drpham81

We (wife and I) recently traded our 335I BMW in for an Audi Q3. The main reason we wanted the Q3 is the styling. We just love it. But sadly, after a few weeks of ownership, I am having second thoughts.

Exterior -
Very nice as this is the main reason we bought the car. Not too big and not too small. But this area is subjective so your taste may be different than mine.

Interior- (Summary - Driver assist, MMI and leather seats are nice. Everything else are either missing or trash quality)
-The steering wheel...is that fake leather? It is very easy to scratch. My Honda Civic steering wheel is better than this! Also, the steering wheel is positioned very awkward, its hard to explain but when you are seated behind the wheel, it doesn't feel natural. I believe it has to do with the angle of the steering wheel.
-Pillar next to the seat belt is make out of plastic and it isn't covered by cloth lining. Every time you turn, the passenger seat beat will bang against the plastic siding. Bang, bang, clunk...it drives me crazy.
-Center arm rest is very small. Unless you are tall and have long legs, you will hardly make sure of the arm rest.
-Door arm rest. Unless you have really short legs, you probably won't be using this feature.
-No garage opener? My Honda Civic comes with it...
-No memory seat?
- Position of AC/Heat controls. This is really a design/safety issue. They put it so low, you have to take your eyes off the road for any inputs. This is very dangerous.
-Leather seats are awesome. Very soft.
-MMI - best system I have used.

Performance/Engine (Summary - this powertrain is a POS)
-You basically have to always put the car in "S" for it to drive properly. If you drive in "D" you get a lot of acceleration lag as the engine shift into high gear too quickly. You will be in 6th gear at ~40 MPH and under 2K RPM. This causes droning, shudder, and vibration. When you give it gas, it downshift and jerk the car. "S" mode will retain a lower gear selection and higher RPM but it kills your engine/gas. Also, the engine is loud and vibrations heavily which transmit into the steering wheel and cabin. Very disappointed, my Honda Civic shift more smoothly.

Suspension (Summary -again POS)
You can feel all road imperfection through the steering wheel and seats. Not smooth at all. My parents 1999 Lexus RX still rides better than this. Also very disappointed.


Verdict
I expected better from a $42K SUV and an Audi badge. I would not recommend the Q3 to anyone. Unless you got to have this styling, stay away.

drpham81

Forgot to add my build:

2015 Audi Q3 Quattro Prestige - White/Brown

DM-S4

yeah, the current q3 is missing some goodies like dsg, memory seats and updated chassis...not audi's best work...you would probably like the q5 3.0t better

drpham81

Yeah. I should've coughed up some more money and got the Q5.

LavaGrau_A3

Here are some suggestions based on your issues:

• Try Lexol on the steering wheel. Softens it up and takes care of scratches.
• We were aware of the steering wheel angle issue from watching the KBB video review. Spent a great deal of time pre-purchase making sure it would work for us. Sitting higher is better. Being taller is better.
• Try adjusting the height of the belt/hasp. I moved it and no banging.
• Center arm rest is small but it telescopes and elevates. Works for me at 5'7".
• Flick the lever into "S" when you need the pull, then back to "D". It does lug in the taller gears and is slow to downshift. In some ways, my allroad with 8 spd was worse (even with the 211hp engine's torque).
• Check your tire pressures. I'm quite happy with the ride quality. Cabin is quite quiet. Most reviewers agree. We have the 18" wheels.

The Q3 is my 8th Audi. My only real complaints are the lack of Homelink and memory seats, but they are missing from A3 and S3 as well. Power could be better. 8 spd would be nice, but all in all getting good reviews among its peers and definitely a better looking car than the X1 and GLA.

Never had an Audi that was perfect, but never got one with "trash quality" anything or a "POS" powertrain. Q3 no exception.

