outweighing that. So far.
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Can't argue with waft appeal. It's the only thing that really matters in the end. Badges, BHPs, MPGs, 0-60s etc, all very interesting of course, but waft, waft conquers all.
;-)
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That, decent sound proofing and a spiffy heating system.
You might I suppose call it waft insulation.
As to batteries, I have a lot more concern about component failure on this one than the last set, but hey, that's what warranties are for...
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>> Can't argue with waft appeal. It's the only thing that really matters in the end.
>> Badges, BHPs, MPGs, 0-60s etc, all very interesting of course, but waft, waft conquers all.
>>
>> ;-)
Westfields dont waft
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No indeed not, but they are bit like a torrid affair, you're really glad it happened, but you're not going to marry it.
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>> What decided you to change back to a "normal" car Crankcase?
An irrational fear of Batteries
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WDB, a pal has recently taken delivery of a 235i. Personally I think they are not particularly good looking. His is black, although I do like the Coral Red Dakota leather interior. His previous car was a Scirocco 170 diesel. Bought because his mileage increased. Before that it was a TTRS. Which really guzzled gas. Glad he has seen the light! And boy does it go.
I am obviously odd one out because I prefer the looks of the 1 series.
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1 might make more sense with the extra doors, LL, but I doubt the boot would take one cricket bag, never mind two. (Beestling Major is likely to be a semi-regular Saturday player this summer and certainly next.)
Anyway, I put in a speculative test drive request and the dealer in Maidenhead (to which iOS appears unhelpfully to have learned the archaic lower-case sense in preference to the more useful place name it had before) has already tried to call me - to my surprise on a Sunday.
I have some leave days to use up in January in lieu of days I worked in December, so I'll take a bit of one of those to pay them a visit and see if it's a possibility. There's a VW shop almost next door, so when the Golf GTE ('avatar', iOS, really?) lands I'll aim to try one of those over the same route.
Audi means going to Reading. No thanks. Or Slough, I suppose. Still means talking to an Audi salesman, which I've not found rewarding before.
Last edited by: WillDeBeest on Sun 4 Jan 15 at 13:36
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Worth adding the Audi A1 Sportback in to the mix? Back seat is small, but if most of your journeys are only 1-up..?
Arguably nippier than the A3, especially in SportPlus guise...
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No thanks, Auntie. That would work only if all of our journeys were one- or two-up. There will be a need for the occasional pre- or actual teenager, both headed for 1.9m+, to squeeze into the back. That may not work even in the 2 - something I'll be checking for - but I'd be amazed if the A1 could accommodate it.
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It'll be interesting to see if the Golf GTE has the same problem as the A3 e-tron - reduced boot space because of the batteries. If VW offer it as an estate as well it would be good.
The A3/GTE sound attractive as they promise 30 miles on electric power (the Toyota hybrids will do only about 12) - covering most people's local trips. But disappointingly the Autocar road testers in last week's issue couldn't get more than 18 miles out of the e-tron.
If one's priority is energy saving, a hybrid is a nice idea: but financially one is simply not going to recoup the extra cost of am A3 e-tron over another Octavia vRS, or indeed a 2-series coupe (or the Active Tourer which would suit me personally better than a coupe, as our other car is a Mini Roadster). Audi's best rival to a 2-series is probably the A3 1.4 TSI 150.
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Wouldn't a C30 be the perfect spiritual successor to the S60, WdB?!
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Could be, but isn't it out of production now?
And yes, Avant, the GTE does lose about 100 litres of the GTI's boot space. Not critical for our purposes, especially since the loss is in depth, rather than width or length.
One big factor in the appeal of plug-ins will be access to charging points at workplaces. Later this year that may include me; I just wish I understood how the electricity is paid for!
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I quite fancy a 130i for a bit of fun, small RWD hatch with a big NA engine.
But you have a 330i so won't make as much sense for you possibly?
So you've just sold an A3, what was the question again?
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I cannot remember the question. The thing is, dare I drive around in a shoe? A ladies car to boot ( unintentional pun).
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A 135i makes sense, because it has five doors which helps the ancients. But it's a ladies car. Move along please.
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From what I've seen the rear doors of a 1 are an irrelevance, as inside there is only a padded ledge with nowhere for humans with legs to put them.
(This may also be true of the 2, although I think that has a slightly longer wheelbase. We shall see.)
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A3 vs BMW 1 series - Fursty Ferret
