Middle-Aged Tread #1 - Audi A2 | The Autocar Vodcast

Welcome to Episode 1 of Middle-Aged Tread, The Autocar Vodcast.
It's a show about cars and in this case, the Audi A2, the incredibly clever, lightweight, frugal small car that Audi introduced at the turn of the millennium and which could have gone on to bigger and greater things. Only, ultimately, it didn't.
But why not? Matt Prior and James Disdale dive deeper while getting distracted by V6 Renault Clios, the time when Rolls-Royce and Bentley split, and much more besides, in the first of an occasional series where two middle-aged men in talk about cars while trying not to complain too much about things.
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[@Alan_UK]

As an A2 owner for 19 years (same TDi 75 with remap + long 5th gear) I agree with much of the sentiment express in this video. Many in the A2 Owner's Club have expressed a wish for an EV A2 and Audi has built concepts. Some people in Germany have converted their A2 to EV - the floor under the back seat can be cut away as all the strength is in the space frame. A battery box is then inserted. These conversions were many years ago with early battery technology and only achieved 100 mile range - fine as a city runabout but in the UK the DVLA will not reclassify a conversion so it would still be charged in a LEZ. The base petrol model in 2001 cost £13k but with all 32 optional extras this increased to almost £25k. This included such things as opening glass roof, leather seats, satellite navigation system with 5" map display,TV!, BOSE, headlight washers. There was the Colour Storm models with 5 bright colours and matching interior trim, with the aim of attracting younger buyers. They are now sought after. The SE models had climate control so the fan speed and temperature setting on these is up & down buttons and a digital display. The back seats can fold down and it's then like a Tardis. I've had an armchair in mine. Rear seats are removable, easy on the 4 seater as they are separate but the 5 seater is a single rear seat and quite heavy and bulky. The rear and front subframes are steel and after 20 years can be rusted badly if subject to lots road salt and not sprayed down occasionally and protected. The 3L version (100mpg) sold in Europe has 1.2L TDi engine, aluminium subframes and suspension and brake drums, thinner lighter wheels & tyres, lighter rear seats, thinner windscreen glass, aerofoils, and the semi-automatic gearbox. I've done 100K miles in mine and hardly anything has ever broken. Just gets regular servicing. And much of the mechanics and suspension is the same as the Polo.

[@alastairchestnutt6416]

A fine car. Spacious for such a small car and ergonomic interior. Looking forwards to the Honda Insight review. Test drove both in the day and bought the Audi A2 for my wife. Still has it in daily use at 272k miles.

[@Shane-zx4ps]

You bought the right car the insight is 🤮

[@964tractorboy]

There is no limit to the number of videos I'll watch where two blokes chat about proper cars (whilst driving one), rather than exchange battery sizes and charging rates. And this is no exception. More please!

[@johnquinn1836]

James needs to get a pair of glasses, even just clear lenses, so you can call this "Two Identical men talk cars". Love your work.

[@urbanstrencan]

Audi A2 was so ahead of it's time , would love to see it's modern reincarnation as EV❤❤❤

[@jo05dk]

We got the 3L Lupo and A2 here in Denmark. I’ve always loved the Lupo 3L, hearing it chugging along makes me happy, but now a days the A2 3L is growing on me.. Both are really cool cars, imho.

[@pauln0371]

The A2 was way ahead of it's time. Belting city car..

[@longtailgt]

I enjoyed watching this far more than I thought. Please do make more videos like these driving interesting cars about!

[@mikefoley360]

I've the 2004 1.4 petrol and it has a trip computer, It's on the right stalk and displays between the clocks.

[@TunekoLtd]

Lot of design ideas of the Audi A2 can be found in the VW ID3 series. With little bit of modifications that 1.4TDI can easily also reach 3 liter fuel consumption at highway speeds. My own a2 target is 2 liter consumption at 100km/h speed.

[@dj_efk]

Is there a thread on a forum page somewhere detailing what you’ve done to achieve this? Would be an interesting read.

