Audi A1 Hatchback review

On the face of it, the A1 is not a cheap small car; its prices definitely sit a notch above those of the Volkswagen Polo, let alone the Ford Fiesta or any of the more mainstream opposition. However, it is priced broadly in line with most Minis – especially if you take our advice and pick one of the more modest trim levels from the A1 line-up.

The good news is that the A1’s resale values are really strong. If you’re buying the car outright, this means you can look forward to getting a decent percentage of your purchase price back when you sell the car on in, say, three years. This trend is also reflected in the A1’s finance offers, which look particularly appealing; it’s a strong proposition on the types of PCP deals that are so popular in the small car market.

On paper, the cheapest petrol A1 to run is the 1.0 three-cylinder model, since it emits less than 100g/km of CO2 (with a manual gearbox). The 1.4 petrol’s emissions are still respectable, although you need to bear in mind that the figures go up as you bump up the wheel sizes.

Almost all diesel A1s emit less than 100g/km of CO2; you have to choose an automatic gearbox to nudge it above that magic figure. This keeps comapny car tax to reasonable levels.

Depending on the type of driving you do, service intervals can be up to every two years or 19,000 miles. Also, it’s well worth considering the Audi Service Plan, which covers the cost of routine servicing for five years or 50,000 miles.

Even entry-level SE versions come with a few bit and pieces, including 15in alloy wheels, air-con cruise control and rear parking sensors. We'd definitely fork out for the Bluetooth phone connectivity mentioned in the infotainment section, though. That comes as standard on Sport trim, along with other niceties such as a leather steering wheel, a driver’s information display between the instrument dials, sat-nav and 16in alloy wheels – making this our preferred trim.

The extra kit brought by S line and Black Edition trims is mainly focused on styling, so unless you’re really keen to have a sporty-looking A1, we think you’re better off saving your cash and spending it on a Sport model plus a few personalisation options, such as the contrast roof colour.

The A1 has been around for a while and uses a well-tried set of components that are shared across many models from VW, Seat and Skoda – but that hasn’t been reflected in the car’s reliability data. In our most recent survey, A1 owners registered a fairly average 27 faults per 100 cars. That was slightly better than what the Mini hatch managed, though.

Audi as a brand did better, mind you, finishing a respectable 12th out of 32 manufacturers tested, putting it just above Mini once again.

Audi’s warranty covers unlimited mileage in the first two years and up to 60,000 miles in the third year. The company offers extended warranties lasting four years and 75,000 miles or five years and 90,000 miles as optional extras.

Every A1 comes with six airbags, stability control, Isofix child seat mounting points on the rear seats and a tyre pressure monitoring system.

However, there are no modern active safety aids, such as automatic emergency braking, blindspot warning or lane-keeping assist. And although the A1 scored five stars in its 2010 Euro NCAP crash test, the process has changed so much since then that this score does not stand comparison to rivals that received five stars within the past couple of years, such as the Fiesta and Seat Ibiza.

Security kit is comprehensive and includes an alarm and engine immobiliser. Security experts Thatcham Research awarded all versions top marks for resisting being stolen and four out of five for resisting being broken into.

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