A3 Sportback Is Fun To Drive And Perform In A Grown-up Way.
There comes a time when the desire to drive an involving hatch isn’t accompanied by a desire to drive a car which looks like it dressed for the roller disco. The A3 Sportback is fun and grown-up. Suits us.
The A3 looks every inch a premium hatchback and the five door Sportback model we drove even more so. In an age of crossover vehicles this model A3 looks more than the sum of its hatchback parts, with a distinctly coupe like styling to the rear windows. But it is done in a very grown-up way. Longer, lower and wider that its predecessor and boasting its own rear-light cluster and discreet spoiler point to performance
A3 buyers have a choice of nine engines, covering both diesel and petrol, ranging from the 1.6-litre FSI turbo model to the 3.2-litre V6 which powers the Quattro model. The 140bhp 2-litre TDI S tronic A3 Sportback achieves 0-62mph in 9.2 seconds and has a top speed of 129mph. It also has an impressive 236Ib/ft of pulling power to call on
Audi A3 Background
The Audi A3 is a small hatchback, which has been produced since 1996, in two distinct generations. It has proved a huge success for Audi due to its combination of sporty practicality and eye-catching style. Also, thanks to a huge range of engines and transmissions, there’s an A3 for everyone, whether the priority is economy or performance. Never the cheapest car in its class, the A3 has been consistently praised for its strong build quality, fine handling and the availability of four-wheel drive on some editions. That’s something which is virtually unheard of in the sector, but it also reinforces the Audi A3’s excellent safety credentials.
AUDI A3 TYPES
The second-generation A3 arrived in May 2003, with a huge choice of engines and trim levels, but that didn’t stop Audi widening the range even further. Within three months there was a 1.6 FSi (petrol direct injection) option and in July 2004 a 2.0TFSi (turbo petrol) engine joined the range. At the same time, a five-door A3 was introduced, called the Sportback.
This featured a single-frame grille on all editions, which became standard on the three-door A3 in June 2005. From May 2006 a 170bhp version of the 2.0TDi engine was available, offered in front-wheel drive or quattro four-wheel drive forms.
In October of the same year a 1.8T FSI powerplant appeared – that’s also when the ultra-quick Audi S3 reached UK showrooms. In May 2007 a 1.4T FSi petrol engine was introduced, then autumn 2007 saw another arrival; a specially developed 1.9TDi edition that produces just 119g/km of CO2.
You might want to know that
Audi claims that it invented the “premium compact hatchback” market sector when it launched the first A3 in 1996. That’s a bit far-fetched, but it certainly breathed new life into the segment
In 2003, the second generation Audi A3 was the most important new Audi model, selling over 92,000 in its first year in production and becoming even more successful than its predecessor.
Although European production of the first-generation A3 stopped in 2003, the model continued to be built in Brazil.