HRockwell

Your comments are appreciated since there is limited feedback on the forums concerning the Q3. I currently have a Q5/3.0/SLine. My lease will be ending in a few months so I am starting the search for a replacement. I will be going with either a Q3 or A3 and I have driven both. While both convey the sense of being smaller than the Q5 (because they are), I did not feel this was a negative. The interior in the Q3 gave me the sense of Audi "quality" and this is one of the reasons I keep coming back to the brand. This will be my 5th Audi. I did notice the position of the steering wheel, not bad just something different that you get used to. I already knew about the Homelink. That has now been added with a Port Install. As for performance, I have always use "S" on my Q5 unless I am on an interstate. Just switch from "S" to "D" at the end of the entrance ramp. The pillar is also plastic on the Q5. I've noticed whenever my wife gets out of the car, the shoulder belt usually twists and leaves the buckle against the plastic and it does bang. If you straighten it out, no bang. I noticed very little difference in ride quality between my Q5 and the Q3.

Right now, I am leaning toward an A3 for one simple reason. The color choices with the Q3 are very limited. They have added a red for 2016 but it is the Misano Pearl which I'm not too fond of. I have always had black cars but it time for a change and there just isn't much to pick from with the Q3.

miTTch

Hmm... I've had my Q3 four 4 months. I traded my TT in for it. I do not find any of your concerns.

Steering wheel - after adjusting it up/down/ foreard/back, I found the sweet spot and it is fine.

Center Arm Rest - it is small but slides forward and is fine for me.

Memory Seat / True it does not have one but I am the only driver so I am good. Even then, after valet parking, it just takes a fed seconds to move back.

AC - I'm use to Audi's low controls and never have to adjust.

MMI - It is the best.

Suspension - I have the 19 inch wheels. Very smooth. Speed bumps are no big deal. And dips in the road that upset the TT, I barely feel in the Q3.

Engine RPM - The TT was turning at 3100rpm at 75. The Q3 is doing 2100 at 75. I appreciate that for mileage and lack of noise. D does keep low rpm's while driving. Just shift to S if you like high rpm's. (The TT required keeping the motor between 3k-6k rpm.) I got tired of that and like the low rpm's in D. The Q3 has low end grunt, unlike the TT (which had no low end grunt).

I don't see your issues.

kbh

My wife and I are also first time Audi owners and we have had our Cobalt Blue/Brown Prestige for about two months now. We came from almost exclusively driving Hondas and BMW's for the last twenty years. The Q3's cabin is unquestionably much richer than what we have experienced before and I agree the seats are great (though I worry how the seat cushion will stand up to years of sliding in and out of them). The Audi just feels more substantial and heavier than our Japanese cars and I think this is intentional. Road thumps are well insulated and the handling is firm and reassuring. I agree the low rpm growl is not pleasant and I think a car in this class should have a quieter engine. That said, it performs well for our needs. If I want to zip, I'll just go jump into my Z3.

Bottom line for our family is that this is my wife's car and she is a total non-car person. She loves the Q3's compact dimensions (she parks in an underground lot with very tight spaces) and the rich interior. She couldn't care less about the technology stuff and we haven't used the satellite radio at all since we took delivery. Our kids like the mobile hotspot, but decry the lack of a video system.

Ah, first world problems. We should all be so lucky....

LavaGrau_A3

miTTch & kbh,

I agree with your comments and the tone of your posts. I (also) did not have unrealistic expectations going into this purchase and was actually pleasantly surprised as a result. The ride and cabin noise are much better than I expected and I like that a lot. The power train actually performs better than one would think seeing the specs. My wife's choice of Chestnut interior is growing on me and brightens things up nicely.

For my wife and I, the Q3 only had to be more desirable than the competition. Shopped the X1 and the GLA extensively. Neither impressed us as a package and both would have been more expensive as equipped.

miTTch

One last thought on my Q3;

My TT could easily pull .9g's+ on a turn. The Q3 is NOT a sports car. I do not understand why people are waiting years for performance enhancements. It's a SUV. A short SUV. That is what I want. (One shoe does not fit all). This shoe fits me. I no longer want to be pulling high g's at 5k rpm. I now glide around corners. Do not wait for S-Tronic. Enjoy this short SUV. I LOVE this vehicle. It fits my "foot".

If the shoe does not fit, look else where and do not complain. There is nothing wrong with the current Q3.