Audi A2

In November, the A2 joined three pint-sized rivals in our 5,000-mile motorway challenge (Issue 679) to find the best long-distance small car. It won comfortably, and everyone wanted it for the trek back to London from Newcastle.
With just less than 9,000 miles on the clock, the 1.4-litre three-cylinder turbo-diesel engine is well and truly run-in and performing better than ever. Although it still makes a real racket when cold, there's no shortage of torque and low-end punch, which makes town driving a delight.
Keep the rev counter in the sweet spot between 1,500 and 3,000rpm, and it feels as though there's a 2.0-litre TDI under the bonnet. What's more, fuel consumption has steadily improved since our first report (issue 671). The average is now up to 48.1mpg - one of the highest figures we've ever recorded for a long termer.
Downsides? Well, the light grey trim is virtually impossible to keep clean - especially in the boot, where a pair of muddy boots is enough to leave unsightly marks on the carpet. Worse still, the leather tag that allows you to lift the false floor out and use the cavity beneath has broken off.
That said, the A2 is continuing to prove surprisingly practical. Although the rear seats are a pain to remove - the catches remain stiff despite a light coating of WD40 - there's bags of space on offer once they are out. To date, the main problem has been of our own making. Pop-ping to Bournemouth for Christmas, my mind must have been on turkey and trimmings as I pulled into Rownham Services on the M27 to give the car some fuel. I filled the tank with about 30 litres of unleaded instead of diesel. The following two hours were eventful, to say the least.
A call to the AA resulted in the arrival, within 30 minutes, of a very helpful chap who gave me two options: get towed to an Audi dealer (which was closed) in Southampton or go to a local 24hr workshop which could pump the system out straight away. The latter got the nod, and within the hour the A2 and I were back on the M3 and running on diesel again.
Thankfully, no lasting damage ap-pears to have been done. Although the engine developed a hot start problem shortly after this episode, it disappeared after a long run and hasn't returned. Otherwise, the A2 has behaved itself.
A strange thudding noise filters into the cabin whenever the throttle is pressed, but apart from this - and the A-pillars hindering forward vision a little - the log book is bereft of whinges. I'll get the noise investigated at the first service, but until then I'll try and keep the car on the road.