Fiesta, DS3 or A1 ?

ozthecoz

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We are looking at getting a new car and have narrowed it down to the following:

Citroen DS3 Dsport+
Fiesta Titanium eco
Audi A1 1.6 d S line


Thoughts from the test drives are that the citroen is fun, quite nippy and top spec. The Audi feels a little sluggish and whilst the interior isnt inspiring it appears to be high quality and the fiesta is, well, nice enough - it does the job but its a bit ford lol

price wise the fez is the cheapest, and the audi and ds3 come in at the same price give or take a few qud

Anybody own any of the above and can offer any advice ?

Dave
 
Well obviously if ds3 and a1 are same price the "sensible" option is to go for the a1, because it will retain its price a lot better than any Citroen.
I do prefer the look of the ds3's (with carefully selected colour options) over the A1's.
Of course badge snobs will always say go
For an Audi over a current.

I can't help but feel however that the fiesta may be the good buy, it's cheaper to buy, there's always a strong 2nd hand market for fiestas come resale time, and reliability is good too.
I think they're also a good looking car.

Which car do you feel more proud stepping out of? Go for that one
 
Your own money? The A1 for sure. Personally I don't think the DS3 has'nt aged well, looks very plastic and chintzy now.
 
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I really like the look of the ds3, no idea what it's like to drive. The fiesta drives well and has decent residual values. I not like the a1 and yes it is gutless. Think maybe your down to the ds3 and the fiesta? You haven't said if your going brand new/leasing etc?
 
I like the look of the DS3 as well but after visiting a Citroen showroom and facing the same decision as you, I opted for the A1. This was nearly 2 years ago now when both were new models, but the A1 worked out cheaper to own than the DS3 and was available with much better spec (DAB radio etc).

I went for the 1.2tfsi though which whilst not as economic as the diesel, certainly did not feel sluggish. I was very happy with the car and it was a pleasure to be in and drive, but not great on any journeys involving the motorway for longer periods (noise, economy, pretty standard for small cars).

Just to throw a spanner in the works, I'm assuming one of your considerations was buying a car that had less than 100g/km CO2? I just swapped my girlfriend's A1 for one of the new BMW 1 series Efficiency Dynamics. It's very good value with the finance they offer and has an achievable combined figure of 74.3mpg, no tax no congestion charge and to me feels very torquey. 0-60 in 10.5 seconds and with its 6th gear is very refined and economic running at 70mph on the motorway. I was reading a BMW forum the other day and one guy had managed a 60 mile round trip getting 99mpg average! (the reading stops at 99...). Whilst I can't face driving along at 55mph like he did, I have found that just following traffic let's you comfortably get high 60s or low 70s.
 
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We've had a fiesta for three years, badly made crap, wouldn't recommend one at all.:-(
It is a top of the range Titanium model too.
I recently spent a week with a citroen C3 and was impressed with the build quality, it was quiet, no rattles and nice materials.
And I really liked the black 'piano finish' dash, which is similar to the DS3.
Residuals for the DS3 look to be very good too.
I'd go for that one.
The Audi is, well, a usual Audi.
Competent, very well made, but a little dull.
It's like they gave a middle aged bloke the role of designing a funky car, so it stops short.
Like allowing a dad to buy his youngsters' clothes.
 
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the citroen may look ok and be the car to be seen in at the moment but if it was my money It would be the Audi.. no question.

The citroen will start off ok but within a short time the short comings of its construction will come to light...

- As for the fiesta - never had anything to do with one but don't rate fords so would avoid anyway
 
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I've had my DS3 for two years now; a great little car!

I did consider a Fiesta, but I don't think I could live with that dash & it gets expensive for what is, after all, a "normal" family car when you spec it up to a decent level. Alfa MiTo? In theory a contender, but after three Alfas, never again! At the time I bought it the A1 was a few months away, so I did consider waiting but looking at the early details on Audi's website, to be honest I found it underwhelming - a matter of taste, but to me it looks very ordinary. I hadn't really considered a Citroen, as I've always considered them cheap & cheerful, but we decided to pop into the local Citroen dealer & have a look. First impressions were very good! A cheery welcome from the receptionist & very helpful sales staff & we were left alone to look at the car for a while & then offered a test drive without having to ask. The car itself gave the impression of a quality product & was very pleasant to drive - I think we made the decision to buy one within a few minutes!

Price-wise we did a satisfactory deal - no discount as such, but the trade-in price we got was well over what I'd have settled for so we were happy with what we paid. We bought a DStyle 120VTi with the City Signature option pack, mainly for the power folding door mirrors, but it also includes auto lights & wipers, rear parking sensors, etc. A selling point for me was that all DS3s have cruise control & speed limiter as standard - I wouldn't buy a car without cruise control & the limiter has proved to be very useful! Didn't like having to pay £75 extra for the space saver spare wheel, though!

Still loving it after two years. Good handling despite only having 16" wheels with Michelin Energy Saver tyres, not the "sportiest" tyres in the world! Good ride for a small car - rather on the firm side, but well-damped & not harsh. It's an excellent motorway cruiser, despite only having a 5-speed gearbox - I'd have liked a 6-speed but it's not available with the 120VTi engine.

So, everybody knows French cars are unreliable, don't they; here's a list of what's gone wrong in two years & 17,000 miles:



Not a very long list, is it?

A few small "problems" - fastener lost from front wing liner, rattle from dash & rear side trim, but these were known problems quickly fixed by modified parts so not a big issue.

