I've been following the forums for a while but recently bought a 2011 2.0 TDI 170 A3 5dr. Upgraded from an old Corsa and obviously the performance difference is something else. Not knocking the Corsa, as a city car it was great but on long journeys it wasn't so good.
The car is standard spec when it comes to the interior and that was reflected in the price I got for it. However as a machine it is superb, everything works. Itâs funny, but when I was reading reviews for the car most of the negatives (the turbo seemed to be a major one) I absolutely love.
The build quality is also great. Driving the dog in the Corsa was like watching the Great Escape as he tried to dig out the parcel shelf, the footwells or back seats. I thought he was just mental but in the A3 itâs so quiet/solid that he just goes to sleep.
The car has no DIS, no RNS, no parking sensors, electric folding mirrors, leather seats etc. etc. I can live without this stuff, Iâll use my eyes to park, my hands to push the mirrors in and dog + leather seats is not going to work. My questions were more from the interior trim aspect:
The car is standard spec when it comes to the interior and that was reflected in the price I got for it. However as a machine it is superb, everything works. Itâs funny, but when I was reading reviews for the car most of the negatives (the turbo seemed to be a major one) I absolutely love.
The build quality is also great. Driving the dog in the Corsa was like watching the Great Escape as he tried to dig out the parcel shelf, the footwells or back seats. I thought he was just mental but in the A3 itâs so quiet/solid that he just goes to sleep.
The car has no DIS, no RNS, no parking sensors, electric folding mirrors, leather seats etc. etc. I can live without this stuff, Iâll use my eyes to park, my hands to push the mirrors in and dog + leather seats is not going to work. My questions were more from the interior trim aspect:
- I have a Tom Tom satnav which works perfectly fine. Is the RNS-E retrofit worth doing? Will it add the equivalent value to the car?
- Do you have to upgrade the DIS (Iâd need a new instrument cluster I think) in order for the RNS-E unit to work or does it just make sense to so you get the directions in the display?
- Changing the pedals. This seems to be the upgrade of choice and even with my DIY skills this doesnât seem too hard?
- Iâve also seen some interior trims where there is a metal (aluminium?) strip along the door. I donât know what that is called, are there any guides for replacing them? Is it even possible?
- Is there anything else that can be done from the interior perspective? Iâve searched the forum and looked at the FAQ but havenât seen much in the way of recent upgrades.
x 
