Auto Test
Audi A1 1.4 TFSI Sportback: From three to five
Audi makes some changes to its A1. The A1 Sportback, the smallest car built in Ingolstadt, now has two more doors. And the cylinder shut-off technology has trickled down from the premium class. (Jürgen Wolff, Florian Maier , 18.01.2012)
Comfort but not space
It has taken about eighteen months for Audi to get round to expanding its smallest model family… for February 2012 the Ingolstadt car maker has added a five-door A1 to its A1 portfolio, dubbing it the ‘Sportback’. In a car as compact as the A1 there could hardly be any significant increase in the interior space but the two additional doors do make it a more comfortable car.
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- The Sportback has the same length and wheel-base as the normal A1 but is a few millimetres taller and wider and thus provides about a centimetre more room for shoulders and heads in the rear seats.
The Sportback has the same length (3.95 metres) and wheel-base (2.47 metres) as the normal A1 but is a few millimetres taller (1,42 metres) and wider (1.42 metres) and thus provides about a centimetre more room for shoulders and heads in the rear seats. There Audi have installed individual well-formed seats as standard with a generous shelf set between them, although as an option at no cost three seats can also be fitted. The passengers, however, should be skinny! There is hardly any increase in the load carrying capacity of the A1 Sportback… whereas the three-door version could carry 267 litres the new car takes 270, although this volume can rise when the rear seats are folded down to 920 litres.
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- Inside the Sportback everything is as expected clean, elegant and simplified. When speaking of the cockpit styling the Audi marketing people point to “reminiscence of aircraft wings”.
Yacht atmosphere
Inside the Sportback everything is as expected clean, elegant and simplified. When speaking of the cockpit styling the Audi marketing people point to “reminiscence of aircraft wings”. And… “the console on the central tunnel… resembles the stern of a sailing yacht”. No kidding? But it must be noted that the occupants will feel at home and that everything is exactly where it should be. The materials employed make a high quality impression and exhibit impeccable workmanship. Audi’s designers have also made sure that the interior can be individualized to a very large extent with the client’s choice of materials, colours and decorative trim. The seats are comfortable and offer good lateral support but could have longer cushions for leg support. The adjustability of the driver’s seat and of the three-spoke steering wheel are adequate for drivers up to 1 metre 85 in height. With the front seats pushed back to the limit the knee-room in the back will be severely reduced but for two occupants even longer journey can be undertaken without discomfort.
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- The 1.6 litre TDI engines are a lot more nippy than the smaller petrol fuelled power plant. The least potent delivers 90 horsepower (66 kW) and 230 Nm of torque to move the A1 smartly along.
Economy trend
Under the bonnet there are power plants already familiar from the current A1 model, TFSI petrol fuelled motors and a TDI diesels. However the 1.4 TFSI with 140 horsepower (103 kW) now features ‘cylinder on demand’ technology. The power outputs range from 86 horsepower (63 kW) to 185 horsepower (136 kW). The 1.6 litre TDI engines are a lot more nippy than the smaller petrol fuelled power plant. The least potent delivers 90 horsepower (66 kW) and 230 Nm of torque to move the A1 smartly along. The sprint to a hundred takes 11.6 second and the top speed is around 192 kilometres an hour. Audi claim an averaged fuel consumption of 3.8 litres per hundred driven kilometres.
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- The TFSI uses cylinder shut-off technology which was until now reserved for the new eight-cylinder S8 model but which will now be adopted for the A1.
Shut-off technology
The 1.4 TFSI with 140 horsepower (103 kW) of particular interest, as will be the 2.0 TDI with 143 horsepower (105 kW) when it is added to the choice of motorizations. The TFSI uses cylinder shut-off technology which was until now reserved for the new eight-cylinder S8 model but which will now be adopted for the A1. This technology will see the two middle cylinders of the four-cylinder engine de-activated in just a fraction of a second when the full power is not needed and two pots are sufficient to keep the car on the go. This power plant produces 250 Nm of torque from 1,500 RPM, enough to push the A1 in 8.1 seconds to a hundred kilometres an hour. The top speed is given as 212 kilometres per hour. In practice, when two cylinders are shut down the car’s occupants are completely unaware of the change. The motor sounds no different. The advantage of this technology is, of course, the reduced fuel consumption… according to Audi averaged at just 4.7 litres per hundred driven kilometres. A generally comparable TFSI motor with similar power but without the cylinder shut-off system would call for around 5.5 litres of fuel.
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- Top marks are to be given for the transmissions. The manual gearboxes… whether five or six-speed… offer crisp shifting with short travel through the gate and there is a display to help the driver to pick the right moment.
Hard but hearty
The suspension of the Audi A1 Sportback is based on that of the Volkswagen Polo. It is sporty, firm but remains comfortable. With the optional sports running gear there is definitely more felt when the car encounters a bumpy surface. The steering is precise but given the car’s sporting ambitions could be more direct and the feedback from the roadway is on the squishy side. However top marks are to be given for the transmissions. The manual gearboxes… whether five or six-speed… offer crisp shifting with short travel through the gate and there is a display to help the driver to pick the right moment. The seven-stage DSG automatic makes changes smoothly and smartly and can be manually over-ridden using the paddles on the steering wheel. All A1 models feature an electronic differential lock to improve the car’s traction.
Infotainment plus
The entry price for the Sportback is at 16,950 for the 1.2 litre TFSI with 86 horsepower. The diesel versions start with a 1.6 TDI with 90 horses for 20,450 Euros. The most costly variant will for the time being be the 185 horsepower 1.4 TFSI petrol fuelled model starting from 25,100 Euros. As is so often the case with Audis the basic price can quickly rise when the customer is tempted by the almost endless listing of optional extras… beginning with the 465 watt Bose sound system with no less than fourteen loudspeakers and by no means ending with the panorama roof or the possibility to choose a custom colour for the car’s roof. In the area of infotainment and communications Audi has packed the A1 full of the latest gear. For example, a WLAN hotspot allows the passengers to connect their mobile devices to the internet and to listen to web radio stations.
Your opinion of the Audi A1 Sportback?
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Super! Even better with four doors!38%
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Forget Audi!25 %
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I cannot decide.25 %
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Brilliant, now it is even more ugly!12 %
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