[@Lot76CARS]

What a brilliant new addition to the Autocar channel, I really enjoyed you guys just driving and chatting about the A2!

[@JJonCars]

Oh, hi Simon haha. Just enjoyed watching this video too

[@Lot76CARS]

@@JJonCars I bet you did 😉

[@Shane-zx4ps]

More of these videos please. We middle agers love this content, nostalgia is comforting 😊

[@itiejim]

Great video and a really wonderful car. Although I always admired the engineering, it took me until a couple of years ago to have a need for an A2, but now we have one in the fleet, I'd be really reluctant to get rid of it. The quality, space and sheer usefulness of the car ofset against its incredibly low running costs make it a keeper I feel.

[@Hali88]

Excellent. More of this format please. I can have it on whilst cooking or washing up and just listen or I can properly watch if I fancy.

[@petebaja2690]

I love my 2005 A2 Tdi SE, it's my daily driver and it still looks modern. There are only two parts made of steel - the bulkhead and the wiper arm so it's not completely aluminium. I loved the fact that it was made on the same production line as the A8 flagship and that it wasn't built down to a price. The light weight reminds me of Lotus' "added lightness" and the lightness pays dividends on less wear and tear on components as well as the lack of inertia aiding in braking and acceleration. Admittedly the diesel is agricultural but it's cheap to tax, the only issue is the tyre size which is now only available for the Nissan Micra apparently as tyre sizes have got wider and lower in profile. If imitation is the sincerest form of flatery BMW's i3 would have it blushing - funnily enough, it's the only car that I would consider as a replacement except for it's limitations outside of the urban environment.

[@enwins]

The conversation took me back to my days making motoring programmes for Men and Motors. This was the time I went to the Lupo launch. I remember the A2 and Mercedes A Class competing for similar customers.. Prior to joining Men and Motors I worked at Rolls Royce/Bentley just about the time Vickars put it up for sale. I enjoyed this nostalgia trip.

[@johnkellett7797]

I bought my A2 from Audi 20 years ago and it has over 220,000 miles on the clock and still manages an indicated over 50 mpg even when driving 'briskly' within the legal limits of course. Even secondhand car it cost more, in real terms, than a EV! The BMW i3 was a similar masterpiece of design and engineering. An A2 today could use the same body shell and be an EV. PS - in 20 years never missed either the rear wiper or two front wipers. Even the 1.4 Petrol A2 is ULEZ compliant and incurs no charge :-)

[@brightbluesmurf]

This and the Audi TT MK2 (69% alloy spaceframe) were state of the art in using alloys to lighten cars. I really liked Audi's direction from the norm. Now look at how much heavier cars are getting?

[@richardpiper4828]

Always rather liked the A2 and did toy with buying one about 20 years ago but just not convinced that it would work for a one car household. Even though the interior space was sufficient for me and I loved its compact size the small engine with its uninspiring performance was the major downside. I have though owned two BMW i3’s which were probably even more revolutionary than the A2. Interestingly a number of i3 early adopters were ex A3 owners. The premium price did not put me off because I wanted to downsize from larger BMWs but didn’t want to forego quality or equipment levels. Next car will hopefully be an Alpine A290 which I think is the nearest I am going to get to the i3’s.

[@damianbond679]

My 02 TDI 75 still going strong at 174,000 miles!

[@aliziyaeddin5576]

I loved mine, it was the Tdi sport 90 and it flew, once on the roll it's mid range punch was impressive. Gutted it was stolen but ULEZ was going to make ownership expensive for what was a really economical and well put together car.

[@howardg186]

Thank you for this Autocar, great stories and very enjoyable 👍🏼👍🏼

[@mrmorizofan7001]

just bought a well maintained, fully equipped 1.4 TDI s-line with sport suspension. accompanies my garage with GR Yaris. I drive more with A2 than with GR :D Getting old maybe as I enjoy more driving slow than fast. :D (ex race car driver)

[@thomaschetwood6249]

I love that Matt's comments about his original impressions of the negative aspects of the car, its poor visibility and ride, highlight how our standards have changed and that in some respects modern cars are worse than old ones. How sad that our expectations have been so reduced by the consequences of well intentioned legislation - thick door pillars and a massive increase in the weight of the average new car. I suspect that most of the legislation that has caused this is related to safety which, to be fair, has worked.

