The time has come to say goodbye to the SVT after 6 years and a lot of fun.
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In considering replacements, I wanted to drive the VWs with the 2.0T and 6spd DSG in the GTI and Jetta. So off to our local, family owned VW dealer, Niello in Sacramento.
I wanted to look at a 5 door GTI, but they only had the 3 doors in stock.
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The GTI was a blast to drive. It had the 18" wheels and felt fairly aggressive on the suspension setup. The DSG is amazing - putting it in Sport mode was nearly as much fun as the paddle shifters. The motor pulls strong with very little turbo lag. Just a great little car. However, it is a little too similar to my Focus - nearly the same silhouette, and not a lot of floor space with the seats down.
The salesman suggested we would like the Wolfsburg edition Jetta better than the GTI because it had more room and was setup for touring, with 17" wheels and softer suspension.
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Though the salesman said the brakes were the same as the GTI, just with unpainted calipers, they felt soft, as did the car overall. Without the fun, racy bits from the GTI, it was a little too dull for me. We talked about a GLI (the full GTI treatment for the Jetta), but with leather it would be north of $28K, and they didn't have one there to test drive.
Our last stop was up the street at Niello Audi. I wanted to look at the new A3's, even though I figured they were out of our reach financially. We looked at a few of the '09s, and as we thought, they started at $32K and went up from there. Then the salesmen mentioned they had just gotten a new '08 in trade from a dealer in Reno. The car was out back, just off the truck, filthy, out of gas, and with the tire pressure monitoring light on. He said they would make us a deal too good to pass up.
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They aired up the tires and we went for a ride. The A3 was just as much fun as the GTI to drive, but was so much nicer on the inside, and had the extra floor space I needed for my bikes. Though softer than the GTI, it was much sportier than the Wolfsburg. I loved it, loved it, loved it.
And an hour later, they made us a deal too good to pass up. Meet the new ride!
2008 Audi A3 2.0T S-Tronic in Ocean Blue Pearl with beige leather
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It has the Premium pkg, Open Sky sunroof, heated seats, iPod dock, 4yr 50K warranty, etc.
The deal? $27,900 + tax, title, and tip (no trade in). Invoice was $29,929 and used '08's retail book for about $29K. Sticker was $31,935
And I am done car shopping ..... look for a thread in Rigs once I get a chance for a photo shoot.
arty:
In considering replacements, I wanted to drive the VWs with the 2.0T and 6spd DSG in the GTI and Jetta. So off to our local, family owned VW dealer, Niello in Sacramento.
I wanted to look at a 5 door GTI, but they only had the 3 doors in stock.
The GTI was a blast to drive. It had the 18" wheels and felt fairly aggressive on the suspension setup. The DSG is amazing - putting it in Sport mode was nearly as much fun as the paddle shifters. The motor pulls strong with very little turbo lag. Just a great little car. However, it is a little too similar to my Focus - nearly the same silhouette, and not a lot of floor space with the seats down.
The salesman suggested we would like the Wolfsburg edition Jetta better than the GTI because it had more room and was setup for touring, with 17" wheels and softer suspension.
Though the salesman said the brakes were the same as the GTI, just with unpainted calipers, they felt soft, as did the car overall. Without the fun, racy bits from the GTI, it was a little too dull for me. We talked about a GLI (the full GTI treatment for the Jetta), but with leather it would be north of $28K, and they didn't have one there to test drive.
Our last stop was up the street at Niello Audi. I wanted to look at the new A3's, even though I figured they were out of our reach financially. We looked at a few of the '09s, and as we thought, they started at $32K and went up from there. Then the salesmen mentioned they had just gotten a new '08 in trade from a dealer in Reno. The car was out back, just off the truck, filthy, out of gas, and with the tire pressure monitoring light on. He said they would make us a deal too good to pass up.
They aired up the tires and we went for a ride. The A3 was just as much fun as the GTI to drive, but was so much nicer on the inside, and had the extra floor space I needed for my bikes. Though softer than the GTI, it was much sportier than the Wolfsburg. I loved it, loved it, loved it.
And an hour later, they made us a deal too good to pass up. Meet the new ride!
2008 Audi A3 2.0T S-Tronic in Ocean Blue Pearl with beige leather
It has the Premium pkg, Open Sky sunroof, heated seats, iPod dock, 4yr 50K warranty, etc.
The deal? $27,900 + tax, title, and tip (no trade in). Invoice was $29,929 and used '08's retail book for about $29K. Sticker was $31,935
And I am done car shopping ..... look for a thread in Rigs once I get a chance for a photo shoot.
arty:
