How long is the remaining lease on each? I know you were willing to take a short term Mini Cooper S so size not everything. But once you take the car my money is on you having it until end of lease.
No knowledge of driving either (last two A4's I had were in 2000.. a 1.8 SE and 1.8T Sport) but I'd personally consider the A4. Especially as it's older and will need replacing on lease sooner. And driving a bigger car for business appeals to me safety wise - more metal between me and the traffic behind.
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Thanks guys, all food for thought.
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Hey, could the A4, Jan 08, be CR?
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The system does not record much beyond the interior / exterior colour yet alone techy stuff it seems, that being said some vehicles are listed with comprehensive spec such as a 58 Golf where the description says Common Rail, others only list the basics.
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Can you decide as late as when you're there to pick up the car?
When my Golf was stolen early 2000 I thought I'd get a Mondeo and would live with that as a temporary car. Better than a 1.4 Astra.
Got to the fleet pool site (had a day when I could drive) and got offered a few cars to me surprise... so took an Audi A4 SE.... a few weeks later swapped to an A4 1.8T Sport (£25k new! in 1999... but did handle well) and then a Passat 1.8T Sport..... replaced later by another VW. The A4 1.8T I could not get even if I paid up a lot per month! It was expensive.
Still say be careful of what you take. I bet you have it in 12 months.
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I would take the A4 every time in preference to an A3. A3 has a bone shaking ride and no rear room. However, I like the DSG gearbox but can't stand the Multitronic which is Audispeak for CVT. I presently have an A6 with this gearbox on extended loan and don't get on with it at all.
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Also, for those worried about the longevity of the electronically controlled clutches in DSG gearboxes, bear in mind that the Audit CVT boxes also use an electronically controlled multiplate clutch.
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Thanks Bagpuss, waht is wrong with the Multitronic then? What dont you like?
>>Still say be careful of what you take. I bet you have it in 12 months.>>
I have another option a Focus ST, 32% BIK though on a lower price than the A3 and A4 and it is nearly three years old so if I had to keep it until the end of the lease it would only be just over a year.
I get private fuel so costs are not horrendous, I calculate that it would cost me £2 a month more that the A4 Multitronic on BIK and £41 a month more on fuel benefit thus £43 per month more in total. In some ways I would feel a little guilty taking a fuel card for a 30mpg car though it is their car and they want someone to take it.
Any thoughts?
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If those calculations are correct, I would take the ST on the grounds that running a car like that so cheaply (relatively) is an opportunity not to be missed. Running an ST privately would be cripplingly expensive, but you have the opportunity to do it affordably. 30 mpg is optimistic by the way - 25 is more like it based on a couple of people I know who have them! :-)
Great fun car for 12 months, with very little cost involved, and which you thrash the pants off, enjoy, get out of your system, hand back and then go for something sensible next time.
That would be my thinking anyway. Assuming you like the car of course. Cars like this are only going to get more prohibitively expensive to run. I say enjoy it while you have the chance.
Cheers
DP
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They all sound awful options to me - but I don't like Audi suspension & pretentiousness anyway. You mention 'family' in the first post - on that alone my best of a bad bunch would be A4. It'll probably have the least-bad suspension, be bigger & generally more family friendly than those sportier rivals. I owned a multritronic A6 & liked the whole feeling on the CVT box: quite relaxing, totally smooth & always in exactly the right 'gear' as it tended to ride the top of the torque curve. Those siren voices urging the sportier options should be resisted.
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DP, you echo my thoughts.
Do 3 dr ST's have three rear seat belts?
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Thanks Bagpuss waht is wrong with the Multitronic then? What dont you like?
I don't like the elastic band sensation when accelerating. I know Audi claim to have cured this with the Multitronic, but it's not the case. Also, it's sometimes difficult to make smooth progress in stop start traffic as the transmission tends to snatch, probably due to the electronic clutch and the turbo lag of the diesel engine. The advantage of the transmission is the way it settles into a very high gear when on the autobahn. However, I use the car almost exclusively for city driving which seems to bring out the worst in both the transmission and the 2.0 common rail diesel engine.
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>>If those calculations are correct>>
Focus ST at £19,500 / 32% BiK
Company Car Tax £2,496.00
Company Car Fuel Tax £2,163.20
£388.26 p/m
A4 Avant 2.0 TDi Multitronic at £25750 / 24% BiK
Company Car Tax £2,472.00
Company Car Fuel Tax £1,622.40
£341.20 p/m
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Sticking with the A4, it's great spec, not sure about Multitronic though.
The A3 is not available yet and the Focus ST only has two rear seats/belts.
Thanks for all comments!
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I'm sure the Multitronic will be fine. Glad you made a decision - knew you'd end up with the A4.
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I love my A4 Multitronic. It is a petrol 2litre.
It is perhaps a little slow off the line, as this is the best way to get a smooth take-off, but once over 2mph it is a dream.
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Most of the positive comments I hear about the Audi Multitronic seem to be from owners of petrol engined cars. It may be that the gearbox is better suited to these engines than the diesels. I really like the idea of a CVT gearbox. It's frustrating that the reality, at least in the A6 2.0TDI, doesn't match the expectation.
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Multitronic worked fine in the A4 2.5 TDI that I had and loved, but that was a refined 6-cylinder engine. You'd need to see if you can get a test drive of an A4 2.0 TDI with Multitronic: I'm sure Jan 08 would be PD and the noise, particularly the constant drone which comes from CVT + 4 cylinders + diesel, may not be to your liking. Pickup from rest is never great with diesel automatics, I suspect because in a manual you start with about 1500 rpm, in an automatic you start from idling speed.
The Focus ST sounds tempting for a year, not least because you'd get your chosen new car sooner. Do you need 3 rear belts or can a third be retrofittted?
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You'd need to see if you can get a test drive of an A4 2.0 TDI with Multitronic: I'm sure Jan 08 would be PD and the noise particularly the constant drone which comes from CVT + 4 cylinders + diesel may not be to your liking.
That's my concern. And I know I wont be happy with a PD after my Mondeo, I have driven / been in enough ....
The Focus ST sounds tempting for a year not least because you'd get your chosen new car sooner. Do you need 3 rear belts or can a third be retrofittted?
.... so I have determined that the Focus ST-2 has three rear belts!!, the ST3 with Recaro leather only has only two because the rear seats are kind of buckets, also the more basic ST-1 was able to be speced up with Recaro leather though ST-2's have three.
Focus ST it is!
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Good choice. The only one of the three that will turn the most mundane of trudges into something enjoyable. The car's only downside from the owners I've spoken to is its drink habit, but you don't have to worry about that :-). They say it's fast, refined, comfy, reliable, brilliant handling and well built.
I would have done the exact same thing, for what it's worth. :-)
Enjoy it.
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Good choice. >> Enjoy it.
Thanks DP, I hear about 25mpg and also 40mpg on a run, if I can get 30mpg across country and 40mpg at 75 on the motorway that will be great, wont feel too guilty then!
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