Categories
Automotive Kuwait Personal Reviews

Audi A1

Last week just before Eid I was able to get a hold of the new Audi A1 from the dealership to test drive over the holiday. I had been nagging them for a test drive since June but since I wanted the car for more than a day I wasn’t able to get my hands on it until now. I’ve always had a thing for hatchbacks but I also got interested in Audi’s recently and even more so after watching Truth in 24 which is a need to watch movie if you love cars.

The car a fuel efficient 2.0l engine pumping out 122hp which doesn’t sound like much on paper but in reality I found the car pretty zippy. That probably has a lot to do with the 7-speed automatic gearbox that comes standard with the car. The first day I drove the A1 I was actually pretty annoyed with the gearbox since whenever I stepped on the gas pedal for just a bit more power the car would dramatically drop down 3 or 4 gears which I thought was overkill. But, by the second day I had gotten used to it and started appreciating the gearbox a lot more. It’s very smooth and really does make the engine power more readily available which is why the car felt zippy. Still 8 gears is a lot of gears and if you use the paddle shift then you’ll be doing quite a lot of clicking.

I’m around 6 feet tall and found the car cozy with a very adjustable seat and steering column. It was actually pretty comfortable… that is as long as you’re sitting in the front. The car is a 2-door and I tried sitting in the backseat and found it too claustrophobic for my size. I wouldn’t mind sitting in the back for a 5 or 10 minute ride but I definitely wouldn’t want to sit there for a trip down to Bnaider. The trunk is also pretty small, you could fit one large travel bag but barely. But since it’s a hatchback the back seats fold down and you end up with a much larger carrying capacity.

Tech wise the car I drove came with LED lights which I think helps give the car an eye catching look. The car I drove didn’t have navigation (it’s an extra option) but it did have a popup screen and a pretty good sound system which comes with two SD card slots to use for MP3s. You could also purchase an iPod cable or even stream music from your iPhone to the car using Bluetooth which is what I was doing most of the time.

Overall I had a lot of fun with the car. I drove it all the way to the junkyards at the end of the 6th ring road and even through Bin Khaldoun Street traffic so I managed to experience a wide variety of environments. It’s easy to maneuver as a hatchback should be but the car also feels really well built with a nice thick steering wheel and great feeling buttons and nobs. Most importantly the car looks great which at the end of the days is probably the most important thing. The starting price of the Audi A1 is KD6,995 but the car I drove costs KD8,995. If you’re interested you can call them up for more information on 1811118.

38 replies on “Audi A1”

Visited the dealership a couple of weeks ago and did not like it at all, the new mini cooper and the new DS3 Citroen way better (interior/exterior)

also ive heard that there is something wrong with all new models from AUDI specially the oil leaking thing.

Well at the end of the day a car is a personal thing and it’s just going to be a matter of taste as long as the car fulfills the basic requirements.

It’s a know fact Audi’s are very unreliable. But if you can over look that and buy an Audi , you are one brave man 🙂

So true but there is a reason for it. Audi sucks big time in reliability. Just go to the Audi used car showroom and you can see loads of abandoned Audi’s. No one wants them.

yeah I took the shots. The first and last were taken at the junkyards off the 6th ring road. It’s a favorite place of mine since it’s always changing and I usually find nice colored backdrops as well as great textures over there.

I’ve taken a few other good shots at the Junkyard before (not of the A1). You can check some of them out on my photography page here

https://stonedversion.com/

just click on the image to move to the next one.

Interesting, I never knew you had a photography page. I looked over the photos and you seem to have your own style, composition and color wise. Do you edit your photos, if so what do you use?

thanks, i don’t post a lot of pictures there since I am very picky with what I think is good. I do some light color processing using lightroom and minor retouching using photoshop. Nothing major, just minor stuff. For example here is a before and after of the fiat shot

Before
https://www.unex-t.com/original500.jpg

After
https://www.unex-t.com/500colors.jpg

Here is the cheetah shot before and after
https://www.unex-t.com/newzoosmall.jpg

Finally here is the airport shot which probably has the most major retouching since I had to lower the horizon behind the plane

Before
https://www.unex-t.com/planebefore.jpg

After
https://www.unex-t.com/planeafter.jpg

Mark –

Nice to see a review of the A1, I always wondered when a local blogger would spotlight it. Just a quick correction: the car doesn’t have an eight-speed automatic gearbox but rather a seven-speed dual clutch that Audi calls S-Tronic.

Thought I’d point that out. Please share more pictures of the car if you have any!

^B

Alright – First off, people do not know what Audis are about in terms of technical strategy. BMWs are know to be jocks, bullyish; Mercedes knows to be graduates with a crest on its lapel and Audis are just plain nerdy; as in efficient and to the point.

You can’t feel the road on a BMW unless you want your back broken on tight M powered beasts. Mercs take in too much but deliver less; they’re just fat bastards…

All (yes ALL!) Audis let you feel the road on your fingertips and doesn’t let you go crazy; at the same time border lining into a schizophrenic raging bull when you pass by the :RS: isle.

I personally own two BMWs (B7 and 135i); but had the chance to test drive a few Audis – Albeit they are eons behind in terms of SUVs but you gotta love that Quattro and the 7-8 multi-tronic transmission!.

@Mark – You’re a BMW lover, and it shows cause you felt the step down on the DBW (Driver-by-wire) throttle was overkill in the multitronic Audi – thats cause BMWs have the double clutch transmissions that spool up before you shift the next gear – much like the DSG in the Golf – which makes BMW drivers very erratic and aggressive. And a merc takes a thousand years to get out of a traffic light with that heavy throttle.

So to drive a multitronic, only a gentle tap is required – which was why the multitronic was created – to reduce abrupt pedal movements and keep the driver composed.

To everyone who thinks Audis are unreliable – I feel the hate when you do not “know” how to drive an Audi – its just not the same as any other machine – but once you get it – you’ll never go back!

I’m personally getting off my a$$ and going in to check out that gorgeous A7. Maybe trade in both BMWs

My last beemer had a single clutch 6-speed SMG gearbox which I loved since it’s a bit old fashioned and you hear and feel every gear change just like a manual. I loved the handling and I love the feel of BMW’s. Although I have to say my last 2 cars did have hard sport suspensions but I’m used to that, even installed a stiff suspension on my FJ. Nat picked up her Q5 yesterday and I took it for a drive last night and the gearbox is similar to the A1 so we’ll see how it goes with time. I am aware of some issues Q5’s have had since I did my homework and checked out all the Q5 forums but the biggest issue people complained about was fixed back in 2010 so there shouldn’t be any nasty surprises when it comes to reliability.

Now one reason I’ve dropped BMW for Audi is the interior. I find the Audi interiors more appealing than the BMW’s although I prefer the BMW’s interiors over the Mercedes by a mile. Nat’s Q5 has a similar interior color and trimming like this for example which I love
https://www.careleasedate.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/2012-Audi-Q5-Cabriolet-Interior-View-Picture.jpg
Had to be custom ordered it since people in kuwait prefer beige interiors and so all the q5’s came in beige. Full black interior including the roof lining is the way to go.

Also found the customer service at Audi better. Since they don’t sell a lot of cars in Kuwait the interaction felt more 1 on 1 and personal. With BMW because they’re very popular and sell a ton of cars I didn’t get that feeling. Last reason and it again has to do with the lack of Audi popularity and great popularity of BMW. If I run into a problem with the Audi I can take it to their garage and explain my issue to their mechanic if I need to. With BMW because they’re so huge, everything needs to pass through an agent and then the agent passes the message along to the mechanics. I’ve run into a few problems with that over the years since my 15 minutes of me explaining a problem I have with the car gets summarizes to “car not working” on their problem description sheet lol ok it’s funny now but wasn’t funny when it was happening.

I love the A7 nose but don’t like the rear much. Now the A8 on the other hand… that’s a pretty sedan.

Calling Audi’s unreliable has nothing to with knowing how to drive. Their car’s have problems , just google if you don’t trust me.

Moreover dealerships here in Kuwait don’t give us the full optioned cars that they sell in European and US markets. For eg. they don’t sell Quattro’s and DSG optioned cars( A4’s) in Kuwait. No Bang and Olufsen stereo even as an option in the showroom.Now how step motherly is that ?

