</font>I ordered my Q3 about 6 months ago for a Jan 1
delivery. Since then I have followed
much of the discussion on this forum with a mixture of excitement and trepidation. Excitement in looking forward to driving a
quality car as evidenced by so many positive enthusiastic posts from satisfied
drivers, yet tempered with trepidation as to whether my car would have the
dreaded front end vibration issue.
Having driven it for several hundred miles I feel I can give a review,
perhaps aimed at people who are considering whether to purchase a Q3 or waiting
for one on order. To assist as a
reference point I can say that I have owned a number of cars ranging from
Mercedes SLK, E280, Freelander, Discovery, BMW 3 series etc.<?: prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com

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</font>The Q3 impressed me straight away. The smoothness of the gear changing, the
solid feel of the vehicle and the feeling of understated power under foot. The initial and remaining impression is that the
vehicle is better than I thought it would be and my expectations were fairly
high. The steering takes a little
getting used to, especially when navigating country roads or roundabouts;
however the optional damper control set to dynamic makes the car a little bit
tighter and perhaps is a good setting for those moving up from a smaller car.</font></font>
</font>Overall the car performs as well as it looks; solid,
reliable with a predictably smooth ride.</font></font>
</font>The area where I am a little disappointed is the road noise
from the driver's door side. I can definitely
notice the sounds of traffic passing in the opposite direction much more than
most vehicles I have owned and even compared to an A3 I have recently been
using. After a while I get used to this,
(especially when the radio or the wonderful Bose speakers are cranking out my
noise of choice), yet it is worth mentioning this fact as conversely the road
noise from the front end is minimal.</font></font>
</font>The Q3 has been criticised as being dull and not exciting. To be fair I would agree, this is not the car
for thrills. My overriding emotion when
driving the Q3 is not excitement, but rather very, very deep satisfaction. I
cannot help feeling that all is well in the world when sat behind the wheel of
this effortlessly easy to drive and pleasurable car.</font></font>
</font>I can certainly recommend this vehicle to anyone
contemplating it. I was seriously
looking at the Evoque when choosing my car.
The Evoque has a number of pluses and minuses; but the key difference is
the driving position. The Q3 gives you
great visibility and the Evoque just does not.</font></font>
</font>When I was younger I was told that BMWs are for people who
are 'getting there'; Mercedes are for people who ‘are there' and Jaguars are
for people who ‘have been there'. The Q3
could apply to all these; however it is probably best appreciated by a driver
who has a mature approach to driving.</font></font>
</font>
Edited by: Geezer