[@simonmcculloch4114]

Yes, 2005 was the last year of them, I have a 2005 tdi, great little cars in my opinion and very underrated and undervalued.

[@romeandcurry6915]

I had one of these new - did 90,000 miles in it - it was excellent. If I recall motoring journalists didn’t understand, rated it poorly and J Clarkson slagged it off. His advice was buy a Fiesta.

[@TheEC73]

I had an A2 for four years from new - a great little car, ahead of its time, and if it had launched five or ten years later with a smaller turbo petrol engine I suspect it would have sold much better.

[@unstoppable__pete]

Love the A2, I even have one as a daily, but unfortunately the 1.4 tdi 3 cylinder ,according to Audi, curb weight is 1020kg, not 890kg ... And you even forgot to mention that back seats pulls out easily and you have a van basically.

[@quicknickdriver8510]

An awesome little car in my opinion but perhaps a little too experimental for Audi, certainly an odd look for the brand at the time. I do enjoy being able to see, as well as hear you, the interior and exterior stills add to the experience. It’s a vlog though, no need to rename the format.

[@SteveM-ly7oy]

The VW Golf 1 was launched in 1974. Compare that to a Mark 4 Golf in 1999. Worlds apart. Production ended in 2005. The last A2s have a 55 plate. The earliest have an X plate.

[@ThePedroDB]

I love this 'idle banter' style of vodcast. Great stuff. Full of fab little anecdotes. Keep it up Fellas! 👍

[@IslaSprollie]

Great though it is and it has a bigger boot if needed, I'd rather have a Honda e, way more special and even cheaper to run. Oh and it's quite fast plus handles/rides beautifully around town, not to mention all the modern tech.

[@pereldh5741]

Tells us so much about how far ”conventional” ICE cars have come. Imagine comparing any of today’s EV with a 2044 one!

[@AndyBrookes]

Loved my TDI A2 for a good few years. Now love my i3 Rex. Both ahead of times and not for normal people. For ref I have 1978 911 SC as well for my intake of petrol. Both the i3 and SC are tax free, winning!

[@MoltenJules]

At around 5 minutes in when they are talking of weight ig sqoce frame -i think it was only 75-90kg for the whole space frame.

[@romeandcurry6915]

Geek comment - if it doesn’t have AC it’s a non SE model but it’s on the SE wheels. The standard wheels were nicer looking and had better ride.

[@ncliffe4786]

1974 (25 years before the A2), what was new ? - VW Golf. The alternative to an Austin Allegro or a Mk1 Escort. Golf still here, many versions later, though a mark 1 is tiny compared to the current ones.

[@arnomd]

Terribly boring! Almost nothing about the A2.

[@davidhayes4814]

Very hard to repair and therefore residuals tanked …..

[@angusmcmillan111]

Why was it hard to repair? The aluminium spaceframe? Edit: should have kept watching before I asked the question! Wondering what the alternative would be. The i3 carbon base unit would surely be the same problem. How about a steel spaceframe with injection moulded panels? Just wish we could get affordable, durable and light EVs on the market.

[@RobertJemison-YouTubeUser]

What a load of self opinionated twaddle from Autocar!

[@nevilleconnolly8938]

Boring! Boring! Boring!

[@quicknickdriver8510]

Forntunately for your taste, there are many more exciting cars and reviews available to watch.

[@dirkdiggler69]

This guy doesn’t get it

[@simonmellor4267]

Still got mine. 2004 model 1.4 diesel still runs sound as a pound. Even the electric sunroof works! Constantly think about getting it buffed up to restore some former glory.