Can a car be anymore great? We love ours. It's understated. simple, and fun to drive.

My friend just got an A3 2.0, front-wheel drive, with DSG. It looks sharp, accelerates smartly even full of 500 pounds of humans, and is full of great gadgetry.

I have to say, the coolest feature is the computer-controlled manual transmission. It has two clutches, so gear changes are completely seamless. But there are none of the fluid resistive losses of a regular, automatic slushbox. Best of all, it has the speed racer paddle shifters, just like a Ferrari.

I test drove the A3 3.2 a while back and was underwhelmed at the performance for all that money. The 2.0 eschews the heavy quattro drivetrain and uses Audi's famously-torquey 2.0 turbo to make this car feel really peppy. And, while still expensive, it's at least somewhere close to the ballpark.

Smart and Compact, with enough room to get the job done. Its classy without being pretentious. (via Audi Canada)