Audi A3 diesel but its noisy

2010 Audi A3 TDI — but the diesel engine and six-speed automatic transmission aren't among them.


Carmakers and buyers who think diesels can't appeal in the U.S. should spend a day with the A3 TDI (Audi's code for diesel).

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Car companies that believe they must tune transmissions to shift somewhat unresponsively to get good fuel economy should run the A3 TDI around their test tracks, then try to develop something as good as the six-speed S Tronic — a dual-clutch, automatically shifted manual. Those are growing in popularity because they are more fuel-efficient than most automatics or even conventional manuals.

The only tiny wrinkle might be a moment's hesitation when floored from a standstill. So, gold medal for the drivetrain.

Now, what about those gripes? Noises, mainly. And Audi portrayed most of them as unique to the test car, saying it isn't getting similar complaints from owners or other test drivers.

Nevertheless: