There is a tiny bit of Lamborghini in the latest Audi A3. The guff says otherwise – that the newcomer is “characterised by the new Audi design language”. But I noticed it in the angular lines of the interior, the sharp creases in the bodywork, and the pronounced honeycomb pattern on the grille and the fake air intakes on either side of it.
Yes, it is a great deal more extreme – the Countach is one of the most outrageous cars ever – but you can see other tiny hints of Lambos old and new in the way Audi has presented its small hatch as a sportier, edgier proposition. Once engine capacity was enough to tell you where each model stood in performance and price, but no more. Under the Audi system, a higher number still denotes greater performance.
Equipment levels have risen, but a $4500 ‘premium limited’ package is necessary to gain adaptive cruise, electric seats and an HUD.– are available in Europe, though no word yet on whether we will see them. For now, the 40’s combined fuel economy is a quite reasonable 6.7 L/100 km, and it is a superb all-rounder: not as harsh as an S or RS, but fun at city speeds, comfortable, and a refined highway cruiser.
There is no 30 Sportback this time around, meaning the entry level is nearly $10,000 higher than it was a year ago. Audi is not Robinson Crusoe there; list prices are creeping up and discounts ever harder to find. A3 equipment levels have undoubtedly risen, though a $4500 “premium limited” package is necessary to gain adaptive cruise, electric seats, heads-up display and a few other bibs and bobs.