I have the 2015 a3 e-tron - as you probably know mid 2016 the Hybrid Auto Battery Charge mode was removed. i think thats a shame - but you do have to think about how you use the car to get the benefits. Burning gas to charge the battery will never be efficient - but the trick is to save the battery for the petrol heavy bits of the journey - I see the battery as a means of deleting the inefficient slots of the journey. I also get obsessive with trying to do one leg of a journey without starting the engine- and when it kicks in get upset if I cant drive it until its nice and hot (although it doesnt actually tell me how hot it is). The car feels unhappy when its battery is low - so when on a long trip without charging being able to (very slowly) top it up in anticipation of some city driving feels cool (even if its possibly pointless)
Im hearing that later e-tron have annual fixed service intervals - mine is not fixed and it seems to be suggesting two year inspections. I assume they have changed that for a reason so will get it inspected when it needs an annual MOT.
The audi home charger has I believe a 10a and 5a option (100% and 50%- am I right) but the 10a is only a bit slower than a Type 2 charger so a home charge point Ive decided isnt worthwhile (well until we have another ev) but I had to get a different 3pin uk plug to type2 10a charger anyway as I wanted a really long charge cable to avoid using power extension leads.
I have discovered that using kick down when in electric mode is most upsetting and should be avoided -its also really hesitant, redlines the engine and is most undignified - but instead moving from EV to battery hold/sport mode by moving the gearselector back starts the engine smoother and ramps up the regen so you get a form of 'single pedal' driving where the foot position controls the speed rather than the acceleration- this is great fun in the Welsh twisty roads and avoids constant braking. It doesnt hit the economy especialy , I assume because it stores stuff int he battery and then switches to battery whenever you slow right down or stop- its quite intelligent how it handles heavy traffic. On a tank im getting 75-85mpg which is far better than the a3 diesel I had before. This car is however no quattro...
I am using it for more shorter trips since Im not going to start the engine - that inflates the economy. However its important to remember that one mile of electric driving - in almost stationary traffic - is worth a whole lot of petrol and engine wear not to mention emissions which the car can't really measure.
I hate the way the regen hands over to the brakes but Im getting better at minimising the reverse kangaroo stopping. As rgards regn, on my way back from the Horseshoe Pass to home (its a high beauty spot) the 15 mile journey only uses nine miles of electricity! Regen seems higher in battery hold and recharge mode. In hybrid auto it only seems to happen under braking (even on cruise)
The manual explains that I must lift my foot off the gas completely for the engine to decouple and go into coasting mode (something my driving instructor told me years ago was a bad thing but there you are)
I dont know what trim my secomnd hand etron is, but it seems pretty high. No leather seats but electric folding mirros, cruise control (not adaptive), gps, traffic via data (enabled by audi for a year when i asked about subscribing), all round parking sensors (no camera). I use cruise a lot and i think that calms ny driving style. Dab/infotinment/cd/sd/bluetooth - and get this - I can play a DVD on the folding screen (? but why?). Its keyless - so i keep the key in a rfi safe at home...
Its heavy on corners, and pulling out of t-junctions (in ev mode) its very easy to lift a front wheel and break contact (my quattro NEVER EVER did that even in the wet) but I just need to lighten my clog I guess....
This car is the most fun to own of any I have had. I love sneaking out of the drive in EV mode and I really enjoy the sport/hold drive option that trasforms the car. I also keep switching modes obsessively (and possibly pointlessly) - so the automatic gearbox isn't at all boring ..... and I even like occasionally park/charging it when Im at a location for a couple of hours. Ive noticed that when charging it makes a whirring noise - so i guess there are shed loads of things to wear out even in the EV part.....