Ari Posted June 14, 2007 Report Share Posted June 14, 2007 I totally appreciate that these things are entirely subjective, and depend on road surface etc. But I borrowed an Audi A3 S-line while my car was at the dealers being fettled today. Great looking car, really smart. Lovely interior, great seats, cornered on rails, etc etc. But the ride! Felt like there was no springs, it was just riding on rubber bushes instead, car hopping about all over the place. And the tyre roar from those whacking great 18 inch alloys at 80mph... On concrete motorway surfaces you actually had to raise your voice slightly to communicate with your passenger. Not a very Audi refined and sophisticated experience I thought, I was a bit disappointed to be honest. I know the car is supposed to be "sporty", but you can get "sporty" without ruining the ride and too much interior noise at speed can't you? It seems a shame they don't do the S-line (seats, body styling etc) but with 17 inch wheels and "Sport" suspension not "S-Line" suspension (I understand Sport is harder than standard, but S-line is harder still?) After all, the car in question was a 2.0 diesel, it's not like it's an S3 or whatever. I guess if I were ever to get an A3 I'd have to forgo S-line and get a Sport which is a real shame as I totally love the look of the S-line A3. Just wondered what peoples thoughts and experiences were, is it too hard and noisy, or an I just spoilt by my A4 Cabrio (also with Sport suspension but nothing like as hard)? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edo Posted June 14, 2007 Report Share Posted June 14, 2007 Know where you are coming from - I have an S-Line tdi (170). There is some confusion as to whether S-line and Sport are any different in terms of suspension - I spoke to a number of dealers and they said they are the same (apart from the 18 inch alloys). I have to say mine has softwened up a bit now it has done nearly 5k. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S3Rob Posted June 14, 2007 Report Share Posted June 14, 2007 Hmm, it's so subjective, everyone will have a different opinion. I had a test drive in the 2.0 tfsi S-Line last year and thought it rode ok actually. Not what you'd call comfy certainly, but it was acceptable. Suspect it could get wearing around town though. The tyre noise has always been an issue with the A3 AFAIK, the S3 is really quite loud on some surfaces. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wkrzys Posted June 14, 2007 Report Share Posted June 14, 2007 The S-Line model is only a styling package, and contains all the same setup as the 'standard' sport model - same suspension, just larger alloys, tail fin etc.. However, i have 18" alloys and sport suspension and i agree, the road noise at 80mph+ is actually quite loud! but i love it anyway :-) dont feel its too hard though... but then again, all my cars have always had a really hard ride quality and so its what im used it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ari Posted June 14, 2007 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2007 Interesting posts, thanks. Totally agree, it is subjective, and what is unacceptable to one person might be perfectly fine for another. For me though, I think it'd put me off the car which is a shame. Also, from what's been posted a Sport wouldn't be a lot better, although 17 inch wheels with higher profile tyres would go some way toward lowering tyre noise and improving the ride I suppose. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cupramax Posted June 14, 2007 Report Share Posted June 14, 2007 [ QUOTE ] The S-Line model is only a styling package, and contains all the same setup as the 'standard' sport model - same suspension, [/ QUOTE ] No it doesn't the S-line is lowered 10mm compared to the standard Sport and having driven both I'd be very surprised if the dampers are the same. Ari, I've gone from an A3 S-line to an A4 Cab and there is a world of difference in the ride so I know where your coming from here, where the A4 just soaks up lumps and bumps in the road the A3 tends to react to them, not with crashes or anything like that but it just tends to jiggle the car about anoyingly. It drove me round the bend with mine and its why I ended up with a Cab. The A3 does handle very well but they really need to look at the compression damping as it just transmits far too much movement to the body in the current setup. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian_C Posted June 14, 2007 Report Share Posted June 14, 2007 The standard Sport seats in the A3 are fantastic. Not sure, but are the S line seats not just the same seats rebadged? My ideal spec would be a Sport with Haldex meaning you didn't have to worry about wheelspin and could stick with 17s. The S line seems like a whole lot of money for little extra. Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edo Posted June 14, 2007 Report Share Posted June 14, 2007 [ QUOTE ] No it doesn't the S-line is lowered 10mm compared to the standard Sport and having driven both I'd be very surprised if the dampers are the same. [/ QUOTE ] Please show me something from Audi UK or a dealer that says this, beacuse Audi UK, and a number of Audi dealers, and Audi salesmen (some on here) do not agree with you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vertigo1 Posted June 15, 2007 Report Share Posted June 15, 2007 It is all subjective. If you're used to soft, cosseting cars then it'll seem as hard as rock whereas if you're used to hot hatches it'll be fine. It's certainly firm but I've found you get used to it very quickly and don't really notice it. It's not much more solid than the Sport IMO but is noticably better handling which is a good tradeoff for me. The noise does get a bit bad on concrete surfaces but then all cars sound lounder on concrete and with 18" rims and solid suspension, it's always going to be worse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamieSelway Posted June 15, 2007 Report Share Posted June 15, 2007 Got to say that I'm actually quite happy with my S-Line's firm ride. At first it was bit of letdown, I'd been used to a Saab Cab and that was 'comfy', but now I wouldn't go back. I certainly notice the difference when I drive my parent's merc. It seems to just wallow over bumps and corners, which doesn't give me confidence to go round A and B roads at anything near reasonable speed (reasonable for 'ordinary' suspension) In terms of tyre noise, it's worth thinking about what boots it has on, The GSD3's I put on 2k ago seem much quieter than the Conti's supplied by the dealer (I'm also hoping for more than 13.5K out of them too!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dandle Posted June 15, 2007 Report Share Posted June 15, 2007 [ QUOTE ] [ QUOTE ] No it doesn't the S-line is lowered 10mm compared to the standard Sport and having driven both I'd be very surprised if the dampers are the same. [/ QUOTE ] Please show me something from Audi UK or a dealer that says this, beacuse Audi UK, and a number of Audi dealers, and Audi salesmen (some on here) do not agree with you! [/ QUOTE ] In my 2006 UK brochure it states "S-line is 10mm lower than Ambition". Ambition is what the sport is known as in Europe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S3Rob Posted June 15, 2007 Report Share Posted June 15, 2007 That would make sense because I know that the S3 is 25mm lower than standard and 5mm lower than S-Line. So 10mm lower is sport, 20mm lower is S-Line and 25mm is S3. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulyb Posted June 15, 2007 Report Share Posted June 15, 2007 Rooting through my A3 2006 model year Brochure it says: "S Line quattro GmbH sports suspension with dynamic suspension adjustment, 10 mm lower (compared to sport) Seems fairly clear cut.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baldrick Posted June 15, 2007 Report Share Posted June 15, 2007 Ride is very subjective though. My previous car to my new A3 Sportback S-Line was a 156 Veloce V6. The Veloce has the sports suspension and has often been criticised for being too firm for a compact exec, whereas I personally found the softer Lusso too soft. Before taking the Audi as a company car I considered opting out again and test drove a 159. The motoring press state how much improved the 159 ride is and yes it is comfortable but it felt way too soft for a sports saloon. So I felt Alfa had sold out and gone for the exec market at the expense of the enthusiast. The A3 S-line ride feels near perfect for me - I hate wallowy cars. More importantly the wife agrees and feels the Audi is a comfortable passenger ride and promptly slept on the entire journey the only time we have gone much distance (350 miles round trip). Though if you prefer a soft ride the S-Line won't be for you just like a Lexus LS400 makes me feel sea sick! The problem is unless you can find someone with identical likes then other opinions don't count for much and you have to go with your own experience. Cheers baldrick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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