snowchaser

I am an old school Audi fan (95 S6 Avant, CQ, and previous A4). I never thought I would consider an automatic vs manual nor an SUV. I recently rented a Q3 from National and was really impressed with many things. Here are my initial impressions that are primarily positive. Outstanding: Visibility, high driver position, nimbleness, city driving, transmission in manual mode. The manual mode of the CVT over exceeded my expectations by letting me downshift into nearly any gear without taking control. Is this a function only of a CVT transmission? The handling was great in all aspects especially in the manual mode where power delivery lagged a bit in auto. Seemed slightly under powered. On the negative side, the MPG seemed low? Is this normal? In spirited driving I was getting 18-21 in the city and 23-25 on the highway. On more conservative highway driving around 28-30 tops. This seemed low for a small SUV? I loved the interior except the small center console. Steering wheel adjustment did not push down very far (I like a low setting). I am interested in purchasing one but read that a 2019 was coming (Re design) that may entice me. Will that vehicle have the CVT transmission or similar to the current All Road? That transmission does not allow as much leeway in shifting. Also, will the All Road get much better mileage than the current Q3? I don't particular think the current Q3 styling is great (A bit round) but my overall take on this car was 9/10. Chime in with a response or suggestions. I would also consider an All Road but did not like the lower ride height (its a beautiful car however with a stellar profile).

carkarl

What country are you in? As far as I know, every Q3 in the US has a 6-speed torque converter automatic, not a CVT.

The difference in mileage between the current Q3 and newer models like the Q5 and A4 is from several differences: the older generation TFSI 2.0 engine doesn't have as many of the variable timing/variable intake features for efficient partial load operation, and the 6-speed automatic doesn't have as many overdrive gear ratios as the 8-speed automatic or 7-speed DCT found in the other models. It also doesn't have start-stop which impacts city mileage compared to some cars.

Still, it gets its best mileage when you coax it into cruising at low RPMs, so there are several speed ranges where it can show very high MPG numbers corresponding to the happy spot for each gear. Once you get up to highway speeds and are already in 6th gear, there is no more option but to keep increasing revs as you speed up. As a result, some of my best long-distance averages have been stuck in dense, flowing freeway traffic where I could avoid braking but was kept at a lower speed than I wanted to go...

Allroading17

Wait for the new q3 that was released. The XC40 has been out a short time and having many issues