Audi A3 1999 Problems

Audi is often in the vanguard of vehicle design and the A3 is a classic example. Audi was the first of the iconic German makers to make the bold move of moving down into smaller, relatively affordable cars.Prior to the Audi A3 you had to find something north of $60,000 to get into one of the big make Germans. The A3 dropped the starting price to the sub-40 grand region. There were mutterings that this would devalue the prestige rating of the larger, more expensive models in the range. That didn’t happen and soon arch rivals Mercedes and BMW joined Audi in introducing smaller, affordable cars.Though the Audi A3 is considered a small car by Australians, in Europe it’s often used as a family car. Four adults are more comfortable than you might expect given the relatively small size of the car. Rear-seat access in the three-door is better than in just about any other car of its type with front seats that move right out of the way in an ingenious fashion. Having said that, the five-door is obviously more practical if the back seat is going to get a lot of use.The Audi A3 has the solid feel that’s very much part of the marque.There’s plenty of stowage space in the cabin so this is a practical machine that suits many people living in crowded suburban regions in Australia. Two good sized suitcases can be carried in the boot together with some small bits and pieces. Tie-down clips secure the load in a crash or under heavy braking.Audi A3 sales were reasonably good from the May 1997 launch of the three-door, but didn’t really get up to full speed until the introduction of the five-door models in October 1999. Many of the earliest A3s are now on the used-car market, but they may be nearing the end of their lives - and they aren’t as cheap to repair or service as more mundane cars of this size.The Audi A3 has the solid feel that’s very much part of the marque and this has shown up in good durability as the years have gone by. Handling is very good, though there is perhaps just a little too much understeer at the limit to suit the full-on driving enthusiast.Engine choices in the original A3 were a 1.6-litre single-cam unit with two valves per cylinder and two 1.8-litre twin-cam models with the Audi trademark of five valves per cylinder (three intakes and two exhausts). The 1.8 came with or without a turbocharger, with the turbo engine tuned to give flexible torque and economy at low to mid-range engine speeds, rather than flat-out sports performance.Power in most Audi A3 models is transmitted to the front wheels.The second-generation cars retained the 1.6-litre in the entry level models, but also offer a 2.0-litre FSI petrol unit, with or without a turbo. It was also available with a 2.0-litre turbo-diesel. Best of all is a 3.2-litre V6 petrol engine that gives a huge amount of get-up-and-go in a relatively small car like this one.Power in most Audi A3 models is transmitted to the front wheels, the 2.0 turbo-petrol can be specified with Audi’s famed quattro all-wheel-drive system. It comes as no surprise that quattro is mandatory with the big V6 engine.Audi S3 is the high-performance variant. The S3 has a sporting three-door body and uses a 2.0-litre turbo-petrol engine driving all four wheels through a six-speed manual gearbox.Audi has been on fire in the Australian sales race over the last few years and the number of authorised dealers has increased as a result. Naturally, there’s a concentration on the major metropolitan areas, but some regional areas are starting to get into the act as well.Spare parts and servicing are reasonably priced for a prestige car but fairly expensive for a machine of this size. If you are shifting up to an Audi from an Asian or lower priced European car ask the dealer about servicing costs.Check your insurance company’s policy on turbo-petrol engines as some charge very high premiums that can add significantly to the purchase price of a used car.WHAT TO LOOK FORMake sure the engine starts quickly and idles smoothly even when it’s cold. If there’s any hesitation from the engine under hard acceleration there could be computer problems.Check that a manual gearbox changes smoothly and quietly and that an automatic transmission doesn't hunt up and down the gears when climbing moderate hills with light to medium throttle openings.Uneven front tyre wear probably means the car has been the subject of some hard driving, so is more likely in one of the high-performance models.Uneven tyre wear may also mean one of the wheels is out of alignment as the result of a crash, though that crash may have simply been a hard thump against a kerb.CAR BUYING TIPUpmarket cars almost invariably cost more to run than everyday ones, be sure to factor this into your purchasing budget.

