My wife had a tdi until recently. An A3 tdi with a golf engine funnily enough lol. Same car with a different frock on.
I am not sure I am reading you right.
Which is the lazy driving style?
The diesel!! Low down torque, regardless of the gear you can just bimble along!!
Depends on the specific car and engine but I like petrol more, like I say the B58 is the best engine I have found for lazy low rev torque it’s epic, and doesn’t sound like an ice cream van.
I think most people would say they like petrol more. But if a driver does very big miles on the motorway, need a huge range doesn’t feel the need to burn several thousand quid a year on petrol to drive said motorways with adaptive cruise on and ideally has an MX5 or two up their sleeve for B roads they are fine - albeit not much longer to be with us given the environment issues we are now advised of. That said I am still surprised at how quick my gtd was and that it was a faster point to point car than my old Subaru turbo 2000. I’m sure a golf gti of the same age would be faster but as I got 9 points and a speed awareness course in two years in the gtd (now spent!) I won’t be finding out.
Ps I don’t think I’m a dangerous driver but the gtd was so effortless I got done for 34 in a 30 (speed camera), 85ish on the m6 (clear but for the unmarked police car I overtook) 50 in a rural 40 dual carriageway overtaking a wagon (hidden squad car) and 40 in a 30 where I’d missed the step down in limit. In my Defense I was driving over 40k a year at the time. I’ve also started to slow down to let BMWs out of junctions as I would other cars (mostly) but it’s taken me to 52 to do that.
Also to your point on the A3 - it’s more or less exactly the same as the golf, the octavia and the Leon. They all use the sane VAG MQB platform and they are more or less the same down to the switchgear . They all drive the same. Even my scirocco is the same - it’s just better looking if you like that sort of thing.
I do like the Scirocco as it goes yes. Lovely looking. They are based on the previous chassis to the golf generally so a generation behind, but that doesn’t show as any difference in the drive quality it just keeps costs down. At least that was the case until about 2015 I haven’t followed recent progress. I drove one a few years ago but it was small for my 6’4 17 stone frame.
Last diesel I drove was a Golf bluemotion, as a rental, about 5 years ago, whilst visiting the family.
Going up alpine roads, I had to go into first gear at every hairpin!
But on the flat, it flew away from standstill.