https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=39687755
The Audi A3 is a survivor. The compact luxury car has been around in one form or another since 1996, and an updated version is coming to the US for the 2025 model year. But it's loaded with annoying in-car subscriptions.
At first glance, this new A3 looks a lot like the car it replaces. The hexagonal Singleframe grille—in line with Audi's latest designs—is its biggest change, joined by bigger air intakes at the base of the bumper, an Audi logo high on the nose, and refreshed LED and matrix LED headlights with four customizable daytime lighting signatures. The rear bumper design, inspired by the RS3, has a new LED taillight treatment, a black accent piece, and a mesh insert at the base.
Inside is where things get interesting. The same 10.1-inch touchscreen and 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster from last year carry over, but now you'll have to pay an in-car subscription fee for basic features like high-beam assist, dual-zone climate control, adaptive cruise control, and smartphone integration.
Only by upgrading to the MMI navigation system do you get access to the app store. From there, Audi forces you into add-ons like adaptive cruise control or Apple CarPlay and Android Auto for a one-month, six-month, one-year, or three-year subscription. Or you can just purchase any of those features permanently—although Audi doesn't say for how much.
It should be noted that this subscriptions-for-features model applies to the European-spec A3. An Audi spokesperson declined to comment on whether these in-car subscriptions will also make it to the US when the car goes on sale for 2025.
Visually, the cabin looks mostly the same, but there are some subtle changes. The already-tiny gear shifter from the previous A3 is now slimmer and blends into the center console, new fabric inserts with lightning elements cover the door panels, and the decorative cabin lighting now has 30 color options.
Audi doesn't offer specifics on engines for the US market, but the base Audi A3 in Europe will come with a 1.5-liter four-cylinder mild-hybrid engine making 148 horsepower with either a seven-speed automatic or a six-speed manual transmission. A 35 TDI diesel model will have the same 148 hp, and a plug-in-hybrid model will be available at the end of the year.
Also for Europe is a nifty new trim called the A3 Allstreet. Meant to look like a crossover, the five-door hatchback comes with a matte black grille, front and rear grooves mimicking skid plates, and plastic trim around the wheel wells. The Allstreet is 1.2 inches higher than the standard A3 and has a softer ride. A set of 17-inch wheels come standard, but 18- and 19-inch shoes are also available.
Both the Allstreet and the standard A3 Sportback have 13.4 cubic feet of space behind the rear seats, with up to 42.4 cubes of space with the rear seats folded flat. An electric tailgate is available as an option.
Audi hasn't released A3 pricing for the US, but the Sportback starts at €35,650 (around $39,000) and the sedan is an extra €800 ($875). The funky new A3 Allstreet costs €37,450 ( $41,000).
!fellas !oldstrags you better hang on that shitbox.
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lol i would be very annoyed at the lack of smartphone integration
it's an Audi why are they so
they're considered a luxury car here
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In Euroland Audi and BMW are the cars that poors lease when they're pretending too be rich. You should see the state of the shithole rentoid apartments with new Audis parked out front.
These will be the first cars too get lootboxes and season passes. Poors just can't help themselves.
TRUMP FOR PRISON
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Neighbor why do you even need a car?
I would be buying a nice honda rebel 1100 or something for 1/10th of that price
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lol our public transportation is great but sometimes a car is just more convenient
it's not like there's a straight line of a highway from east to west or north to south
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No I mean for that short a distance a car is overkill. A bike is perfect. You don't have to burn out your back (considering the heat and humidity) riding it for hours and you can easily manoeuvre through busy streets with a bike. Parking is also easier and cheaper.
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yah but usually the convenience is that you'd be able to fetch your family around lol
also do you really want to be biking amongst asian drivers
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RETVRN TO YOUR BIRTHLAND BRO
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as an asian driver? that doesnt change anything lol
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I enjoy living dangerously.
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ching chong drive long
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To dunk on poors? Do you not know any asians?
Its like 25% of the reason why we Asians even do anything.
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Wtf lol that Q3 is like half price in India, even with the ridiculous taxes here on imports and >4 meter vehicles.
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that price doesn't even include the darn 10-year certificate (62k - 72k usd) we have to purchase lol
i'm lucky to get one during covid when prices were low lmfao
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It's almost exclusively Arabs, Turks and other kannacks doing that.
