S3 or A3 3.2 V6

[markmarkmark01]

Hello all. I currently have a Subaru but thinking of getting a new car in the next 6 months.

I was looking for about a 4 year old car.

I have been trying to find out a few answers.

I am currently standing on the fence wondering what I would prefer.

An Audi S3 or a A3 3.2 V6.

I have been on aututrader and a few other websites and found out that the S3 has 225bhp and if chipped 265bhp. The A3 has 250 bhp.

Is the S3 turbo permanently on or does it kick in at a certain point.

What is the difference and what you would choose and why...

I would appreciate any feedback as totally unsure what one would best suit me and my family.

[SEMKY]

I cant speak totally unbiased to be honest, but I adore my S3. The turbo behaves much the same as any turbo will, slight (and I mean Slight) lag, then a long progressive power surge all the way to 6000 revs or so..
I spent the 400 quid on the remap and its phenomenal. Certainly the easier car of the two you suggest to mod and get 'bang for buck'.
Having only driven the 3.2 V6 A3 briefly, I cant offer an accurate opinion, but it certainly didnt feel as rapid as the S3 (before remap) but characteristics are totally different. (sounds good)

Both great cars, Personally though, S3 every time!

[adamss24]

Second that. It might not be a subaru handling wise but its a wolf in sheeps clothes, very understated, brilliant interior and it has soo much tunning potential. The engine is strong enough for 350 Bhp without touching the internals and you wont get pulled by the rozzers at every corner. Another car to consider is the older shape audi s4. It come with a 2.7 biturbo engine and the engine has 1000 bhp potential. True 4x4 Torsen diff wich require 0 maintenance compared with the s3 wich is Haldex and will need an oil and filter change every 30K... S4 is still very understated but holds value pretty well and they come with a lot of toys as standard. Change the turbochargers with the ones from a b5 RS4 and you will see over 50 bhp increase and after remap the ECU and upgrade the diverter valves with Forge/Bailey units and you will be smiling all the way. It wont sound as good as the subaru but you will love the thrust from that engine and the feeling of having 300+ bhp under your right foot !

[euroslap]

I absolutely love my Dad's 225 S3, you shouldn't really notice any lag once you've adapted to driving the turbo engine. On the other hand though I absolutely love the sound of the 3.2 V6, they really do sing when you're giving them some and they've got more torque than you could shake a stick at. I'd try test driving them both and make your mind up for yourself, they really are both lovely cars.

[SEMKY]

Second that. It might not be a subaru handling wise but its a wolf in sheeps clothes, very understated, brilliant interior and it has soo much tunning potential. The engine is strong enough for 350 Bhp without touching the internals and you wont get pulled by the rozzers at every corner. Another car to consider is the older shape audi s4. It come with a 2.7 biturbo engine and the engine has 1000 bhp potential. True 4x4 Torsen diff wich require 0 maintenance compared with the s3 wich is Haldex and will need an oil and filter change every 30K... S4 is still very understated but holds value pretty well and they come with a lot of toys as standard. Change the turbochargers with the ones from a b5 RS4 and you will see over 50 bhp increase and after remap the ECU and upgrade the diverter valves with Forge/Bailey units and you will be smiling all the way. It wont sound as good as the subaru but you will love the thrust from that engine and the feeling of having 300+ bhp under your right foot !

Hmmmm Now you have me thinking.....I always wanted an S4 before the S3 but really struggled to find a good one near me.....could well be my next one though!!


And as Euro says, give them both a drive, and see what you prefer!

[euroslap]

Hmmmm Now you have me thinking.....I always wanted an S4 before the S3 but really struggled to find a good one near me.....could well be my next one though!!

A bit of a thread jack but oh well, it's definately worth travelling the distance to buy a good car, we got the S3 from London as there were none about in the Midlands. We travelled down a few times (you know the usual snotters that are advertised as A1 condition) but got an absolutely mint one in the end. When you put into perspective how many miles you're going to do in the car once you own it, 150 miles to go and view/buy one is b?gger all.

[SEMKY]

A bit of a thread jack but oh well, it's definately worth travelling the distance to buy a good car, we got the S3 from London as there were none about in the Midlands. We travelled down a few times (you know the usual snotters that are advertised as A1 condition) but got an absolutely mint one in the end. When you put into perspective how many miles you're going to do in the car once you own it, 150 miles to go and view/buy one is b?gger all.

Oh I totally agree with you mate, and I would travel the length of the country for a good one now, but at the time having spent about 600 quid on train journeys around the country looking at real dogs that as you say were described as 'A1'.....(one of them was even Cat D write off AND stolen recovered 2 years before that!!!) I sort of lost heart, and the S3 that I have now came up a mere 50 miles away which ticked a lot of the boxes (except I wanted a black or Nogaro Blue one)
SO alls well that ends well.

Interestingly enough, the car it was replacing (a 1991 Celica) was bought by someone who had travelled about 300 miles to look at it!

[euroslap]

To save more thread jacking, I'm going to put up a thread on advertised Snotters.

[SEMKY]

Yes, quite right....SORRY Mark!

[biggar]

Hi Mark,

I have been in a similar situation recently. I have owned Subaru’s in the past and although an A3 will never handle like a Subaru I have been more than happy to trade this in for the build quality and looks of the Audi.

While looking I spent around 3 months on the auto trader website every day. 2 weeks ago I went for a 2004 3.2 in black with an aero body kit and a Bose stereo, its go 30k on the clock and cost me 9.5K from a dealer! S3's for a similar price come on a 51 or 02 plate with double the mileage and in the end this was the deciding factor for me.

The 3.2 is lacking some feel in the steering but that V6 engine just pulls like a train from no revs at all and sounds so nice.

In short if I had around 20k to spend I would go for one of the new S3's however if like me you have around 10k you will get a MUCH better deal on a 3.2. It can even be fitted with twin turbo's taking it to 460bhp (although this costs a lot).

Hope I have been of some help Guy........