We all like the idea of good things in sensibly sized packages. Perhaps that’s why Audi’s A3 has been so successful here, a compact car that goes large on quality, refinement and maturity. Especially in third generation guise, where it’s lighter, more efficient, more powerful and cleverer than ever before. Which is just as well given that there are Volkswagen Group products using many of the same ingredients and plenty of tempting high profile segment rivals. In other words, this MK3 model will have to work harder than ever to win sales. Fortunately for Audi, it seems well up to the task.
You and I might not get very excited by the thought of a redesigned automotive platform but Audi does. With good reason. Because this car’s MQB (or Modular Transverse Matrix) underpinnings have also to support everything from a Volkswagen Golf to a Seat Leon, an awful lot of development budget has been thrown at getting them right, the by-product of which for A3 drivers should be better ride, handling and a whole lot more.
By and large, that’s exactly what you get. First up, because a lot of the stuff you can’t see is lighter than before, the car immediately feels more lithe and agile than you expect, even on a short drive. True, real driving enthusiasts will still prefer the rear wheel drive reactions of a BMW 1 Series or the fine front-driven tactility of a Ford Focus. But everyone else will probably enjoy this Audi just as much thanks to lovely technical touches like the way that an electronic limited slip differential is built into the stability control system so that the car turns more sharply into bends. And the beautifully calibrated multi-link suspension that enables the car to flow fluently though those corners while nonchantly soaking up the bumps in a way that perfectly complements this car’s quite exemplary standards of refinement.
Engine-wise, there’s a petrol 1.8 TFSI option and a 2.0-litre version of this engine in the 296bhp S3 hot hatch but almost all British A3 buyers will choose either a 1.4-litre petrol variant or a diesel. The 1.4 petrol comes with 120bhp or, if you go for the 138bhp derivative, clever “Cylinder on Demand” technology that cuts out two of the four cylinders at low-to-medium engine speeds for greater efficiency. Diesel-wise, there’s a 104bhp 1.6 or a 2.0-litre TDI unit with either 148 or 181bhp.
You’re not going to find too many A3s leaving dealerships at less than £20,000 as that sum will buy you little more than an entry-level 1.4-litre TFSI petrol variant with a few modest options on board. There’s the option of both three and five-door hatches and even a saloon. The bulk of the range campaigns up to £25,000.
Light weight has all kinds of automotive advantages and, with enhancements like the use of aluminium for the front wings and bonnet meaning savings of up to 80kgs on the previous generation model, this MK3 A3 is certainly as lean as it can be. A 1.4 TFSI model, for example, weighs just 1,175kgs, not much more than a car from the next class down like, say, a VW Polo supermini. And that makes it at least 185kg lighter than equivalent rival BMW 1 Series and Mercedes A Class models. As you can imagine, this creates big benefits when it comes to cost of ownership, with fuel economy over the previous generation model reduced by an average of up to 12%.
It’s probably best to illustrate what I mean with an example. The strongest selling A3 variant will be the 148bhp 2.0-litre TDI diesel, which manages 68.9mpg on the combined cycle and 106g/km of CO. To match that in a rival BMW 1 Series or Mercedes A-Class, you’d have to get a much lower-powered diesel engine. Go for the A3 in 1.6-litre TDI form and of course you can expect to do even better (this version returning 74.3mpg and 99g/km of CO) but its advantage over the 2.0 TDI is slight enough to ensure that most potential customers will probably opt for the more powerful model.
Don’t decide upon a diesel though, before checking out the clever 138bhp 1.4TFSI CoD petrol model with its “Cylinder on Demand” technology that sees this four cylinder engine running on only two of its cylinders at low to mid-throttle speeds. Thanks to that, this variant manages a combined cycle figure of 57.7mpg – which is not far off diesel standards at the same time as running on cheaper green pump fuel.
In the search for a compact car that’s also a premium purchase, there are more charismatic choices than this Audi A3. But there are few better ones. Light in bulk, heavy in technology, it’s a logical evolution of the breed that’s already one of Britain’s favourite company cars.
If you’re one of those who questions the need for a premium peoples’ hatch, then in this Audi, you have your answer. From the outside, well, it’s as home in Belgravia as it is in Brixton. Enough said. But the interior is where this design really strides apart. You could be in a luxury car.
And of course, in many ways, you are. By pioneering the premium compact hatch segment with the original version of this model, Audi has redefined the meaning of automotive luxury, democratising it without the desirability being diluted. Other brands claim to have done the same of course and many have used a few more visual or dynamic fireworks to grab the attention. Ingolstadt doesn’t think this A3 needs them and legions of loyal global buyers seem to agree. Cool, class-less and clever, it’s desirably definitive.
Model: Audi A3 range
Price: From £18,280
Engine: Entry-level 1.4-litre TFSI petrol variant
Performance: 0-62mph in 10.3 seconds; top speed 120mph
Economy: 57.6mpg
CO rating: 112g/km