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In fairness the petrol engine in my A3 (1400 cc turbo charged) is very quiet, you can hardly hear it when it kicks in, it is road/tyre noise which spoils the car. As a hybrid it's excellent, I'm just very disappointed overall as I've been an Audi fan for years. I'm even vaguely thinking of other brands hybrids, if I can get the enthusiasm together...

Thanks for confirming my view. The current A3 is definitely a step down in refinement, which I wasn't expecting. I have an A4 Allroad 2020 and it's a much better car, not a lot different in price; I also have a 58 reg A4 convertible and it's a lot quieter re road and tyre noise, and although it's sport suspension it rides better too. I think Audi are mad not to make the more expensive A3s more refined, instead they have skimped on noise insulation and made pathetic savings on features just to keep the weight and cost down.