S4ormula4fun

So talking to the local dealer they said I'm SOL on that. I can get a TDI but no quattro and no manual. In fact he said that all the quattro cars are automatic transmission. That sucks IMO. Are we ever going to get what I'm looking for here? Whats the deal... once Europe is done buying all the good ones we get the leftovers??? I'm willing to bet the ones we finally get will be de-tuned versions as well.
Rant, Rant.

Frustrating.

knolly

Yup, you are screwed.

I was looking for exactly this combo as well - too bad, it's not available even though I rented an A4 with TDI and manual tranny in Europe just last fall...

The 2.0T w/ DSG isn't bad at all - but it's definitely not a manual transmission - here is my feed back on it after a while...

DSG: you can drive this transmission three ways:

-As an automatic with much faster shifts than a regular automatic and you can instantly override it when you need to downshift to pass, compression brake going down a hill, etc... It's nice in traffic, but still suffers shift lags when stomping on the gas: not from the actual "shifting part" - which is very fast - but from the "thinking part", the part where the transmission goes: "oh, he is stomping on the gas, so I should probalby down shift. Oh, he's stomping on the gas really hard, maybe I'll down shift two gears..." However, outside of this, the transmission is very smart and will do cool stuff like indefinitely hold a lower gear when you're going down hill (compression braking) and then once the car is on level terrain, will shift back into D (drive). I think that this is where most drivers spend their time and overall, the marriage of automatic and manual works quite well.

-In manual mode: you basically use the paddles or the shift **** to drive it like a manual transmission, but with fast shifts (but WITHOUT the tactile feel of "knowing" which gear your in as you world by the location of the shift **** in a manual tranny). The DSG is quite smart, so it will stop you from doing stupid stuff like dropping it into 1st gear when you're doing 80km / hr, or it will down shift into 1st gear automatically so that you don't stall the car when coming up to a light and stopping the car. You can drive the car quite aggressively in this mode and i find myself using this mode quite often, as it's a nice mix between manual control, sportiness and still being a smart automatic when it needs to be.

-In sport mode: basically, shifts are a bit more aggressive (or so it seems) and holds gears a LOT longer - almost to redline if you're gunning it. In reality - though - not super practical in day to day driving, but good for showing off to your friends.

The DSG kind of drives like an automatic transmission when you're in N and switching to either 1st or R. Once you're in 1st gear, running through the gears up to 6th will be much more manual like (except that you don't have a clutch). The other interesting thing is that there is no "automatic creep" when you're stopped, because the DSG disengages the clutch unlike an automatic with a torque converter which is always kind of pushing the car forwards.

Fuel economy: with it set it automatic mode (D), the MPG are surprisingly high for a 200hp gas engine, and you'll easily get into 30+ MPG in daily driving. Of course, with a lead foot, that can drop pretty easily!

So, overall rating is not quite as engaging as a true manual transmission, but has some nice benefits in terms of easy driving in traffic and FAST shifting when you give'er.

S4ormula4fun

Thanks for the input. I guess I'm a purest at heart and I need to have a clutch pedal. I'm not in the city much so all the roads I'm on are the kinds of roads Audi's were designed for. I guess Ill have to be patient (not a strong suit of mine)

Thanks again.

wailshark

Sadly with the A3 quattro is only offered in the automatic

knolly

Ya, I hear you. My previous car was a Jetta VR6 5 speed (MY2000) and that car was great. It had a few mods (mainly Bilsteins with H&R springs that lowered it about 1.5" and decent tires - but nothing crazy), but overall it was a super fun car to drive and it could pull gears at pretty much anything over 1200 RPM.

I definitely miss the clutch on the new car, and the "3 ways to drive it" are sometimes a bit confusing as silly as it sounds. By confusing I don't mean in the traditional sense, but if you're used to changing gears with the paddle shifters, then make a tight corner, you have to remember to use the shift **** because the paddle shifter that you want to use might be pointing up or down instead of on the side where you expect it to be. Or, you might be used to driving the car in D or S, and then put it into manual while at a stop light (say, turning left). When you give'er, the car might redline because it's in manual and you thought that it was in D or S. I know, sounds stupid, and I'm sure it will become second nature, but there are some small things like that, that take some getting used to.

That being said, I would say that the DSG works best in two situations: firm (or hard) acceleration off the line, because you just pick the exact time you want to shift; and on the highway at moderate speeds and above because you can be in pretty much any gear at any RPM that you choose within half a second.

Where it's worst is plodding around town with it in D, because it drives like a fairly quick shifting automatic, but still has typical automatic hesitations and such.

And, as I mentioned earlier, this car gets pretty good mileage, even for a gas car: I'm about 25-30% better than the Jetta with more power and faster acceleration (though I do miss the V6's torque...). Turbo lag (or lack thereof) is pretty decent as well and the smaller size of the A3 and the DSG make this engine come alive compared to driving it with an automatic in an A4.

ogins77

the a3 tdi is offered as quattro???