Archive for the ‘A3’ Category

Readers of a certain age will recall a time when America's roadways were clogged with Gremlins, Rabbits, and other fuel-efficient minicars. That historical moment was caused by spiking fuel prices in the 1970s (remember when Jimmy Carter told everyone to put on a snappy cardigan?), which rear-ended a recession in the early 1980s. If you've been paying attention, you might've noticed that today's financial and automotive landscapes are looking awfully familiar....

And so, just as they did 30 years ago, every automaker worth its salt is now looking to cash in on the American compact and subcompact markets. BMW has its MINI (not to mention its...

As Marty Padgett announced earlier this month, the 2010 Audi A3 TDI is slated to arrive in North America this November with a sticker price of $30,775. That's a fairly high sum for a fairly small car, but on this month's cross-European "Efficiency Challenge A to B", the diesel A3 has earned upwards of 94 mpg UK, which translates to a whopping 78.4 mpg US. Granted, the drivers have been hypermiling, and the engine in the test car is a 1.6-liter, not the 2.0-liter announced for America. Still, 78.4 mpg is nearly twice the A3's stated fuel efficiency of 42 mpg US, which is nothing to sneer at -- and it may make that sticker price easier to...

The 2010 Audi A3 TDI goes on sale later this year for a base price of $30,775, the automaker announced today.

The diesel version of the littlest Audi you can buy may come with a not-so-small sticker price--but it's among the cleanest oil-burners yet, thanks to VW/Audi's latest iteration of clean-diesel technology. Like the larger Q7 TDI, the A3 TDI adopts new catalytic converters that combine with low-sulfur diesel fuel to make the latest A3 50-state-friendly.

The new 2.0-liter turbodiesel puts out 140 horsepower and 236 pound-feet of torque, as it does in other VW Group products. The A3 TDI attains a highway fuel economy rating of 42 mpg, ...