BMW 1 Series or Audi A3

jimpix12

Adrian is correct about the trim levels. Personally I'd always go for SE.

daveyjp

Which 1 series and which A3? If you need four doors the A3 everytime, the 1 series is a two seater car with 4 doors (!) as the back seats are very cramped.

If this isn't an issue go by which one you prefer to sit in and drive.

BTW the 1 series doesn't have a 1.8 diesel - all are 2.0 with different outputs.

AdrianHi

spunko2010 wrote: »

Adrian is correct about the trim levels. Personally I'd always go for SE.

That does seem like the economical choice, all the toys you need, lower price and you might assume more comfortable ride that M Sport.... except that assumption turns out to be wrong.

If your going to buy a used 1 series make sure you test drive the exact car you are going to buy on your usual roads. They do not all feel the same and there is no hard and fast rule as to what combination of tyre size, suspension set up and even tyre brand that works best.
BMW fit run flat tyres (reinforced sidewall) which allows you to continue drivng for 50+ miles (in theory). To compensate for the stiff sidewall they soften the damping aiming to fix the harsh ride that might otherwise result. On some cars this works brilliantly. On others which are SE (standard suspension) it ends up a bit underdamped causing the car to be a bit bouncy on lumpy roads. Switching to standard tyres helps a lot here.
What helps even more is choosing the M Sport trim level which comes with a stiffened sports suspension set up that is not the same as SE with "sports suspension" option. You also get lower profile tyres. This combination results in a ride with little or no bounce, the ride is not more harsh as you might expect with the lower profile tyres. Perhaps it is because they are stiff sidewall, carry less rubber and therefore unspung weight around which helps with the ride too.
You also get much more comfortable sports seats with M Sport trim, which can be specified as an option on SE.

So the advice is, test drive exact car you might buy and don't be surprise if M Sport also turns out to the the comfort option.
Also don't let this issue put you off, it's still a better ride than the A3 S Line by a small margin and in most peoples opinion a vastly better drive.
Test drive the A3 too though so you can make up your own mind.

Mobeer

AdrianHi wrote: »

That does seem like the economical choice, all the toys you need, lower price and you might assume more comfortable ride that M Sport.... except that assumption turns out to be wrong.

... because the ES is all the kit you actually need - just air conditioning and alloy wheels over the base model


If you want a car about 3 years old, then with the 1 series watch for the change over from old to new models - e.g., I think the 118d went from 122 to 143hp and 50 to 60 mpg with the model change.

Doozergirl

The A3 is such a boring looking car. If you tied me down I'd opt for a new facelift S-line version in white. I cannot understand the point of buying a car and looking the same as everyone else. At least the 1 series has some personality; not exactly fun but different.

I had a 1series for a year and it was a good car - drive very much like my previous 3 series coupe, no compromising there, except the downshift from a 2.5 litre engine! I love the responsiveness of the steering on a BMW and still enjoy that on the MINI Fuel economy would be better now but my old 116i still managed about 38mpg.

Test driven an A3 cabriolet and it was soft, comfortable, quiet but it's the A5 that would turn my head

Agree that the ride can be bouncy on the 1 series with run flat tyres - it's a really good feature, especially as a lady but I'm tired of being thrown about and I'll be changing my run flats to regular tyres when they've worn down. No doubt I'll have my first puncture in years shortly afterwards :rolleyes:

nearlyrich

I had an A3 for a couple of years as a company car and had a week test drive in a BMW 1 when I was looking to change, there was no power at low revs (Diesel) and I ended up with a Seat Altea as it ticked all the boxes for me. Seat Leon is more like the A3 but I like the higher driving position.

AdrianHi

Mobeer wrote: »

... because the ES is all the kit you actually need - just air conditioning and alloy wheels over the base model

Few people in the used market will buy anything less than an SE, climate control at least becomes a "must have" to most buyers (regardless of real needs), so ES harder to sell.

Efficient Dynamics (on all engines) with the corresponding power increase as said above came in with build dates from the start of 2007, claimed up to 20% improvement in fuel consumption, in the real world owners see around 10%-12% improvement. 3 and 5 series implementation of efficient dynamics does better with claimed 20% real world around 15%-17%.
Watch out for early 2007 registered cars that are still the old engine and car dealers mis-advertising older cars as efficient dynamics.

AdrianHi

nearlyrich wrote: »

there was no power at low revs (Diesel)

Was it an older pre-2007 118d with 122bhp?
Not exactly going to set the world on fire, 1 series may be small, but it's still quite heavy.

nearlyrich

I can't remember exactly what model it was but I was unimpressed to say the least.

harveybobbles

All of the SE's I have sold over the years have had cruise control, leccy rear windows, parkin sensors all as standard. On the Sports these bits have been options. I have gone off BMW's from 2003 when the re launched the 5 series. Never been as good as the 1996-2002 model.