Test drive Audi A2 1999 - 2005 Minivan

The youngest in the family

Aluminum body as a branded dish of audi
Ready for production Audi A2 was presented to the public at the 1999 Frankfurt Motor Show. Since then, in Europe, two modifications of a machine with engines of the same volume and power have been selling - 1.4 liters and 75 hp. One of them is a four -cylinder 16 -valve gasoline engine, the other is a three -cylinder turbodiesel with pumps.
The addiction of the company Audi to extravagant technical solutions has long been noticed. Five-valve cylinder heads, gas distribution phases adjustment systems, diesel engines with a pump, the most complex anterior suspension on A4, A6, A8 and, finally, the first fully aluminum A2 A2 aluminum body since 1994. Not every company can present such a showcase of technical achievements.
Now a new miracle is next in line: the smallest car in the Audi program is built using the same technology as the representative A8.
How much does it weigh?
Let's go from afar. About ten years ago, my friend and I tried to throw a rusted Muscovite body, from which absolutely everything was removed to the garbage container. They coped, but, I remember, almost broke.
The first meeting of the author with Audi A2 did not take place in the winter of 2000, but in the fall of 1999 at the Frankfurt car dealership. At the same time, the car itself was not even of great interest to me, but the separately lying body frame - the Audi Space Frame (spatial frame of Audi). How much does it weigh? The temptation to find out was too large. Grabbing with both hands by the cross member at the bottom of the back door, I (by the way, not Hercules) ... unexpectedly raised the frame to chest level. Blimey! It turns out that aluminum is really two and a half times easier than steel ...
According to the calculations of the company's engineers, the body itself without decoration and interior is 40% easier than a similar steel. But if you take the car as a whole, the spatial frame of aluminum profiles of the alternating section and the aluminum external details allowed to save about 150 kg. However, with the equipped mass of gasoline audi A2 895 kg, it is unlikely that you can call it superbly. Just saved kilograms went to improve the comfort and safety of the machine.
We are sitting high
At first glance, A2 A2 is much less than the technical characteristics indicate. However, having stated in a driver's seat, you immediately understand that this is just another vision of vision. A compact car in the best German traditions offers the room to the driver and front passenger even very impressive growth. At the same time, the adjustment range in length and height allows you to easily seize those who are usually barely visible due to the steering wheel. Moreover, the steering wheel can be moved not only up and down, but also on or from yourself.
In the rear seat Audi A2, of course, is not limousine comfort, but the place is still noticeably larger than in other full-sized low commands. A flat and rather high floor determines a high landing ... and not only. We already managed to forget that you can get into the car without bending or crouching. The advantage that is found only in the rare mini-wen in our country.
Road notes
With visibility, everything is surprisingly good, and powerful front racks block the much smaller sector than you could expect. From the habit in motion, you do not feel the dimensions of the car in front (the huge shelf of the front panel is misleading), but you get used to it. Much more serious problems arise after traveling along the dirty road. The glass of the rear door, blocked horizontally, is completely sprayed in the lower part, and it is extremely difficult to maneuver on the parking lot. But its upper part in exact accordance with the laws of aerodynamics remains clean - this gap is almost enough when moving in a traffic stream.
Audi A2 does not weigh so little, and it was difficult to expect miracles from a 75-horsepower engine. However, subjectively the car is very frisky. The reasons are evident - short gears and a traction engine, the assertive voice of which after 3000 rpm dominates in the inner noise. The steering is again in German traditions - very accurate, but a little stupid in the middle. The brakes at the time of eternal slush, ice and salt, called Moscow winter, are difficult to evaluate - ordinary speeds do not cause problems. In the liability - a small effort on the pedals, in the asset - a clearly working ABS.
As for suspensions, German settings are usually not optimal for Russian roads. In the case of A2, the case exacerbate low -profile tires in size 185/50 R16 (additional equipment, in the standard 175/60 \u200b\u200bR15), the height of the sidewalls of which is very small. Nevertheless, the car accepts acceptably with small irregularities and defects in the coating, not annoying with shaking. However, this does not mean at all that the possibilities of suspension are infinite: pits and short waves must be taken seriously.
Whose rival is he?
A service interval of 30 thousand km (but at least once every two years) today you will not surprise - this is the norm for gasoline A2. And the diesel audi A2 has a term of maintenance in general once every 50 thousand km! Therefore, the traditional hood was abandoned here. Pulling the traditional handle, you will not open the hood, but only the service hatch - through it they replenish the washering fluid, check the oil level in the engine and, if necessary, add. What replaces the hood is fastened with spring locks without loops, so it is not easy to open the lid. However, in Europe, the owner of Audi A2 is likely to not do this.
In the trunk, instead of an all -wheel drive spare - a dock, a spray can with a sealant and a compressor. The puncture of the wheel is now considered an emergency.
What is this car? If you like, the second representative of the compact luxury after a Mercedes A -Class. With a slightly larger, the audi is more spacious along the cabin, easier, more dynamic (with an equal volume engine), more economical (with any engine) and, frankly, more interesting for an active driver.
The stylish appearance of the youngest in the Audi family suggests that those who already have one large car of this brand in the garage can become its buyers. Apparently, this determines the price of 23 thousand dollars. Moreover, a number of class attributes are already included in the standard execution: ABS, stabilization system and an anti -boom system, four airbags, front electric windows are included in the price of the machine. For surcharge, you can order everything else - from leather finishes with aluminum inserts and a luxurious audio system to lateral pillows for the head.

+ High assembly and coloring quality, good dynamic qualities, economy, spacious interior, large service intervals.

- High price, hard suspension, small road clearance, limited visibility back in raw weather.

COMMON DATA:
The number of places is 5; Equipped mass - 895 kg; full weight - 1380 kg; maximum speed - 173 km/h; acceleration time from a place to 100 km/h - 12.0 s; fuel consumption in conditional suburban and city cycles - 4.7; 8.2 l/100 km; fuel supply - 34 liters; Fuel is unhealthy gasoline AI -95. Dimensions, mm: length - 3826; width - 1673; height - 1553; base - 2405; The track in front/back - 1462/1427; Road clearance - 139; trunk volume - 390/1440 l; The radius of rotation is 5.2 m. The engine: in order, four -cylinder, located in front transversely; working volume - 1390 cm; cylinder diameter and piston stroke - 76.5x75.6 mm; compression degree - 10.5; Power - 55 kW/75 liters. With. at 5000 rpm; The maximum torque is 126 N.M at 3800 rpm. Transmission: front wheel drive; gearbox - mechanical five -speed; Transporting numbers: I - 3.45; II - 2.1; III - 1.39; IV - 1.03; V - 0.81; h. X. - 3.18; The main program is 3.88. Suspension: in front - an independent type of mcesson, from behind - on longitudinal levers associated with the transverse stability stabilizer with an elastic transverse beam. Brakes: with ABS, in front - disk, behind - drum. The steering: rheck with an electro -hydraulic amplifier. Tire size: 175/60R15.
Text / Anatoly Fomin
Photo / Vladimir Trusov

 

Source: The magazine "Driving"