Hi everyone, I’ve been reading the forum for ages but having picked up my L&K 280 estate a fortnight ago it’s about time I started contributing.
First up I wanted to say thanks for all the great information that’s been posted on this thread (and the S3 board generally). Persuaded me to hit the button back in January and place the order! I would definitely have missed out on adding smart light assist to gain the rather nicer DRLs if I hadn’t been reading…
First impressions are excellent. Moving up from an 07 plate Octavia VRS I was anticipating a big leap in quality but it’s exceeded my expectations. Went for the beige interior with petrol blue on the outside which I love, although I suspect the interior might be a bit hard to keep looking spotless.
Only managed a few hundred miles so far but impressions on the drive are great too. It’s such an easy car to drive around town and thanks to the combination of a better driving position, smaller turning circle and parking sensors / park assist it certainly doesn’t feel any bigger than the Octy despite looking a lot bigger when parked up in the drive. I’ve put my foot down on a few occasions, fantastic on the motorway or a-road and it even made a passable attempt at a fun drive down some country lanes.
Only complaint so far is that I find the throttle response a bit slow in normal/drive. Switching into sport is better but brings with it the problem of the revs being held too high for any extended period of driving. I’ve been driving it in “manual” with the paddles quite a bit as a result. Keen to give the “Audi pedal” VCDS modification a go as that sounds like it might provide a longer term answer.
Given I’ve stumbled into a noise discussion, on my (admittedly limited) travels I have not been bothered at all by road noise. It’s multiples quieter than the Octy (no surprise there) and in my opinion on par with the BMW 535d estate I’ve driven in the past. I’m sure there are quieter cars out there but it’s not bothered me one bit. As for the exhaust, if anything I would quite like a little more noise when in sport, but I appreciate opinions on this one are highly personal!
On that note, has anyone tried tmg’s exhaust flaps open vcds mod? Noticeable results?
Thanks again for all the excellent posts.