If you google ANY car you’ll find problems. Trust me on this, every car has some sort of bug when released and those bugs get sorted out in later builds. The Q5 for example had a major issue with the water pump. Just google “q5 water pump” and see the results. But with their 2010 release they solved that issue. This is why usually it’s not a good idea to buy a car once it comes out but to wait until their issues are fixed.

Now regarding not selling fully loaded cars i think that depends on the model. Bang & Olufsen sound systems are available at the audi dealer in the more expensive cars but maybe with the entry cars like the A4 the B&O might push the price up and it’s not something people would use when making a decision to buy the car or not.

What you could do is like me, I customized my own car and ordered it with black sport seats, black roof lining and a B&O sound system. Options that weren’t available by default locally. Only disadvantage is you have to wait up to 3 months to get the car.

go to http://www.audi.com.kw and customize any car you want, it’s fun but you could also get carried away.

Are you sure those were the only problems with initial Q5’s ? There were also problems with high engine oil consumption and some transmission problems. Anyways I am sure everything is sorted out with the new 2011 model for sure , so I don’t want to discourage your new buy 😛

The dealerships here in Kuwait could always sell full optioned cars side by side stripped down versions. Telling that customers don’t opt for these in their entry level cars is just full of B.S. Who would not want an Audi with an B&O system after listening to them ?

Audi’s are known for their Quattro’s but they don’t sell it on the A4 nor even A6 here. There isn’t a 6 cylinder option , we need to place special orders and wait for more than 3 months to get what we want. When a customer takes a leap to buy a luxury car he automatically expects to see a fully optioned car especially for brands like Audi , BMW , Mercs and Lexus. And no they do not want to wait 3 months to get all these options on their cars(though few of us would).

Everyone should take a leaf out of Lexus and see how they’ve displayed their car’s. Simply amazing. Their cars are fully optioned and they also have less optioned cars. Customer service is great and they even keep their Lexus IS-F models open for customers to sit and check it out. Top marks for this since most dealers just keep their expensive models locked even though they are not that expensive( e.g Ford Mustang 5.0 ).

It’s these small things that matter to a customer and I believe almost all luxury car dealers in Kuwait have a very long way to go.

How many times you visited the showroom?
we 2 cars with B&O now in the showroom now, if you don’t find some options, this does not mean that we don’t have it, we are selling the cars, come and visit us today and you will see some exclusive cars before it sold.

I’ve visited 5-6 times and only once did i find an offer on Q5 with B&O system but not on the A4. Plus the A4 you sell here is not Quattro.

Please do not think that I don’t like Audi’s. Audi A4 is my favourite car and if it had the Quattro and B&O system I would have taken the 2.0 Litre engine in a heart beat. But sadly you didn’t and I settled for another brand.

I prefer the VW golf over this Audi, but in saying that I don’t mean to degrade the Audi, it’s still a lovely vehicle.

VW Golf GTI or R for the win in my opinion. Even the standard 2.0 golf is pretty fun to drive and a very beautiful hatch.

they are fun. I’ve driven an MKII, a friend of mine in Canada rebuilds classics and he let me drive his rebuilt MKII. Wow what a fun car. The one I have on the parking lot is a 2004 2.0. Super fun to drive. It’s nice to see appreciation for the golf. Alot of people I’ve spoken to here think it’s a very silly car, but boy I’m sure they’d change their mind if they drove one.

Even the standard 2.0s are super fun, no need to get a turbo charged version. Though the turbo charged ones are super fun. This years R series is a monster in disguise!

I must admit, from all the German Auto-makers I have a bias towards Porsche and VW. The Audis I feel are too expensive for what you’re getting. I’d rather get the VW equivilant and pay much less and get roughly the same features. I’d rather pay 12,000 kd range for a VW Golf R than try and go for the top of the line Audi A1 series.

