[AZ911]

Originally Posted by human_wheels

Is the ground clearance sufficient for its off-roading capability? Also how well can the off-road package that the car comes equipped with handle the under belly scrapes? Please post some pics of your Q3 in its off-road avatar if you don't mind.

I think it comes with 170mm GC, but because of the suspension, it never feels lacking at least in city driving. Crosses all speed breakers and potholes with aplomb. Now, with that knowledge, I went for the Q drive, expecting it to be very gentle off-roading. To my surprise, it was much more than that and these cars were put through quite a decent off-roading test, and boy, did the Q3 come out with flying colours. I am in no way an expert in off-roading, but the capabilities of this mini suv certainly amazed me. I am not sure of the off-roading package and how good it is, but I am sure it should be enough for gentle off-roading. Basically, we could call Q3 to be a gentle off-roader and not really for hardcore off-roading enthusiasts. It doesn't disappoint with such expectations. I have quite a few pics with me, but I am not able to upload it from this mobile app. Keep getting some security error.

[anshumandun]

Originally Posted by AZ911

Finally got my Q3. And yes, the badging is indeed 35TDi apart from some changes like new grille and white DRLs with Xenons in Premium version as well. Would love to share the pics after I get the privileges to do so.

Hi AZ911, congrats on your Q3! I'm in a similar situation as you were sometime back. I have to choose between Q3 and X1. The dealer here in bangalore is quoting 42.5L on road after some bargaining for Q3 premium. He told that it will come with 35tdi badge and bi xenon with DRLs. Also, the premium has 16" alloys and I didn't quite like the looks of them.

Could you please share some details about the features you got in your Q3 that were not there in the previous "premium" models? A few pics will also be appreciated (specially of the alloy wheels).

Also, it might be possible to haggle now for a better price since the facelift Q3 will hit the market soon. If you are comfortable doing so, please share the price details also that you got with the dealer. I will get some idea how far I can push the dealer here in Bangalore. Thanks in advance!

[AZ911]

Originally Posted by anshumandun

Hi AZ911, congrats on your Q3! I'm in a similar situation as you were sometime back. I have to choose between Q3 and X1. The dealer here in bangalore is quoting 42.5L on road after some bargaining for Q3 premium. He told that it will come with 35tdi badge and bi xenon with DRLs. Also, the premium has 16" alloys and I didn't quite like the looks of them.

Could you please share some details about the features you got in your Q3 that were not there in the previous "premium" models? A few pics will also be appreciated (specially of the alloy wheels).

Also, it might be possible to haggle now for a better price since the facelift Q3 will hit the market soon. If you are comfortable doing so, please share the price details also that you got with the dealer. I will get some idea how far I can push the dealer here in Bangalore. Thanks in advance!

Hi anshumandun,

The dealer is correct in letting you know about the changed badging and the headlamps in the Premium variant. I don't think there is anything else different from the previous 'Premium' variants (at least that's what I was told by the dealer).

The price that I was quoted OTR was around 36.63L (~32.5 L ex-showroom). After my first few rounds of haggling, they told me that a discount of only 20-30K was possible. But, as I was also looking at X1 and BMW was offering a 8L discount already (~33.5 L OTR) on the top end variant, I had nearly decided to buy that though I did like Q3 better. So, upon informing the Audi dealership about my decision, they did come to meet me personally and almost matched the BMW offer. So, that's how it happened in my case. Audi sharing the parts with others in VAG have quite a bit of margin for discounts.

And, I don't particularly these 16" stock alloys. I will probably get them plasti-dipped in matte black till I later replace them with 18". I don't have any pics of alloys with me yet, but will surely upload it, probably in a day or two.

Cheers!!

[AZ911]

A couple of pics from the Q drive and a couple of pics of my ride (Notice the new badging of 35 TDI).

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by AZ911

A couple of pics from the Q drive and a couple of pics of my ride (Notice the new badging of 35 TDI).

Nice choice of colour!
If possible, please do share an ownership review

[AZ911]

Originally Posted by vb-san

Nice choice of colour!
If possible, please do share an ownership review

Thank you.

