Vs Poll: BMW 1er vs. Audi A3 vs. MB A-Class

[PanterroR]

Which one do i prefer? Non! All 3 are ugly like baboons ass and not my type of car at all. I'd run them over all 3 with my GL550...

Seriousl, you can't tell which one looks worst... I think that it's only Audi when i look it from the front can pass, but A and 1? Design wise, 2 disgraces from Stuttgart and Munich.

 

[Gianclaudio]

^ Back to ugly front, grandma mobil and Citroen DS-A Class

Off the scale!

 

[Giannis]

Which one do i prefer? Non! All 3 are ugly like baboons ass and not my type of car at all. I'd run them over all 3 with my GL550...

Seriousl, you can't tell which one looks worst... I think that it's only Audi when i look it from the front can pass, but A and 1? Design wise, 2 disgraces from Stuttgart and Munich.

These days, I tend to agree with Sasha. I went to see the new A and I didn't like as much as I expected to do. I still don't really dig the 1er and I find the A3 bland.

This leaves me with the Volvo V40, which is very annoying, because for some reason I think that it's time to replace my Volvo with a new Volvo. I'm getting old, or there's something wrong with me. Otherwise, what's on sale now, is crap.

 

[martinbo]

That new V40 is every bit a viable and worthy alternative to these premium hatches. The Cross Country is especially appealing in that it offers something different.

 

[UKPaul27]

Welcome! Nice post!
I'm not a big fan of your car's looks, you should know that.
I'm an ex 1M owner and had some other performance cars too...
also a professional driver and here you have my opinion: Yes, looks are not everything, but most of us already know that.
From all new BMWs there's only one car that's able to give you that SHEER driving pleasure and you own one already.
Congrats and enjoy that true BMW

Hi !!
Thanx for your comments , my last post was a bit of a rant but i just felt someone should be fighting the BMW corner.
I accept a lot of people are offended by the the F20's looks and its currently coming in stone dead last, with the vote off at 18.5% .
But its a drivers car and i dont think anyone will ever agree which of these cars is the best. If its looks your after then i agree buy a MB A-class. If you live for driver feedback and thrills in the bends then its a no brainer and buy BMW . The Audi does nothing for me im afraid , and as i said before its more a corporate company car and majority of drivers will be estate agents and sold in silver. You dont buy an Audi with your heart.

 

[martinbo]

If you overlook the sad looking face then, for the rest of it, the 1er is the the standout best-in-class-overall car. Anything more potent than a 116i is simply leagues ahead of its competitors in the driving department and it's also competitively practical too - contrary what some pundits would like us to believe.

 

[Deckhook]

^Sorry to disagree Martin but in my opinion the interior of the A3 is leagues ahead of the 1 series and frankly I reckon it drives damn nearly as good too. I can't wait to see how the S3 turns out but I reckon it will be surprisingly good.

For me the only 1 series that really stands head and shoulders above the competition is the M135i.

 

[Levi68]

I so much wish to be in 2020. I wonder what arguments will be brought up as to which car is better with all of them being FWD and powered by 3 cylinder engines.

 

[Betty Swollocks]

Within the last month I've driven an A3 2.0 TDI and a BMW 118d (F20). The 1 Series was clearly the more enjoyable to drive. Interior wise, I think there was very little in it. I do love BMW's HMI and sat nav, so that would probably swing it for me.

However, there is far more to choosing a car than the way it drives. These are small hatchbacks. They're not track day specials. As much as somebody is not wrong for preferring the better driving car and basing their decision SOLELY on that, it's hardly related to the real world where MOST people don't even give handling a second thought. If I had to choose between the two, things like price and dealer performance play a major part.

Here is the fuel consumption data from my six days with both cars. The figures are extremely accurate and the tests were done over similar routes (mainly cruising at 120km/h on the motorway, although the 1 Series did involve more central London driving), with tyre pressures correctly set, tanks brimmed accurately etc.

Audi A3 2.0 TDI (8V)
150hp/1,355kg
53.6 mpg
5.27 l/100km

BMW 118d (F20)
143hp/1,395kg
57.5 mpg
4.91 l/100km


Very impressive figures, especially the 1 Series.

 

[Zafiro]

BMW 118d (F20)
4.91 l/100km

Pretty much inline with my parents 118d and X1 18d (their X1 is slightly thirstier but not by much).

 

[Deckhook]

@Betty you felt the 118d was that much more enjoyable to drive though I suppose each to their own and how each rate the overall experience, I was more surprised you reckon the 1 series to be as good inside because here I found them worlds apart.

Just for comparisons I recently had the A3 1.4TFSi out for 3 days and I averaged 43.8mpg mainly short runs with a bit of town and motorway driving. It's was as economical as the son's 3cyl 60hp Polo.