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Poors have ruined luxury brands
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A3's are what late 40-50 year old middle managers making $90,000 a year buy for $50,000 on 7 year loans as their mid life crisis to delude themselves into thinking they've made it.
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It's not just Audi, BMW, Toyota, Ford all have some level of subscriptions for software services. But that model is now creeping into hardware features.
For now, you can buy these features outright without the subscriptions. But I think this is just a test run to see how many dumbfricks will fall for the subscription model.
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Even Toyota? darn I'd have thought an asian manufacturer would have done away with that nonsense to undercut the europoor or burger cars lol
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Yep, it's mostly for software services now. But that can change rather quickly given how much cars are trending towards a software-defined vehicle paradigm.
https://www.toyota.com/connected-services/connected-services-plans/
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This seems like a lot of money to not just buy a phone Bluetooth adapter and clippable holder. Wtf
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I thought they always had it, just like the on screen gps or on star stuff?
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Can't you plug in one of those devices for ECU programming and simply enable all the features you want? I'd disable whatever it uses to connect to the internet too, so it doesn't reset back to disabled.
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People won't care about this, because nobody is buying A3s in first place - they're the archetypical company car, a perk white collar workers get after entering middle management or so.
They don't care about owning these features, because they don't own the car in first place. So why bother?
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Thats the A4, and A6/8 for higher grades
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The eternal kraut
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Audicels deserve this
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why even bother
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good if it brings down the cost for the populace. im glad companies are going for innovative routes
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Lmao this neighbor thinks they're going to pass subscription profit on to cost reductions for the main product
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companies are at the steering wheel and are better equipped to make sound choices. trust the plan
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Can German car manufacturer sink even lower?
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Hopefully, they're already doing badly (the increase of sales last year, and partially this year, is just them catching up with orders from pandemic when they weren't producing enough). VW group is also laying people off and I suppose this is part of an attempt to increase revenue. Their EV's aren't doing too hot either, the future isn't looking good for them.
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God I truly wish they are on their way out.
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Keep yourself safe if you use high beam assist. Every BIPOC who blinds me with auto high beam gets my high beam until i pass them
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If you buy a "premium" car as status symbol, you deserve this kindnof shit. Youre already getting fleeced just for what symbol is on the front. Ill stick with my gook car that cost a fraction and offers just as much luxury and quality.
Oh wait, thanks to our libshit eu politicians ill probably be forced to buy an electric car (which wont be available without "cars as a service" shot soon, i bet).
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Frogs tweaked their "first registration emission tax" for this year. It turned GR86 from €35k into a €95k car and Toyota straight up pulled it from the market
But yeah I agree about EV's, I'm not a huge fan but big part of it is the cars are just garbage in general regardless of the powertrain. Give me an EV restomod with convenience and safety features of 2000's car and I'm okay, but what passes for a car with some of the EV manufacturers is a joke.
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why tf would you buy a low end german shitbox?
like you're either buying a luxury car you can afford to ditch as soon as anything goes wrong
or you're buying a car that might still be working in 5 years (japanese/american)
if you can't a afford a real status symbol you definitely can't afford the repair bills sweaty
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Why does this phrasing make me angry
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I welcome the subscription system so lazy r-slurs subsidize me when I buy a car and jailbreak it.
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Snapshots:
https://www.motor1.com/news/711957/2025-audi-a3-in-car-subscriptions/:
ghostarchive.org
archive.org
archive.ph (click to archive)
https://old.reddit.com/r/cars/comments/1bdbzr4/audi_is_making_dual_zone_climate_a_subscription/?sort=controversial:
undelete.pullpush.io
ghostarchive.org
archive.org
archive.ph (click to archive)
https://old.reddit.com/r/technology/comments/1bdfctr/the_new_audi_a3_is_amess_with_incar_subscriptions/?sort=controversial:
undelete.pullpush.io
ghostarchive.org
archive.org
archive.ph (click to archive)
https://old.reddit.com/r/technology/comments/1bdhuma/the_new_audi_a3_is_amess_with_incar_subscriptions/?sort=controversial:
undelete.pullpush.io
ghostarchive.org
archive.org
archive.ph (click to archive)
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