New to the board, and I am an Audi owner. 2005 A4 2.0T Brilliant Red. Great car. However I am thinking about adding another Audi to the family. I am in need of a small family car, I have a three yr old, and another on the way. I am really interested in the A3 because of fuel economy, maintenance, safety, and appeal, and I wouldn't really have to turn in my man card like I would if I drove a mini van.
Question, is ther enough room in the backseat for kids, etc? The A4 back seat is limited so how do they compare?

 

Take the A3 2.0T for a test drive.....you wont regret. I reckon the space in the back is similiar to the A4 so you should not have a hassle. The A3 has more room than the BMW 1 and a far better car on the whole.

 

should be fine
just that the headroom is a problem
but should be fine for kids

 

I am in the same situation. I have a kid in a booster seat and a toddler in a baby carseat. What did you decide? We have not bought yet but attend to buy A3. I test drove a A3 2.0T last week and LOVE it! I actually put both baby carseats in the A3 after I drove it. Both seats fit but there was no room for a 3rd passenger. If you have long legs up front there is not a lot of room in back for long legs. I want this car so bad but I can not get over the size of the back seat. Let me know what you have decided. We have a wrx and the A3 has more back seat room than the wrx.

 

I have a 2006 A3 and the backseat has plenty of room for my 4 year old in a booster seat and my 1 year old in a forward facing infant seat. I am 6'1" and wife is 5'9" and we both sit as we normally would with both kids in the car. not sure how it compares to the 2005 A4, but the backseat is much larger and wider than my 1999 1.8T A4 and my 2002 1.8T Jetta wagon. I can even sit between the two car seats for short trips.

You can get a bigger back seat, but the A3 works for us. Long trips may be an issue without some roof rack system to carry some of the lugage. Otherwise I give it two thumbs up.

 

medium entry level motor to Audi not for a family of more than 4 like the BMW 1 "which is crap" and it shows, A3 1.8T is a fast motor and faster that the A4 because of the obvious

 

Well I haven't made any decisions on a purchase just yet. I am going to go look at the A3 in May when our A4 is due in for regular service. If I buy it will probably be the 2006 version. The room in the back seat is the only deal breaker on this car. If there isn't enough for the two kids, and the wife and I then No Deal. My alternate vehicle is a new 4Runner, loaded I can get it for the same price as the A3, so it is a pretty good option in my book.
A roof rack for road trips might not be a bad idea anyway. But we really don't take many road trips, however Houston is pretty spread out, so going anywhere is kind of like a road trip.

 

Rear seat room isn't that bad. I have twin 4 year old girls that sit in car seats and a skinny 8 year old boy that comfortably sits in between them. He was excited when I traded in the 2002 Jetta because the A3 had more room for him in the back. Two kids won't ever be a problem, no matter how big they get. Buy it!