Another Look

2006 Audi A3 2.0 T Auto DSG: Small really can be great

This, our last column of 2005, is as good a time as any to look back on some things that brought a few moments of light to what, from New Orleans to Baghdad, has not been a very good year.

Before we get all snide and snarky, let’s take just one minute to be utterly serious, and offer a prayer of hope for those who have been the victims of natural disasters – of famine in Niger, drought in the Amazon, earthquakes in Pakistan and Kashmir, hurricanes in Louisiana and so much more. Let us offer a prayer of remembrance for those who need not have been victims but were – of genocide in Sudan, of terrorism and war in London, Iraq, Israel, Palestine and beyond, of hunger and neglect here at home.

Let us offer a prayer for our troops in harm’s way, not because we agree with those who sent them there, but because they are ours. Let us pray for their souls, and ours – all humanity’s – that we may someday remember the meaning of the season, and live in peace.

This year, we have found solace where we could, whether it be behind the wheel of some fine new machine or in front of the fireplace listening to Sonny Rollins blow. There have definitely been some bright spots this annus horribilis.

John Legend was one. The Ivy League-educated crooner destroyed stereotypes and hearts with equal alacrity, ripping his way up the charts with the best single of the year: Ordinary People. The album on which this came, Get Lifted, did just that, lifting both your spirits and the chance she’d be looking at you with love, or a reasonable facsimile thereof, as you turned the lights down low.

My pick for best album of the year came from across the pond. One of my favorite whipping boys, Coldplay, finally delivered. Their album X&Y is an astounding example of why a man’s reach must exceed his grasp. The results show this is what heaven is for. By about the fourth track, Fix You, you’ve discovered a new musical geometry, and Chris Martin is its axis.

Best television show? I’ve got three. On Showtime, Weeds was funnier than a bong full of prime Columbian, or whatever they smoke these days, and you didn’t get the munchies afterwards – fabulous, given my weight problem. HBO’s Rome started off very slowly, then built into the dramatic spectacle only HBO seems capable of. As Caesar lay dying in the Senate, “sic semper tyrannis” seemed so simplistic, the kind of black and white thinking that the shallow resort to in times of trouble, bloodshed its inevitable end.

Blood was shed, in glorious color on my 50” Panasonic HD, on Fox’s House. You’re right, this is not a new show this year, but I only started watching it this year and this column, like the rest of the world, is all about me. So’s House. About him, I mean. Seeing this drug-addicted, misanthropic, totally self-centered genius actually cure people each week made me realize there’s hope for everyone, and if I get sick, boy, do I want him. It was also nice to know there’s someone else as self-absorbed as I am.

As for real doctors, my two favorites right now are Marvin Den and Kirk Zachary in Norwalk. One took the time out from dealing with the insurance companies to push me to go get an undesired colonoscopy at Norwalk Hospital because whatever med society does these things had changed the age at which blacks should get their baseline colonoscopy to 45. The other brought me much relief when, after my second colonoscopy of the latter half of 2005, he was able to tell me this time all the new biopsies came up negative. As a thank you to them, please allow me to urge you to get your ass in gear, literally. The prep work is, er, moving, but the procedure is easy as, ah, pie, and the life you save may be the only one you’ll get.

What happens next has always been one of mankind’s biggest questions. As Don Rumsfeld will tell you, the absence of evidence is not the evidence of absence, which is why the afterlife remains the greatest known unknown. Mary Roach confronted the evidence or lack of it for the afterlife in the hilarious Spook: Science Tackles the Afterlife. I’m not sure how much science was involved in this, but it was the best read of my year.