It’s just my opinion, Porsche on the other hand has years of excellence in Engineering. I respect the Cayennes, Caymans, Panameras and such from Porsche. However, to me a Porsche is a 911 series. I wouldn’t want to own any other Porsche. I’m a huge fan of the 996 years of the 911s but unfortunately there has been alot of rumours of reliability issues with the engine for standard Carreras (not sure about the Carrera S, 4S). I know the Turbos for the 996 series are flawless considering reliability. I own a 996 Carrera and I have been facing alot of reliability issues with the engine. Nothing that has cause grave danger but it has been to the service more than generally required. I love the car too much to drop though. I am hopeful to trade in and replace it with a 996 turbo if I can find one for sale. I’ve spoken to Porsche and I told them if there are any good quality used ones that they run into to let me know. I know I won’t find one on the Porsche approved vehicles list because it’s too old of a model (i think they only carry used approved cars 5 years old – not sure really) but if any of their customers wanted to sell a turbo in good quality form the 996 series I’d be willing to consider.

Now I’ll probably get hated on for saying this but remember, Audis are not bad – I just don’t feel that their prices justify the purchase (that’s my opinion). I feel I can get pretty much the same car from VW for much cheaper.

My mum just recently picked up the new Passat CC. Sure it’s not that powerful (she doesn’t need the power) but the interior is brilliant, and the price was affordable and after owning a VW golf (2.0, 2004) I can say that I have faith in VW reliability. The golf has run over 100,000 and there has been no serious issue with it (except once the hand break release got stuck whilst in park but that issue got serviced right away and if I remember correctly they even changed my oil for free – they even told me on the phone how to overide this issue and i brought the car in – within an hour everything was dealt with and fixed).

I’ll stop blabbering, just my 2 cents.

Well it’s not only about features vs features. You can buy a watch the costs a few thousand and needs to be manually wound everyday, but you could else get a watch for a few dinars that runs more accurately and doesn’t require any winding.

The badge has a lot to do with the price as well as the culture behind the vehicle. End of the day, as I was telling Frankom above, it’s all a matter of personal taste. Personally I’m a huge fan of VW, Audi and BMW so all is well.

mmmmyeah….comparing an Audi and VW is like comparing a world cup player and a local club player – yeah they can both play football and the tickets are cheaper and maybe even the local match may be even fun to watch – but dude… I mean???

VW owns Audi and basically a Phaeton is a stretch A8 but reliability wise – ding ding AUDI!..yeah nother thing is we’re talking about the 53 degree reliability in Kuwait and where the VW squeaks and cracks plastic, the Audi may lose a little air pressure in the Adaptive air suspension.

@mark – yeah kinda had the Q5 for a week and the 2.0T is fun to drive but Audis have done a bubu is on the positive camber on the rear end – which kinda blocks air flow to the brakes and bam !!65 KD for a pair in 7500KMs….

The next few lines were written with some serious hate but its true –

If its gotta be an SUV in Kuwait – Its gotta be – i hate this….an American or Jap…from that I mean a pure american (Tahoe) or a pure Jap (Land cruiser / patrol)..

Yeah yeah there are a lotta options -germans – brits…but this is Kuwait and the tiny b1tch a$$ aluminium / alloy engines won’t cut it at 86 Degrees in the engine bay.

So there…I think we should create a “Middle east Top gear kinda show” cause this place is unique – I mean the Lotus is great but the Malaysian will burn like a gestapo in hell when it comes to running in the “middle eas'”

+2 for top gear middle east
i always wonder, why don’t they really develop especial cars for us. not only the weather is unique here, but i bet in this part of the world, a single household owns more cars, and change them more often that anywhere else…

also the reliability issue from my porsche isn’t really connected to the reliability rumours around the internet.

however, it’s still kind of a puzzle for me because i haven’t exactly been able to figure it out yet.

i may have associated it with not having the engine broken in properly with the previous owner. not sure.

i’m going to have a full check up next service to try and solve the issue for good. porsche also have been nothing but great with their customer service. and i don’t think i have ever found something to complain about when i take my car in.

sometimes when very busy it can be quite annoying waiting but they generally do a good job of keeping you busy. they have a screen that shows used cars and promotional videos as well as a gentleman who serves coffee and tea. adde dto that there are some magazines and some creatively designed couches to sit on that are actually quite comfortable (though they look like they’d be the worst comfort ever).

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *