Audi A3 Cabriolet: An attractively-priced convertible you can buy

The Audi A3 Cabriolet is a convertible that is reasonably priced and is sure to bring you tons of attention, says Faisal Khan, MotorBeam.com. 

The A3 Cabriolet is very similar to the A3 sedan. The headlights, tail lamps and the alloy wheels are similar but still it looks very different. 

That’s because the Audi A3 Cabriolet gets a canvas roof and misses out on the rear doors, thus resulting in a shorter length than the regular A3 sedan.

The dimensions are very compact and even from far it comes across as an A3 unmistakably, with the fabric roof being an attraction. 

You get a brushed silver finish on the frame of the front windshield which looks very premium.

The car looks short when the roof is up but once you put it down, it looks longer than it actually is.

Topless motoring is quite a new concept in India so when you drive with the roof down, people do look at the A3 Cabriolet like its some exotic car. 

Thus, if you want to attract attention, the A3 Cabriolet will do it for you, something that more expensive saloons are unlikely to manage. 

The interiors of the A3 Cabriolet are similar to the A3 sedan, having similar features as the top variant on the 4-door model. 

The dashboard looks classy with the circular AC vents and negligible use of buttons although there are still quite a few. 

The car is equipped with a lot of features like MMI Infotainment system with a touchpad, dual-zone climate control and a reverse parking camera. 

You can also get a satellite navigation system with the optional Technology Pack and better audio with the optional Bang & Olufsen music system. 

The Audi A3 Cabriolet is offered with a petrol engine and the 40 TFSI unit has received much applaud for its performance. 

In the A3 sedan, the petrol engine gets overshadowed by the more frugal TDI engine but in the Cabriolet, one can’t help but love the performance. 

The 1.8-litre petrol mill produces 180 HP of power but what’s important is the torque of 250 Nm, produced as low as 1250 RPM, going all the way to 5000 RPM, which is a massive torque band, more so by petrol car standards. 

0-100 km/hr takes 7.83 seconds as per our VBOX tests which is 0.5 seconds slower than the sedan because of the 135 kgs increase in weight over the sedan due to the roof operating system. 

This 1.8 TFSI engine also powers a lot of other Volkswagen Group cars. 

The vehicle feels very smooth and is refined. Go full throttle and it goes to its 6500 RPM redline without any effort, having a linear pull across the RPM range. 

The A3 Cabriolet sounds very nice and the exhaust sounds very sweet with the roof down. 

The car touches the ton in 3rd gear while at the same speed in top gear, it does 2100 RPM, having a lot of punch for quick overtaking manoeuvres. 

The top speed is claimed to be 240 km/hr and the A3 Cabriolet accelerates to high speeds in a jiffy. 

The Audi A3 Cabriolet is definitely not the best car for your money because you can get a bigger luxury car for a similar price. 

It’s not very practical either and if you really want practicality, then this is certainly not the car for you. 

In fact, this is not meant to be used as a daily driver either and the A3 Cabriolet is a car for late night drives and weekend getaways. 

This convertible is the second most attractively-priced convertible you can buy in the country. 

The A3 Cabriolet is a car meant for enjoying the wind-in-your-hair experience while taking that only special someone along with you for a long drive, in which case, it makes for a reasonable buy as a secondary car while also being affordable by convertible car standards.