My favorite news story of the year was the revelation that Vice President Dick Cheney is Santa Claus. Many of us in the business have long suspected this. A fat, white guy with a cholesterol problem who’s rumored to exist but never seen during the year, a guy with a fake laugh who shows up on Christmas Eve all over the world making warrantless intrusions into homes everywhere – the signs were all there. But when The New York Times revealed and the White House confirmed that under an heretofore secret program he sees you when you’re sleeping, he knows when you’re awake, he knows if you’ve been bad or good, well, that’s as good as saying here’s Santa. I could tell you more of what I’ve heard, but I hear he’s making a list and checking it twice…

I’ve had the good fortune to drive many very good cars this year, and one of the best was the 2006 Audi A3 2.0 T Auto DSG, a car much more compact than its name.

German luxury carmakers (VW aside) have long struggled to bring their smaller, less expensive cars into the US market. BMW’s 318ti was an abject failure in the American marketplace for reasons having nothing to do with its performance. The Mercedes C230 coupe brought much scorn on the boys with the three-pointed star for bringing out a Mercedes with cloth seats. Now it’s Audi’s turn to try, and they’ve done something different. They’ve decided to go with the smaller, but leave the less expensive part out of the equation.

The A3 is a great little car with a big car price. My A3, very well-equipped to be sure, came in at $34,610 – not an inconsiderable price for a compact wagon considering this did not have the famed Quattro all-wheel-drive and had the base, but fun, 2-liter engine. Granted, you can get an A3 starting at $24,740 (plus $720 destination), but Audi lovers, and I am one, know that options always kill you on Audis. My test A3 started off at base price of $26,140 plus the destination.

Also available is the new 3.2-liter V6, kicking out 250 horses with Quattro for a base of $33,980. The good news there is the destination charge remains the same.

So why would one even consider the A3 at this price? Good question, and one I would have struggled with were the darn thing not such flat-out fun to drive. I ended up deciding it should best be compared with the TT sports coupe, but with a lot more space for people and groceries. When you look at it that way, the price seems downright reasonable.

My A3’s 2.0-liter double overhead cam turbocharged four-cylinder pushed out 200 horses, transmitted to the ground through some fat, and phat, 17” wheels. The FrontTrak front wheel drive system puts the lie to the Eurosnobs who claim front wheel drive sports cars are an oxymoron. My only disappointment with my test A3 was that it came with the optional 6-speed automatic. This Direct Shift Gearbox did allow you to shift manually, but I’m too old to prefer the paddles to the stick off the track, and I would have loved the full control of the six-speed manual. Still, while this thing looked like a wagon, it handled like another 3-series from another German manufacturer, this one with three letters.

I do have to praise the Direct Shift Gearbox, for those who like this sort of thing. Gear changes were fast and smooth. For those more used to iPods than LPs, this could be the transmission of choice. Audi did a fabulous job making this transmission worthy of the car.

The 2.0-liter turbocharged engine, which is replacing the venerable 1.8-liter turbo that has powered many an A4, kicks out more than enough power for the A3. My concern with an engine this strong with the artificial boost on a front-wheel-drive car was the possibility of torque steer – that’s when there’s so much power going to the front wheels that they can’t really do their other job: be the driving wheels. That’s when the driver feels the wheels take on a life of their own, pulling the car where they, not the driver, want it to go.

While the absence of evidence is not the evidence of absence, absent was any evidence of torque steer in the A3. The car went where you pointed it.

I’m running out of space to list the A3’s many temptations, but Audi fans already know Audi interiors set the standards for design and finish, and the A3 does not disappoint. One option I loved was the open sky system, which turned almost the entire top of the car into a sunroof. Comfort and style were all premium Audi. So are the looks. Avant fans looking for something smaller will be pleased.

This is a wagon, which implies some precious cargo, and safety is paramount. A whole list of safety features is standard, which may be why the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety named the A3 a “Top Safety Pick.” With all its safety and luxury features, this is a car that lacks little. The four circles rate five stars.

In the back, you can pack all those holiday presents for your trip over the hills and through the woods. Have a great time, and, at the risk of offending Bill O’Reilly, Happy Holidays!

posted by Andy Mais @ 12:31 PM