This is the new colour 'Monsoon Grey' that has come out in my2015. I kind of liked it though I didn't have much choice of colour as they were offering discounts only on this and white colour (bored of whites now).

I will do an ownership review once I cross 4-5K km (currently done ~1.6k) as there is already one thread for 800 km review. Just to get some variety in there.

I also have some videos from Q drive, which I will try to upload to Youtube and share the URL here. Give me a few days for that.

[Behemoth]

Originally Posted by AZ911

Attended the Q drive Gurgaon today. What an experience. My first time doing serious off-roading and it just blew me away. Any of T-BHPians attended?

I attended another Q Drive in Gurgaon around 8-9 months ago. That was also great and I drove a Q5. I must say that we went quite offroad and the Q5 really handled every surface with ease and barely rocked the boat. We are considering the Q3/ Q5 too !
Regards,
Behemoth

[Aditya]

German luxury carmaker Audi revealed the Q3 facelift in November 2014. Now, media reports suggest that the SUV will be launched in India in May 2015.

The car features some cosmetic as well as technical changes and some additional features.



The Q3 facelift gets a sharper singleframe grille, restyled headlamps with xenon plus technology and daytime running lights, a tweaked front bumper with a wider air dam and reworked fog lamp housings, new LED tail lights and a restyled rear bumper. The car gets new alloy wheels optional dynamic turn-indicators integrated into the headlamps.





On the inside, the refreshed Q3 gets an LED interior lighting package, power-adjustable front seats and an infotainment system with MMI navigation plus among features. The car is equipped with safety features such as Audi side assist and Audi active lane assist.



The Q3 facelift carries over the TSI and TDI engines from the outgoing model. However, they come with higher power ratings. Audi claims that the fuel efficiency of it engines has been improved by 17%.

Source: Motor Octane

[vindrider2626]

Can anyone share any information, regarding the launch of the new facelifted Audi Q3?

[Contrapunto]

Can any long term owner share his experience of the maintenance costs (and costs of common spares, if anyone had the misfortune to buy those) of the Q3? It will be a great help in shaping purchase decisions.

[cars_crazy]

I am echoing the question from Contrapunto. I am tossing between 2 very different segments here, the Jetta HL DSG and Q3 Premium (not Plus). Keeping car segment, usage criteria and finance aside, Q3 is definitely more tempting and the test drives yesterday along the NICE Corridor in BLR just left me drooling over the Q3.

I am however keen to ask or understand the current owners on their experiences with Q3. And if anyone is able to respond from Bangalore re: their experience with Audi Bengaluru, that will be awesome too.

Help am looking for is around : A.S.S experience with Audi, cost of spares, spares availability, Quality concerns over the 7 speed STronic, any other build / quality issues with the car, maintenance costs approx. / year and probably not that important but the FE as well.

thanks in advance!

[lamborghini]

Originally Posted by cars_crazy

Help am looking for is around : A.S.S experience with Audi, cost of spares, spares availability, Quality concerns over the 7 speed STronic, any other build / quality issues with the car, maintenance costs approx. / year and probably not that important but the FE as well.

thanks in advance!

Based on our experience with the A6 and Laura, fast moving spares are available in stock, or available within a couple of days.
Problem is for the parts that aren't in stock - the wait can take up to 2-3 weeks! This is the same issue with Audi, and Skoda, and I would also expect with VW too as they're all the same company.

Also, the Q3 TDi comes with a 6 speed DSG similar to the one in the Laura/Jetta, and isn't as unreliable as the 7 speed units. However, do take care to put the gearbox in 'N' during long traffic lights / while idling for over 30 seconds as that is rumoured to help.

That aside, the engine is fairly reliable. The components which could spring up trouble are the AC, and electronic sensors - and this could happen to either car (Jetta or Q3). Best is to get extended warranty along with the car.
Annual service costs should be around INR 25K/service for the Q3, and around INR 15K for the Jetta.

