Buying an Audi 2nd Hand

Dazzler21

Hi all

I am looking at buying a second hand Audi, it's not cheap (about £7k) but is in great condition... It's the 2012 A3 Sportback with all the upgrades and has done shy of 50,000 miles...

I was explaining all this to a family friend that knows a fair whack about Cars and their response was don't buy an Audi, they've had loads of bad press.

There are only 3 things I found:

1. The A5, A7,A8 and R8 were found to have never been NCAP safety tested in 2014. (They were hoewever tested by Audi themselves.

2. The emissions scandal.

3. The fuel economy numbers were bumped up to ''perfect driving conditions'' which I guess is down hill with a back wind

Anyway my question is... Has anyone had one from 2010 onward and what were your experiences?

AddickedAthletic

Had 5 Audis over the last 20 years loved them all and had no problems and all of these had 75000-80000 on the clock when I sold them, my daughter has a 2012 A3 which we picked up 2 years ago with 37000 miles on the clock and its a great little car and been no trouble whatsoever
Now got a Mercedes and wish I had an Audi
Got 2 friends who have had Audi's then changed for BMW have both gone back to Audi's

Greenie

Make sure you get the indicator optional extra fitted.

Covered_End_Lad

Love my Audi, had very few issues (any I have had have been due to driving too hard i.e cracked alloy on a pothole) and the best part about an Audi is the drive, far smoother than a BMW/Merc and tend to be less expensive to fix certainly than a Merc.

Edit: One downside is that a large amount of the newer ones have had an issue with the bonnet sensor that means the alarm can go off when it pours with rain and there was no recall on it.

i_b_b_o_r_g

I'm coming back to get a new motor in the next few weeks, we wanted an estate and looked at the Audi A4's of about the same age (2011 / 12), but we've opted for the C-Class as they seem to be cheaper for the equivalent condition / age / mileage etc. and they also seem to be a better spec.. Not only that, I've ad Mercs in the past and love em.

SE10Addick

What engine is it?

Audi's are great cars. Very well made, hold their value and look good.

The A3 is just a VW Golf though, but that's not such a bad thing.

Dazzler21

SE10Addick said:

What engine is it? 2.0 TDI

Audi's are great cars. Very well made, hold their value and look good.

The A3 is just a VW Golf though, but that's not such a bad thing. Nicer looking than the golf for me.

Dippenhall

Got an Audi after test driving everything i could get my hands on,maybe not as sharp as a BMW but not as noisy and soaks up bumps better, I wanted relaxing and quiet, delivers 100%.

North Lower Neil

Greenie said:

Make sure you get the indicator optional extra fitted.

'Indicator - new, unused condition'

SE10Addick

Dazzler21 said:

SE10Addick said:

What engine is it? 2.0 TDI

Audi's are great cars. Very well made, hold their value and look good.

The A3 is just a VW Golf though, but that's not such a bad thing. Nicer looking than the golf for me.

Agree. Nice car.

50k on a diesel is very low - just run in.

It'll be Euro 5 standard which means if all the talk about some cars being banned from London happens, you'll be fine.

Dazzler21

North Lower Neil said:

Greenie said:

Make sure you get the indicator optional extra fitted.

'Indicator - new, unused condition'

Same as BMW's & Merc's then?

Super_Eddie_Youds

Had an A3 2.0 TDI sportback on a 12 plate. Great looking car, but if you have the s-line lowering and stiffened suspension it's pretty hard going on long journies. Handling good, acceleration good, just a bit too good if that makes sense, everything very ordered and solid but not exciting.

Have a golf GT now and must say I prefer it.

As has been said, make sure the diesel Bashing doesn't get you, and don't worry about the fiddled mileage, it's still very good. I used to get 550 miles to a tank.

NorthStandUltra

I had an Audi A3 from 2011 until 2014, company car so regularly serviced, lovely car, decent drive & didn't have any problems with it

cherryorchard

Now on our second A6 Estate. Part exchanged first one (ex demo) after 9 years when fuel gauge packed up and rear wiper went haywire. It had done a lot of mileage and until then had nothing other than the required service. Over the years have had a variety of makes -Toyota, VW, Ford, Chrysler etc and each one of them had various problems even during warranty period. Never had the same make let alone the same car until we had the Audi.

