We review the Audi A1 TFSI 1.4 from price to economy and all its features
LAST week I took Toyota’s Aygo for a spin.
This is a fine car and about the smallest motor you can buy without going full-on Renault Twizy.
It’s a tiny wee thing, made for nipping across town to the shops. But there comes a time in everyone’s life when an Aygo just won’t cut it.
You get a dog, have a kid. Maybe start dating a really fat person. So what do you do then? You buy a supermini, a small car.
You get a dog, have a kid. Maybe start dating a really fat person
Next question is, what kind of small car? You could join the other 130,000 people a year who buy a Ford Fiesta.
The Fiesta is Britain’s all- time biggest-selling car, shifting two million units since turning up in 1976 — which tells you that Ford is doing something right.
But while popularity will serve as a comfort to some, others are put off and want something a bit more special.
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So now you’re looking at the VW Polo, Skoda Fabia, SEAT Ibiza and Mini. All good cars, but which to choose.
Well, they all have their merits as well as faults. And we still haven’t discussed this car here yet — the Audi A1.
The supermini market is ferociously competitive. It’s the best-selling segment in the UK and most manufacturers produce something worthy of your £15,000 to £25,000.
But for me, and this isn’t very easy to say because there are some fantastic cars in this market, the Audi A1 would win my vote.
Before we go on, yes it’s true the A1 is built on the same platform as the SEAT Ibiza, Polo and Fabia.
But it’s one of those pub myths that they are “just the same car but rebadged”.
They are related, but not the same car. You wouldn’t want people to confuse you with your cousin now, would you.
The A1 looks better than its rivals — it is finished with the highest-quality materials and has its own personality. Engine choice is incredibly important in a supermini. Buy the 1-litre entry level and you may find it wheezes and fades a bit on motorways.
But go for the 2-litre turbo S3 and you are spending £26K on a car which only comfortably fits four people.
My advice is to go for the 1.4-litre TFSI.
It’s nippy, doing the 0-62 thing in 7.8 seconds — only a second slower than the Fiesta ST — and cleverly cuts from four cylinders to two cylinders when you aren’t booting it, saving money on fuel.
Cornering makes the A1 come alive and steering is pin- sharp. It feels positively sporty.
And because you know it looks so slick from the outside, passers-by will mistake it for a bona fide hot hatch.
It’s agile and easy on the arms and light as a feather
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The driving modes, including a dramatically sharp “dynamic”, are yet another reassurance of quality.
Back into comfort mode, you are buzzing around town and that same slick steering makes manoeuvring a doddle.
It’s agile and easy on the arms and light as a feather.
But it is inside where the A1 distinguishes itself from its cousins most.
The build quality is second to none, everything is pleasingly weighty to the touch and wrapped in leather.
Audi’s in-car tech is brilliant across the model range.
But the dealership will try to lead you into some expensive upgrades, such as the Bose sound system, so be wary of that.
If you ask five motoring journalists what the best supermini is, they will each have a different answer, but for me it’s the A1.
There are others which come close, although all things considered, I think they have struck the balance as perfectly as possible.
It isn’t cheap for what it is. So if you can only afford the Polo or Ibiza, it’s not as if you are buying a massively inferior car.
But let’s face it, this is an Audi, you can’t go far wrong.
Key Facts
- Price: £22,145
- Engine: 1.4 turbo petrol
- Economy: 60.1mpg
- Emissions: 109g/km
- 0-62mph: 7.8 seconds
- Top speed: 134mph
- Length: 3.9 metres