You don’t have to have a long memory to recall the time when bigger was considered better and you bought a bigger car when you wanted a more prestigious drive. Thankfully our market is much more sophisticated today and prestige also now comes in smaller packages, like the Audi A3.Small cars once spelt poverty, they were cars you gave your wife to drive or if you drove one yourself it was because you couldn’t afford anything bigger. The normal family car was a Commodore or Falcon and you stepped up to the prestige of a Statesman or Fairlane when you’d made it.Now, largely since the influx of European makes over the last 20 years or so, prestige is no longer measured in metres of metal. It’s also true that the European makes have downsized as they’ve attempted to make their cars more affordable, and therefore more available to more people. You no longer have to be well heeled to get behind a three-pointed star or blue-and-white spinner.The big European makes, BMW and Mercedes-Benz now have smaller models, and other makes like VW and Audi have become more serious players in the local prestige market.MODEL WATCH The A3 brought new choice in prestige small cars when it arrived here in 1997. BMW’s 3-Series Compact was already on the market, setting a trend in delivering European prestige to those who would normally be able to afford it, and the A3 added another choice. At first there was only a three-door hatch on offer, but a five-door hatch replaced that in 1999, which added to the appeal of the small Audi.Audi offered a choice of three engines in the front-wheel drive A3 hatch. The entry engine was a 1.6-litre 12-valve single overhead camshaft fuel-injected four-cylinder unit that put out 74 kW at 5600 revs and 145 Nm at 3800 revs for brisk performance.There was also a fuel-injected 16-valve double overhead camshaft 1.8-litre engine that boasted 92 kW at 6000 revs and 173 Nm at 4100 revs and boosted performance nicely to be the pick of the bunch. For the most zip Audi also offered a turbocharged 1.8-litre engine that pumped out 110 kW at 5700 revs and 210 Nm at 4600 revs.A3 buyers also had the choice of a four-speed auto transmission or a sporty five-speed manual. All of that rode on a nimble front-wheel drive chassis with power steering, four-wheel anti-skid ABS disc brakes and alloy wheels.As would be expected given its prestige tag the A3 came with plenty of fruit, including central locking, immobilisers, power windows, tinted glass and four-speaker sound. After the 1999 update to the five-door hatch it also came with air-conditioning, CD player, power windows, remote central locking, leather steering wheel and a tilt adjustable column. Atop the range the turbo had sports suspension, sports seats, steering wheel and shift knob, along with exclusive cloth trim.IN THE SHOP While Audi quality has improved markedly in recent years there was a time when it wasn’t up to the standard set by BMW and ’Benz, so inspect early A3s carefully. Look for collision damage on the body, particularly for doors or hatches that down open or close properly. Paint overspray and mismatching colours can also be a give-away of crash repairs.Audi engines are known to consume oil, which isn’t a problem if owners dip their engines regularly. Many owners who bought Audis simply didn’t bother to check the oil between services and only discovered their engines thirst for oil when they developed the death rattles. Lift the dipstick and check the oil level, and take a look inside the oil filler cap for sludge, the presence of which would suggest poor servicing. It’s important to have a service record, some owners might have been able to afford to buy prestige, but might not have been able to afford the upkeep that goes along with it.IN A CRASH Early A3s came with dual front airbags; later ones also had side airbags fro front seat occupants providing decent secondary crash protection. Anti-skid ABS brakes and decent handling gave drivers a chance of avoiding a crash.OWNERS SAY Paul Skaraiev was looking to downsize from his Holden Berlina V8 when he bought his 2000 Audi A3 Turbo in 2001, but he still wanted a prestige model. The A3 had done 56,000 km when he bought it and it has now done 105,000 km without any significant problem. He says he’s rapt in its looks, loves its performance, reckons the 7.9 L/100 km fuel consumption is great and is happy with its reliability, but he isn’t so enamoured with the cost of servicing and parts.LOOK FOR • oil consumption• service record a must• check for damage to body• spirited performance from 1.8 and 1.8 turbo• agile and responsive handling• European prestigeTHE BOTTOM LINE Good handling and performing small prestige hatch with the 1.8-litre the best choice.RATING 70/100

Audi is often in the forefront of vehicle design and the A3 is a classic example. The company was the first of the upmarket German marques to make the bold, some thought foolhardy, move to smaller, relatively affordable cars.  Prior to the Audi A3 you had to spend upwards of $60,000 to get into one of the big make

The Audi A3 brought more choice in prestige small cars when it arrived here in 1997. BMW's 3-Series Compact was on the market, and the A3 added another choice.At first there was only a three-door hatch on offer but that was replaced by a five-door hatch in 1999, which certainly added to the appeal of the small Audi.Audi offered a choice of three engines in the front-wheel drive A3 hatch. The entry engine was a 1.6-litre, 12-valve single overhead camshaft fuel-injected four-cylinder unit that put out 74kW at 5600 revs and 145Nm at 3800 revs for brisk performance.There was a fuel-injected 16-valve double overhead camshaft 1.8-litre engine, which delivered 92kW at 6000 revs and 173Nm at 4100 revs and boosted performance to be the pick of the bunch. For zip, Audi offered a turbocharged 1.8-litre engine that pumped out 110kW at 5700 revs and 210Nm at 4600 revs.A3 buyers had the choice of a four-speed auto transmission or a sporty five-speed manual. All that rode on a nimble front-wheel drive chassis with power steering, four-wheel anti-skid disc brakes and alloy wheels. As would be expected given its prestige tag, the A3 came with plenty of fruit, from central locking, immobilisers, power windows, tinted glass and four-speaker sound.After the 1999 update, the five-door hatch came with airconditioning, CD player, power windows, remote central locking, leather steering wheel and a tilt adjustable column. The turbo had sports suspension and seats, steering wheel and shift knob and cloth trim.While Audi quality has improved markedly in recent years there was a time when it wasn't up to the standard BMW and Benz set, so inspect early A3s carefully. Look for collision damage on the body, particularly doors or hatches that don't open or close properly. Paint-over spray and mismatching colours can also give away crash repairs.Audi engines are known to guzzle the oil, which isn't a problem if owners dip the engines regularly. Many owners who bought Audis simply didn't bother to check the oil between services and only discovered their engine's thirst for oil when they developed the death rattles.Early A3s came with dual front airbags and later A3s also had side airbags for front-seat occupants, that provided decent secondary crash protection. Anti-skid brakes and decent handling were also provided with the intention of assisting drivers in having a better chance of avoiding crashes altogether.Paul Skaraiev was looking to downsize from his Holden Berlina V8 when he bought his 2000 Audi A3 Turbo in 2001, but he still wanted a prestige model. The A3 had done 56,000km when he bought it; it has now done 105,000km without any significant problem. Skaraiev says he loves its looks and performance, reckons the 7.9l/100km fuel consumption is great and is happy with reliability. But he isn't so enamoured of the cost of servicing and parts.