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04-18-2015, 10:54 AM | #1 |
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E92 M3 to S3?
Hello,
With the lease coming to an end soon on my M3, I've been starting to look at some potential replacements. One car that really caught my eye after seeing it in person is the Audi S3. Has anyone gone from an M to one of those or could maybe offer some driving impressions? As a aside - I really like the M235i too, but in all honesty I prefer the S3 ever so slightly. Thanks |
04-18-2015, 01:06 PM | #2 |
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This does not address your question, but I too just noticed this car. Yesterday in fact, a white one turned in front of me at an intersection and I really liked its size and 4 doors (I'm a sedan guy). Handsome little car too. However, I'm not sure it would be in the same league in regard to handling/feel/performance as an E9X M3.
2015 S3 Quick stats: 292HP 280tq 3450 lbs 6 Speed S-tronic transmission (ONLY CHOICE) Quattro 0-60 = 4.7 Seconds |
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04-18-2015, 01:50 PM | #4 | |
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The downsides....well it is not as fast or as intoxicating as an M3. There is considerable lag from a stop with the little low compression 4 working hard until you get into boost, then all is well. It is small. If you are over 6 feet tall, don't get this car. It is a great modding platform, and I guarantee there will be a huge mod market for this car. All in all, it is a great car, but as others have pointed out, it is just not in the same league as an M3.
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04-18-2015, 05:48 PM | #5 |
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not a fan of the new 3 line up. i think the s4 a lot better.
overall tho, i wouldnt mess around with non M cars, or RS cars. |
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04-19-2015, 08:44 AM | #6 |
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My good friend has the S3, it has lots of mods on it, from bigger turbo to downpipes methanol injection. its super fast and great in handling. the gear is a bit slow in response when you shift, the shifting is fast but the order from the shift paddle to the gearbox takes a second or 2.. but he always says at the end of the day its a 4 banger. and he is going to trade it with a 335!!!
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02-18-2017, 10:16 PM | #7 |
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I was in an euro s3 this summer in the U.K. And man I loved that car . Pulled hard , and impressive handling . Let's put it this way.... after 15 minutes in the car I wanted to buy one.
Not sure if there's a spec difference between the euro Audi and North American versions? I'd like to see a FBO s3 race a NA e92 dct.
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02-27-2017, 08:35 PM | #8 | |
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My dad has a 2016 and I've driven it a few times. The short answer is that it's very different from the M3. I would describe it as "effortlessly fast" and pretty fun to toss around. The turbo lag isn't terrible and the motor pulls hard. The MRC (a must-have) gives a much better ride than the M3, even with the short wheelbase, and it's pretty easy to do the point-and-shoot thing in the corners. Also, the DSG is excellent, as you would expect, though it feels more like a traditional auto than the M-DCT. The interior is a bit cramped and the trunk isn't huge, but it can still swallow 4 people and their luggage (just barely). Be sure and get the sport seats, they're miles ahead of the regular ones and look badass. I think the infotainment system is better than the BMW's NBT, especially with Google Maps and the virtual cockpit. The interior quality is certainly fine but remember this is Audi's entry level car. By the way, I think the car's numbers are underrated. It feels much faster than 4.7 s -- I'd bet it's in the low 4-second range. Anyway, I would suggest you drive it and see for yourself. The M235i is going to feel much closer to your M3 than the S3 will, but maybe you want something different this time around. I know that someone else here mentioned the S4; I haven't driven the new one with the turbo V6 and 8AT, but that will be another very different car. For an M3-like vehicle at Audi, you need the RS4/RS5. Audi S models don't compete with M cars anymore (they did about 10 years ago).
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02-27-2017, 11:35 PM | #11 |
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03-04-2017, 02:33 AM | #12 | |
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09-16-2017, 11:16 PM | #13 | |
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The S3 is a great little car, it's quick, looks good, and nice enough on the inside. The downfalls for me are the small engine, point and shoot feel, and road noise can be bad with the magnetic ride. If you are in AZ shoot me a PM and you can take it out for a day. |
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11-04-2017, 10:13 PM | #15 |
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that's a major downgrade from mechanical + car as a general stand point.
Ironically, you can't really compare M3 to S3, E9X M3 was developed 10 yrs ago after all. Mechanically, S3 is just a 4 banger turbo that has recent "entry sport sedan" average power. a $23K GTI with a simple tune can outrun S3 easily, you get the point. Car in general, the whole package is worse than a E46 3 series in my opinion, and I stand by this after visiting the dealer to look at A3 and S3. In fact, CLA and A3 variant models are probably the worst cars in my opinion as "Audi" and "Mercedes"...it's like they seemed to stop the process in the middle of development. Fancy gauge cluster, but everything else is just cheap cheap everywhere....It's like riding in the new Land Rover Discovery Sport. Fancy design exterior, very nice seats but other than the seats, EVERYTHING is just cheap plastic, the stupid gear selector, crappy soft touch material etc... I also dislike the lack of backseat space in the A/S3, i felt more comfortable in a E92 coupe back seat than an S3 backseat. Soft touch plastic everywhere + a pop up screen just looks SO cheap in these recent audi models. I just can't see myself paying that much money for the S3
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11-05-2017, 04:03 PM | #16 |
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I'd like to say a few things. I currently have e92 m3 and I came from a 2016 golf r which is pretty much similar car to the audi s3. The difference is huge imo, the steering has no feeling it's so soft compared to the m3. The transmission jerks on the golf r when you're slowly rolling towards a red light and then accelerate. The m3 just blips the throttle and makes a smooth transition into a gear. The benefit of the audi s3 is the quattro for winter conditions and it is a good daily driver for ripping around town and much better on gas then a v8 lol. I know many ppl will say a tuned audi s3 will beat a e9x m3 off the line, but the whole driver feeling cannot be compared to a v8 e9x m3 imo. Also the interior looks really plain to me. Overall I think you won't be disappointed it's still a very good and capable car for what it is.
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11-05-2017, 06:05 PM | #17 |
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I don't know why people want to compromise so much. Why not drive the M3? I have driven mine year round in NH for 7 years including winter.
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11-13-2017, 12:45 PM | #18 | |
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If you think you need a Golf R/S3/whatever over FWD based piece of crap just get yourself a Golf GTi and pocket the change. Either get real AWD or FWD or RWD. Front based FWDs have the disadvantages of FWD plus AWD with questionable advantages, other than the warm fuzzy feeling people get driving 'AWD' cars. |
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12-23-2017, 03:44 AM | #19 |
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I've driven both RS3 & S3
RS3 is much better than the S3 Engine alone sounds like a mini V10 400HP too The M3 E92 will always be a classic while the Audi will have something new every 4 years or so. Both M3 and RS3 are great cars! But I'd never trade my M3 for a S3. Never. Maybe a New RS3 with APR tune and all. |
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12-26-2017, 01:40 AM | #20 |
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12-26-2017, 07:30 AM | #21 |
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I moved here almost 25 years ago and my cars have so far all been RWD. I do use snow wheels. Looking forward to AWD on the Porsche 991.1TT that I hope to buy in a year or two but that is more to put the power down than for winter traction and I’ll put snow wheels on it and drive it. None of this “park your nice car and drive a beater or truck or econobox every day” nonsense for me.
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