ok, so i was bored today so i decided to spend the afternoon test driving some cars. today's victim was Champion Audi in Coral Springs, FL (note about this dealer - they are in the same company that runs Champion Racing...yes, the team that successfully campaigned the Audi R8 at 24hrs of LeMans, 12hrs of Sebring, with JJ Lehto, Allan McNish and others)
anyway, here are my impressions:
2006 AUDI A3
i was very intrigued by this car when it first came out...was it a luxury Golf? half baked R32? something else? well, i've never driven an R32 but this is an amazing car.
typical Audi interior (i.e. extremely high-quality materials, beautiful design, good ergonomics and wonderful seats), surprisingly large cargo capacity with the rear seats folded down, and a wonderfully fat steering wheel with great responsiveness.
driving - it's no S4 but the 2.0T makes this car really zip, even with 4 people in the car. i would guess that it's quite a bit faster than the VW GTI and Mini Cooper S and the DSG system (a true clutchless manual) is even better (less jerky) than BMW's SMG. handling is very good but not great with the sport suspension (the salesman told me it sucked without the sport susp.) and suffers a little bit from the typical fwd issues. performance-wise this is a true hot hatch.
the 3.2 quattro V6 is coming in the fall, and with 255hp and awd it should blow away even the B5 S4. there are rumors of even the king of hatches RS3 coming in next year...drool
here are the pics (note the A8 W12 in the background...$120k sticker - hayuf)
the new king of the road! i hate to admit it, but i prefer this car to the E46 M3. 340hp V8, the famous quattro awd system...this car is scary fast. out of respect to the salesman i didn't abuse the clutch, but when you do a clutch drop at 3000 rpm all four wheels grab the road so violently that my neck still hurts. handling is not as sublime as the M3, but still great and very forgiving because of the awd. acceleration is ABSOLUTELY BRUTAL. i would not mess with this car on the roads unless i was driving a 911 turbo.
interior is beautiful...the unit i drove had two tone leather/alcantara recaro seats, aluminum trim everywhere and premium sound/navigation (Bose yata pero nakalimutan ko na). the only issue is that the rear seats are a bit tight (a problem with the A4 for years), but with a car like this it's a minor flaw.
sorry, no pics of this one kasi biglang bumuhos ang ulan while we were doing the test drive.
if i were not coming from the S4 before driving this car, i would say that this was an awesome ride. however, na-spoil ako ng tuluyan sa S4 eh the car is 3 years old and the look is a bit dated, and the previous owner didn't detail the car enough - silver paint was not lustrous, the headlight housings were a bit yellowed, and the black leather interior was a bit worn. but still a nice ride.
acceleration is about 9/10 of the S4, but not as dramatic a launch (i think because it's not awd and the s/c takes a little bit to kick in). handling is definitely a step below the S4 and a couple of steps below the M3. but if you're on the open highway and drop the hammer, i don't think those other two cars would leave you behind.
interior is a bit dated...very nice looking materials but they don't age well. the CF trim (not sure if it's real CF or stickers) especially looks cheap after some time. interior space is roomier than the S4 but for some reason i've never liked Mercedes leather. i'm sure it's high quality, but the butter-soft Montana leather of BMW is much better imo (even though it wears out quickly), and i really love the leather/alcantara combinations that Audi uses.
anyway, if this car was in better shape it would be a steal ($34k with 35k miles). if you look hard enough you could probably find a mint one for the same price, though.
if you gotta have Mercedes and want a little more pampering with your autobahn-burning speed, this is the car for you. if you want ultimate handling and a sportier profile, get the M3.
nung pauwi pala ako may nakatapat akong dark blue na murcielago. hayuf ang baba at yung lapad. siguro yung roof niya nasa 3/4ths ng bimmer ko. and the engine roar/exhaust note is pure sex
Quote:
Originally Posted by gwapito69
Uncle M54 kayo ba yung nakaafro sa likod ng pic? ganda hair do ah..
bwahaha
yung lot porter yan. naka-gel yan kanina eh...bigla naging afro after niyang sumakay sa S4
ahh, my A3 plan was ruined by the unexpected break-down of my 240SX I just had to get any car as my daily; hence, the Mazda3. Wife already agreed last July that A3 is going to be 'our' car on December, S3 possibly. Tangna, wallpaper ko nga sa mga computer ko interior shots ng A3. But the F'n 240SX died on me so the money went to the MZ3 instead.
There's going to be a tough battle between the S3 and the Quattro A4 3.0 (pricing wise).
thanks guys...di ko naisip mag interior pics eh :kamot ulo:
karding, ok lang yan, baka makaswerte ka pa. if you bought in december you could get the 3.2 quattro A3 for sure, but probably not the S3. according to the salesman, mid-2006 pa yung release ng S3 sa europe pa lang, and there is no official word on a north america release. baka papalipasin nila yung r32. now you can enjoy a very good car while the very long wait for a US release continues...
another weekend, another test drive, hehe. this time it was Fairbanks Chrysler Dodge Jeep. i thought that this time i would try the Dodge Magnum RT, aka the Hemi-powered karo ng patay. my thoughts:
2005 Dodge Magnum R/T
first, the specs: 5.7L Hemi V8, 340 hp 390 lb ft torque. this thing is a beast.
interior is very american, but with better materials. leather everywhere - not comparable in quality to german or japanese luxury car leather but pretty decent. the seats are not very supportive, especially the back bench where the wife was sliding around under hard cornering (haha). humongous cargo space - you can put almost anything back there and still seat 5. back seat space is excellent also.
on to the drive...here's the bottom line: the car is a rocket in a straight line, but the weight of the car overwhelms the suspension when cornering. i was kind of sliding around when turning the corner hard, but all things considered (and compared to other so-called american muscle cars) the suspension does a pretty good job for such a heavy car. braking is decent, about 7/10.
summary - american cars are getting better and better - the Dodge Magnum RT has all of the traditional strengths of american muscle (tremendous torque, downright terrifying straight line speed), and is getting better at its traditional weaknesses (handling is more german-like, interior quality and design getting much better). the kicker? the 7 year/70k mile warranty and the $9k discount off msrp. killer deal!!
M54's day at the dealer (UPDATED)...
the car is 3 years old and the look is a bit dated, and the previous owner didn't detail the car enough - silver paint was not lustrous, the headlight housings were a bit yellowed, and the black leather interior was a bit worn. but still a nice ride.
I just had to get any car as my daily; hence, the Mazda3. Wife already agreed last July that A3 is going to be 'our' car on December, S3 possibly. Tangna, wallpaper ko nga sa mga computer ko interior shots ng A3. But the F'n 240SX died on me so the money went to the MZ3 instead.
Linear Mode
