Audi RS3 Sportback: A Future Icon?
The RS3 is a fixed value in the car industry, it provides a unique engine into a very compact form.
However, with at first glance, it doesn’t look to be too new. It still has 400 hp like the old one, it still comes with Quattro like the old one and it still has the same 2 bodyforms like the old one. So what makes this RS3 worth buying if you currently own the old one?
Hips don’t lie
We’ll start off with the looks and when I said there were the 2 bodyforms, it’s down to the sportback and the sedan. That’s as much as the similarities go, looks-wise, in the new RS3. The most notably and best feature in the design is the wheel arches. Wide, muscular arches really accentuate the sportscar feeling. The overall look of the car is more flowing. Even standing still it looks faster than the previous one. The matrix lights are very sharp and have this cool greeting feature where it spells out the RS3 name and a racing flag. Once again showing Audi means business in the lights department.
Towards the back, the evolution continues, the new diffusor with classic oval exhausts really accentuate the width of the car very good. Especially in this super bright color. Not all cars can pull off bright colors but it seems that the RS3 looks good in pretty much any color.
So here’s a top tip. Have a look through the Audi Exclusive colors where you can find the perfect color that suits you.
The infamous 5 pot
It’s the first thing you think about when someone mentions RS3. And if you don’t, you’re just lying to yourself. Audi and Volvo are most famous for the 5 cilinder (the Focus RS sourced a Volvo 5 cilinder) but Audi is the only one that stuck with it until today. The 2.5L 5-cilinder finds its traces back into the original Audi Quattro which dominated Group B rally. The one in this iteration of the RS3 boasts 400 hp and 500 Nm of torque, finishing the sprint to 100 in 3,5 seconds (3,8 claimed), is still as great as it was. Sure it’s not as loud anymore on the outside thanks to the EU with their OPF and noise rules. But that meant Audi has really worked on the getting the noise inside the cabin. When put into dynamic, valves open and you can still enjoy the volume and noise of that infamous 5 pot.
With the engine sitting so far forward as has been the case with Audi’s in the past as well, the earlier RS3’s were notorious for having understeer, however with the last generation’s facelift, they redid the engine components in aluminum and saving a whopping 25 kg resulting in a big change in the handeling department. This push towards better handeling continues in the latest RS3.
It’s the first Audi model with a torque splitter. Instead of the traditional rear differential, it now has electronically controlled clutch discs on each of the drive shafts making sure the torque goes to the right wheels during cornering. New adaptive dampers allows the suspension to learn the surface and adapt to it more quickly. Wheel camber has also been increased allowing for more precise steering response and greater cornering abilities.
In addition, there’s a new performance mode specifically tailored for the RS3 to be used on the track in combination with the semi-slicks that are now a factory option.
So that’s a lot of words but what does that really translate into? After all, that’s why you’re reading this. Well the car feels a lot more neutral. If you start pushing it, it won’t really understeer nor oversteer. It’s agile and turns fast, the steering isn’t as numb as what we’ve been used to from Audi in the last few years. Thanks to the ever-potent 5 cilinder it really pulls through the gears but it’s not lacking in the brakes in any way. Larger rotors than last generation feels like the car is dropping an anchor behind it. The only point of criticism really? Not a fan of the tire selection as you felt the car had more in it.
Wild interior
The base interior is what we’re used to in the A3, which we loved. The way the screen is positioned with physical climate control buttons and premium feel everything you touch makes us really appreciate the A3 over its competitors.
But the RS3 adds a bit more spice to it. For starters, there’s a new design in the virtual cockpit where “RS Mode” will feature this runway-style tachometer. It also gets a new steering wheel with a dedicated RS-button. This allows you to sharpen the car to the max at the touch of a button and probably anyone’s favourite button whilst driving this car. Sportier seats allow for more lateral support when cornering but their diamond stitching also looks the part. Overall it really spices up the feeling that you’re driving something special.
And particularly if you select the RS design pack plus green as featured in this car. It adds a green stripe to the seatbelts, green stitching to the seats and steering wheel, a green 12 o’clock mark on the steering wheel, green vents and green shoulders to the seats. Have I mentioned green enough? The green is Kylami Green just like the exterior color. It’s a bold choice for sure, I’m still on the fence about the Kylami Green shoulders but the rest of the green accents complement the green exterior so well. Okay, I promise this is the last time I’ll be saying green.
So why am I calling this a possible future icon?
Well the RS3 has never been this good, it is as dynamic as ever. It’s exciting and playful. The interior is such a pleasant place to be in with the virtual cockpit and a well integrated infotainment. And I’ve been stalling this but that 2.5L 5 cilinder. It’s such a unique engine these days. Not only in cilinders but just in character and tone. Okay, it may not be as loud anymore as it used to be on the outside. But Audi has managed to push engine noise into the cabin very well.
Seeing that this could be the last RS3 with that signature 5 cilinder engine, it could very well be a very wanted item in the future. And even if you’re not in for it for the long run. Starting at just under 64.000 €, it’s easily undercutting its friend from Stuttgart, especially in the interior department. And with only a performance light version available in München at the moment, there’s not really a lot else to compare it with.
At the end of it, the only hard choice is: Sportback or Sedan?
