Meet Audi’s new, elegant A3 sedan

Audi has revealed a sedan version of its fourth-generation A3.

The popular compact car range was originally scheduled for its global debut at the 2020 Geneva auto show, but COVID-19 interrupted those ambitions.

Audi’s new A3 sedan is built on the brand’s advanced MQB compact car platform and features a strongly geometric styling theme, instead of flowing, organic shapes.

The A3 sedan’s front is dominated by an oversized hexagonal pattern grille, flanked by LED headlamps which have one bladed corner each. Large air intakes also reside in the bumper design.

Compared to its predecessor the new A3 sedan is 40mm longer bumper-to-bumper, measures 20mm wider across and stands 10mm taller. Those increases have also netted a 20mm gain in headroom for passengers, although boot capacity remains unchanged, at 425-litres.

Technology obsessed Audi followers will be thrilled at what has been added to A3 sedan’s cabin architecture. Gone is the ungainly pop-up infotainment screen, replaced by a new integrated 10.1-inch centre stack display.

Both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are resident in the new car’s digital suite. Audi’s excellent 10.3-inh digital instrument cluster is standard, although it can be upgrade to 12.3-inches in size and augmented by a head-up display.

Audi has also evolved the A3 sedan’s shift selector to a wireless system. This removes the need for traditional gearshift selector, which in turn frees up a great deal of digital device stowage space between the seats.

Powering the new A3 sedan will be a choice of three turbocharged engines, with a 1-litre three-cylinder petrol being the entry-level option.

Audi’s A3 35 TFSI will feature a 1.5-litre turbocharged petrol engine, boosting 110kW and driving the front-wheels via either a six-speed manual or seven-speed S tronic dual-clutch transmission. This version also benefits from mild-hybridization, which should dramatically decrease fuel consumption in traffic.

Customers seeking a compact sedan with outstanding long-distance driving economy and performance, could opt for the A3 35 TDI, powered by a 2-litre turbodiesel. Audi expects to launch the new A3 sedan in South Africa, during Q2 2021.

Feature image: Audi