3rdQuattro

Hello everyone,

I’ve been lurking for a long time here and wanted to finally introduce myself and my new S3. To be honest I wasn’t really in the market for a new car but unfortunately I needed a replacement for my '05 S4 that died by drowning in August. I originally looked at replacing it with a new S4 or BMW 335i X-Drive but everything I had heard and read about the S3 was impressive to say the least. For what I was looking for in a car (4 doors, sporty/fun to drive and AWD) the S3 pretty much checked all the boxes for me. So far with around 700 miles I can say the car is a perfect fit for me and I’m extremely happy I went with the S3! I placed my order on 8/15 for a Prestige Glacier White S3 with the Advanced Technology and 19” Performance packages and took delivery on 11/12. Very pleased with the options I ordered, however I am disappointed I wasn’t able to order the upgraded Nappa seats with diamond stitching. It wasn’t a deal breaker for me but would have been nice to have the option of ordering. Part of me also wishes I would've ordered the car in Sepang, the other S3's on this forum and others (AZ and Fourtitude) look great! While I do love Glacier White if anyone else thinking the same, go with Sepang. It looks unbelievable in person.

Once I had a firm delivery date I ordered Weathertech floor mats and 18” winter tires and wheels. Ordered 18 x 8 ASA GT (45mm offset) wheels in black with 225/40 Michelin Pilot Alpin PA4’s from Tirerack. Haven’t had a chance to test them in the snow but overall I’m very impressed with the dry and wet handling of the Michelins in the cold. These are my first set of winter tires so I feel like a kid waking up in the morning looking and wishing for snow, lol. Come February I’m sure I’ll feel different though. For anyone looking for winter floor mats I highly recommend Weathertech. I ordered the Digitalfit floor liners from Weathertech and I couldn’t be happier with the quality and fit, highly recommended for those that have to deal with winter conditions. The other addition I’m looking at is window tinting, mostly for the solar rejection properties. Undecided on which brand and % to go with, any recommendations would be appreciated.

For the forum members who’ve been posting updates and pictures of their S3’s the last few months I want to say thank you. Those posts helped make my 3 month wait bearable (kind of). Looking forward to seeing other S3’s being delivered and hearing initial driving impressions, mgp, dealership experiences, etc. Cheers.

Sorry for the obligatory iPhone pics, too lazy to pull out the DSLR.

iamnesty

Congrats! I'm waiting on a Prestige Sepang (without Adv. Tech). Just received 18in winter wheels (will look for tires locally) and will be ordering the Weathertech mats as well.

White was in my top 3 for color choices. Definitely looks good.

Any other lessons learned in the first month of driving?

Syrome

Like you, I'm a lurker who is soon to be a proud S3 owner.

Also like you, I originally had a Glacier White ordered, but changed to Sepang! I'm sure I won't be disappointed.

3rdQuattro

Can't wait to see both your Sepang's!

iamnesty: No advice to give unfortunately, still learning myself. Almost a month with it, but was in and out of town for two weeks so I'm still getting familiar with it. With 700 miles on it I'm starting to let the engine really stretch its legs. I didn't baby it for the first 500 miles nor did I do any redline shifting either, so the next few hundred miles should prove to be even more fun.

Enjoy your cars and I look forward to your posts, thanks.

Fixeroh

Congrats and thanks for sharing. Put Weathertech mats in my car as well and also put on a 18 inch winter wheel/tire package for the nasty months. Not normally a fan of white but it looks really good on the S3. Great choice.

drober30

Thats Audi of Rochester Hills!

I saw your car when it was at the dealer. I ordered mine from that dealer on December 4th. I actually ordered an A3 two weeks earlier but changed my order to an S3.

Would love to know what type of deal you received. Did you buy or receive Audi Care as part of your deal?

There is a window tint shop in Redford called Tint Masters on Plymouth Rd. I have taken my vehicles there for years because they do a great job but more importantly they can "shave" the window. It's a few extra dollars but they bring the tint all the way up to the top so it looks factory. There is no cut line.

Steallife904

is there any chance of the car arriving faster than what dealer told me port date would be? Got email on the 25th the car left germany. Dealer told me the port date was the 11th. Just wondering if that is set in stone or if there is a chance it could be at port any day now?

Syrome

The shipment with my car arrived a day or two earlier than the "Port Arrived" ETA the dealer gave me.

Steallife904

so theres hope
Im ready for my car to say the least and the wait has not been fun which I know all of you have went through as well.

3rdQuattro

I think that's pretty cool you saw my car before I did. Hope that wasn't you who scratched my door handle, kidding. What color and options did you order?

I have a friend who works for Audi and he was able to get me a Friends and Family certificate which works out to be a few hundred over invoice. I attempted to negotiate Audi Care into the deal with no luck so I ended up purchasing it at full price, $920 I believe. How about you?

I'll look into Tint Masters, appreciate the recommendation. It's always nice to hear from someone who's seen a tint shops work and has been happy with them in the past.