 

[Betty Swollocks]

@Betty you felt the 118d was that much more enjoyable to drive though I suppose each to their own and how each rate the overall experience, I was more surprised you reckon the 1 series to be as good inside because here I found them worlds apart.

In terms of materials, the A3 was maybe slightly better. The A3 had the touch MMI which was absolutely superb in its ease of use and made inputing destinations as easy as could be. However, in other aspects, the 1 Series was superior. There is nothing in the 1 Series which I find annoying. Everything just works perfectly. However, there are two things in the A3 which spring to mind as some of the most infuriating things I've experienced in a car. And these apply to both my R8 and A1 too. The cruise control on the stalk (something which I use frequently), works in an extremely stupid way. To "temporarily" cancel the cruise you push it forward. However, to "permanently" turn the cruise off, and also cancelling the saved speed, you push it a bit further past the indent. The problem is it's very easy to hit a bump in the road and push it too far, therefore turning the whole system off when you don't want to. This happens all the time and it bloody winds me up. It really is bad enough to make me avoid an Audi in the future. I much prefer the cruise in the BMW's on the left hand side of the steering wheel. The second thing is the sound system which always comes on when you start the car even if you turned it off before you turned the engine off. I've looked for a way of changing this but to no avail. It's baffling why Audi would make the system do this. You can't even turn the volume down to zero because when you start the engine again, it comes back on at level 2.

With the amount of driving I do these things become very important.

 

[Zafiro]

My view regarding interiors between F20 and A3. I prefer the interior layout in F20, a lot more going on there which my eyes prefer. But the feelgood factor in A3 I rate higher than F20.
Both cars use hardplastic in many places around the interior. In the end, the interior isn't a final factor which car I would put my money on.

From a driving point of view A3 is superior to previous A3 and its not far off from F20 but still F20 has the edge but I was mighty impressed by the new A3 and didnt expect before I drove the car.

Another car I start to enjoy after spending more time with is the new A-class, drives well and looks so much better than A3 and F20.

New Seat Leon left to drive and I hope its as good as the media say. Could also be a future car.

 

[martinbo]

Splendid contributions Betty. Very informative - thanks.

 

[Levi68]

There is far more to choosing a car than the way it drives.

+1

 

[klier]

^Sorry to disagree Martin but in my opinion the interior of the A3 is leagues ahead of the 1 series and frankly I reckon it drives damn nearly as good too.

Too bad your highly biased VAG fanboy opinion means very little if anything....
Also, no need to apologise when you 'disagree'. You're trying too hard.

 

[Deckhook]

In terms of materials, the A3 was maybe slightly better. The A3 had the touch MMI which was absolutely superb in its ease of use and made inputing destinations as easy as could be. However, in other aspects, the 1 Series was superior. There is nothing in the 1 Series which I find annoying. Everything just works perfectly. However, there are two things in the A3 which spring to mind as some of the most infuriating things I've experienced in a car. And these apply to both my R8 and A1 too. The cruise control on the stalk (something which I use frequently), works in an extremely stupid way. To "temporarily" cancel the cruise you push it forward. However, to "permanently" turn the cruise off, and also cancelling the saved speed, you push it a bit further past the indent. The problem is it's very easy to hit a bump in the road and push it too far, therefore turning the whole system off when you don't want to. This happens all the time and it bloody winds me up. It really is bad enough to make me avoid an Audi in the future. I much prefer the cruise in the BMW's on the left hand side of the steering wheel. The second thing is the sound system which always comes on when you start the car even if you turned it off before you turned the engine off. I've looked for a way of changing this but to no avail. It's baffling why Audi would make the system do this. You can't even turn the volume down to zero because when you start the engine again, it comes back on at level 2.

With the amount of driving I do these things become very important.

I can't say I've ever really had this problem with the cruise control because I've always just tapped the brake pedal to cancel the cruise but I do see your point if you use the stalk to turn it off, again I always listen to the stereo so never noticed this problem either. I just much prefer the overall feel of the A3 interior, I love the new simplier approach they took though compared to the A4's MMI I find the new controls strange....why fixes something that in my opinion wasn't broke in the first place.

One thing that did annoy me with the A3 was it's seats, I drove an SE model and found them not very supportive and hard. After 40 minutes behind the wheel my back was starting to feel it but as I suffer a bad back someone else might not feel or find the same complaint.

 

[Betty Swollocks]

I can't say I've ever really had this problem with the cruise control because I've always just tapped the brake pedal to cancel the cruise but I do see your point if you use the stalk to turn it off.

I'm probably in the minority in the way I use the cruise control, but I don't like using the brake as it is less "elegant" than using the stalk in terms of jerkiness, and it means you still have to move your foot. Rather I get the timing right in when to cancel the cruise based on the traffic situation ahead, and then reactivate it when necessary, often coasting up to the vehicle in front. I've got it down to a fine art now.