NorthStandUltra

Just to add, got mine with 17 miles on it & gave it back at just under 86k in 3 years - never a problem with it

Missed It

Got my A3 brand new in 1999, it's still driving along nicely today.

cafcfan

I drove Audis from 1982 through to 2013 and, once, would never have looked at another brand. Gradually, over that time, as the cars got more complex, and Audi sold more and more of them, they got more rubbish. The last one I bought which cost over £62k had an absolutely superb engine but the car itself was a pile of crap. There was a so-called Dynamic Ride Control system which became notorious on account of the leaking suspension, one side of the car was badly painted (from new) and had to be redone, the heated rear screen didn't work from new which meant that the whole soft-top had to be replaced, it ate tyres like they were going out of fashion, the chassis felt like a plate of jelly and there were numerous other problems. In short, at that time I also drove cars with possibly the worst reliability reputation - TVR - and problems with those were as nothing compared with that last Audi.

Separately, I'm aware of significant electrical problems on TT models, things like the car locking you in and not letting you out which could be very serious in the event of an accident. I don't know whether that is an issue carried over to the A3 but it seems possible as many components will have come from Audi's parts bin.

While that all sounds terrible I still wouldn't necessarily say "don't get one". What I would say is that Audis are not cheap to run. So check that absolutely everything is working before you buy, check the interweb for common issues and whether any timing belts, etc need changing on the mileage shown and whether the tyres are close to end of life. If so, walk away or get the dealer to do the work before buying.

Addickted

No wonder our Balance of Payments is so bad with all you lot buying cars manufactured in Germany.

Soon put a stop to all that post Brexit, with 25% import duties on all German products.

Dazzler21

Name me a car manufacturer that makes decent looking affordable cars in Britain that are actually decent and the manufacturer is actually still British?

I suppose I could go for a LandWind instead, buy some quality Chinese car

letthegoodtimesroll

Dazzler21 said:

Hi all

I am looking at buying a second hand Audi, it's not cheap (about £7k) but is in great condition... It's the 2012 A3 Sportback with all the upgrades and has done shy of 50,000 miles...

I was explaining all this to a family friend that knows a fair whack about Cars and their response was don't buy an Audi, they've had loads of bad press.

There are only 3 things I found:

1. The A5, A7,A8 and R8 were found to have never been NCAP safety tested in 2014. (They were hoewever tested by Audi themselves.

2. The emissions scandal.

3. The fuel economy numbers were bumped up to ''perfect driving conditions'' which I guess is down hill with a back wind

Anyway my question is... Has anyone had one from 2010 onward and what were your experiences?

Surely that £7k would pay the best part of the deposit and a 3 year lease on a new A3 wouldn't it?

Addickted

Who said anything about a British car?

Dazzler21

letthegoodtimesroll said:

Dazzler21 said:

Hi all

I am looking at buying a second hand Audi, it's not cheap (about £7k) but is in great condition... It's the 2012 A3 Sportback with all the upgrades and has done shy of 50,000 miles...

I was explaining all this to a family friend that knows a fair whack about Cars and their response was don't buy an Audi, they've had loads of bad press.

There are only 3 things I found:

1. The A5, A7,A8 and R8 were found to have never been NCAP safety tested in 2014. (They were hoewever tested by Audi themselves.

2. The emissions scandal.

3. The fuel economy numbers were bumped up to ''perfect driving conditions'' which I guess is down hill with a back wind

Anyway my question is... Has anyone had one from 2010 onward and what were your experiences?

Surely that £7k would pay the best part of the deposit and a 3 year lease on a new A3 wouldn't it?

Okay can you tell me the pro's and con's of leasing?

I've never leased only ever bought OR built.

Dazzler21

Just checked, that'd have me paying an additional £250 a month on the model i'd want or £200 a month on the most basic....

Dazzler21

Addickted said:

Who said anything about a British car?

I suppose I could get a Ute

SE10Addick

Buy a McClaren, proper British car that...

DamoNorthStand

Big Audi fan - think they compare solidly against their main rivals in BMW and Mercedes. Good reliability in my experience and hold their value because a facelift on and Audi normally amounts to the angle of the wing mirror changing by 5 degrees. I think the interior quality of the Audi is the best in the class

charltonkeston

Dazzler21 said:

Name me a car manufacturer that makes decent looking affordable cars in Britain that are actually decent and the manufacturer is actually still British?

I suppose I could go for a LandWind instead, buy some quality Chinese car

Dax. Things of beauty.

https://427motorco.co.uk/pages/dax-427

All_Thaid_Up

Had an R8 the other week really enjoyed driving it, didn't really want to give it back!

dickplumb

I bought an Audi second hand two years ago and it has been brilliant.

Davo55

I had a couple of Audi A5 Coupes in the past, the most recent being from about 2011 to 2015. Absolutely no problems at all. Lovely cars, well made.

NorthStandUltra

Addickted said:

Who said anything about a British car?

You're going to recommend a ute or a Holden!?!