One complaint that I have with Audi however is that it takes a long time to get a service appointment. I typically have to book a week in advance. With the Skoda, I can just send it over the next day.

FE will be around 11 kmpl in the city for the Jetta (actual, not MID), and a little lower on the Audi.

[Akshay1234]

Originally Posted by lamborghini

Also, the Q3 TDi comes with a 6 speed DSG similar to the one in the Laura/Jetta, and isn't as unreliable as the 7 speed units. However, do take care to put the gearbox in 'N' during long traffic lights / while idling for over 30 seconds as that is rumoured to help.

Bro the Q3 tdi has the 7 speed, which is not the same as the box in the Octavia and Polo,etc. Its a different Audi box, which is capable of handling more power/torque.

[cars_crazy]

Originally Posted by lamborghini

However, do take care to put the gearbox in 'N' during long traffic lights / while idling for over 30 seconds as that is rumoured to help.

That aside, the engine is fairly reliable. The components which could spring up trouble are the AC, and electronic sensors - and this could happen to either car (Jetta or Q3). Best is to get extended warranty along with the car.
Annual service costs should be around INR 25K/service for the Q3, and around INR 15K for the Jetta.

One complaint that I have with Audi however is that it takes a long time to get a service appointment. I typically have to book a week in advance. With the Skoda, I can just send it over the next day.

FE will be around 11 kmpl in the city for the Jetta (actual, not MID), and a little lower on the Audi.

thanks Lamborghini.. appreciate the quick response. Its a good tip for shifting to N, hopefully the rumour has worked already for some! I am currently a Sonata owner and I am shifting out of Hyundai after about 16 loyal years, so all these German brands and their lack of ability to do a walk-in type service is quite amusing. I will however get used to it and the consolation I give myself is that where I may miss out on A.S.S finer nuances, I will make up for it in terms of build quality and driving experience.

It is sad though that FE is around 11 for Jetta and lesser for Audi, the showroom people swear by everything sacred that Jetta will do 15kmpl in city, and Audi about 12 in City. But I guess if everything goes to plan, losing a few kms on the Q3 isnt a big deal.

Originally Posted by akshay1234

Bro the Q3 tdi has the 7 speed, which is not the same as the box in the Octavia and Polo,etc. Its a different Audi box, which is capable of handling more power/torque.

Akshay, thank you as well.. Yes, you are right, its a 7 speed S-Tronic thats driving the Q3. I am told there are some reliability concerns on the DQ200 models.. I am not sure if thats the same one running the Audi, so the question. The last thing I want is a blown transmission in the 2nd year

Hopefully I am not going wrong in going for a Q3 over a Jetta. or a Audi over a VW.

[lamborghini]

Originally Posted by cars_crazy

thanks Lamborghini.. appreciate the quick response. Its a good tip for shifting to N, hopefully the rumour has worked already for some! I am currently a Sonata owner and I am shifting out of Hyundai after about 16 loyal years, so all these German brands and their lack of ability to do a walk-in type service is quite amusing. I will however get used to it and the consolation I give myself is that where I may miss out on A.S.S finer nuances, I will make up for it in terms of build quality and driving experience.

It is sad though that FE is around 11 for Jetta and lesser for Audi, the showroom people swear by everything sacred that Jetta will do 15kmpl in city, and Audi about 12 in City. But I guess if everything goes to plan, losing a few kms on the Q3 isnt a big deal.

As a vehicle, these Germans will plaster a smile on your face with their excellent engines, suspension set-up, build, etc. However, as you rightly pointed out, when it comes to maintenance costs, city ride quality, services, and general reliability - the Japs and Koreans have it mastered. Each of these target completely different consumer requirements!
The A.S.S. will be a bit of a pain, but you hopefully will not have to deal with them too often.

As for the FE - it all boils down to how you drive and the conditions! There are city drives wherein I have gotten 18kmpl, and those where I have even seen 5.5kmpl (as claimed by the MID). However, realistically as a daily drive to office with the odd night drives - I see 11kmpl (tankful to tankful method - the MID is generally at 13kmpl).