Would I buy another, would I recommend a DS3 to anyone else? A definite "yes" to both questions!
 
Something a bit different not on your list and not so common, a Hyundai Veloster?
 
un1eash said:
Something a bit different not on your list and not so common, a Hyundai Veloster?

We've just bought a Hyundai ix35 and were chatting to the salesman about the veloster.
He was very honest, he said sales are disappointing because it's a lot of money for a car that looks like it should be fast, but only has a 1.6 NA engine.
He mentioned they're coming out with a turbo version soon, that might perk sales up a bit.
Nice car though, with the 5 year warranty etc.
 
I've not driven identically engined models of the three but the DS3 was for me at least by far the most comfortable of the three to spend time in. The ride is good, the seats are supportive and comfortable and the placement of the major controls is excellent. The looks are a matter of opinion but with the right colour, I think it looks good.

The A1 is the only one of these three cars that I have driven in both RHD and LHD form. It, like the A3, confirmed to me that the department for creating RHD Audi's is staffed by people who don't care and don't pay any attention to human physiology as the LHD version is massively better set up for people with spines.
 
Ed Selley said:
The A1 is the only one of these three cars that I have driven in both RHD and LHD form. It, like the A3, confirmed to me that the department for creating RHD Audi's is staffed by people who don't care and don't pay any attention to human physiology as the LHD version is massively better set up for people with spines.

Stupidly offset pedals is a big problem on manual RHD Audis, of any model.
 
Audi and Fiesta - boring as hell to look at.
DS3 - funky looking.

That's how my wife chooses cars and she wants a DS3 :)

DS3 residuals look pretty good at the moment, I was suprised at the money early models are still commanding. We might end up leasing instead depdning on where the market is at when we start looking later this year.
 
NorvernRob said:
Audi and Fiesta - boring as hell to look at.
DS3 - funky looking.

That's how my wife chooses cars and she wants a DS3 :)

.

At least your wife is reasonably discerning, my wife only really cares about colour.
We recently got her down to a choice of Kia sportage or Hyundai IX35.

"which one then...?"
"not bothered, as long as its white"

Ok, cheaper one of the two it is then! :)
 
Curry Monster said:
the citroen may look ok and be the car to be seen in at the moment ...

The citroen will start off ok but within a short time the short comings of its construction will come to light...

Firstly,let me start by saying I drive an Audi.

Now....both my wife and daughter have driven DS3s for the last 2 years and so far neither have had any significant faults and the construction is actually very good.

I'm assuming you haven't driven or owned one.
 
Lots of DS3s running around locally. Good looking car with great array of colours. A1s look good when passing them but in a car park look rather boring. Fiesta, well.

If I were picking one of those it would be without question the DS3.................or would it be an Alfa Mito.
 
I have a DS3 been a great little car. Will be selling it soon to fund a vw camper.
 
You can't go wrong with a Lada.

From your first post it does sound like you've already decided and are just asking whether there are any problems with each of them.
 
I must also add a vote for the Alfa mito. Beautiful little car inside and out
 
Daddy k said:
I must also add a vote for the Alfa mito. Beautiful little car inside and out

I agree, and my mate hasn't had much grief with his 1.4 turbo model in three years.
From memory, it was recalled for a bulkhead mod to stop rainwater leaking onto the alternator, and he got a new rear silencer because the suspension was rubbing against it and made it rust prematurely.
Apart from that, just servicing involved.
He's now in the process of buying it, rather than handing it back (PCP)
He can't bear to see it go.
 
We've had a fiesta for three years, badly made crap, wouldn't recommend one at all.:-(
It is a top of the range Titanium model too.
I recently spent a week with a citroen C3 and was impressed with the build quality, it was quiet, no rattles and nice materials.
And I really liked the black 'piano finish' dash, which is similar to the DS3.
Residuals for the DS3 look to be very good too.
I'd go for that one.
The Audi is, well, a usual Audi.
Competent, very well made, but a little dull.
It's like they gave a middle aged bloke the role of designing a funky car, so it stops short.
Like allowing a dad to buy his youngsters' clothes.

I have read before that you were disappointed by your fiesta but just a alternative view !

My late Dad had one a 1.4 Petrol Auto , it was as smooth as silk and so silent that you had to look at the tacho to see if it was running sometimes at tickover . Swoopy sharp handling but the ride still remained excellent , air con that was powerful in very hot weather last year ! The build was fantastic to never had any issues -- maybe just a good one ?
 
The main problem with A1/DS3/Fiesta is there everywhere. I must see 2 or 3 of those A1 Competition line's everyday.
 
I think you can 'blame' cheap lease and PCP deals for the abundance of A1s.
Not much more than £200 a month will get you in one.
 
I recently spent a week with a citroen C3 and was impressed with the build quality, it was quiet, no rattles and nice materials.
And I really liked the black 'piano finish' dash, which is similar to the DS3.

Only just picked up on that When my DS3 was in for service last week I had a C3 as a courtesy car. Sounds as though the one you had was a pretty high-spec model; I had a very basic one with a 1.1 litre engine! Compared with the DS the interior looked very cheap, but the biggest difference was the way it drove - wooly, unresponsive steering & softer, but underdamped ride. Felt as though the front end was only vaguely attached to the rest of the car. I just couldn't believe that it was basically the same car as the DS - maybe you can make a silk purse out of a sow's ear!
 

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