Overview

The new Audi A3 is more expensive than before, with prices rising more than $4000.

The Sportback (hatch) is priced from $54,800 and the sedan $57,800, each before on-road costs.

While there’s a sporty S3 model also on the menu – and a hotter RS3 on the way – the plain old A3 is available as a single model, for now at least.

That 35 TFSI variant comes with a 1.5-litre four-cylinder turbo engine. It makes 110kW and 250Nm and drives the front wheels through a seven-speed S-Tronic twin-clutch auto transmission.

It’s claimed to get to 100km/h in 8.1 seconds and uses an average 5.3 litres of premium unleaded per 100km.

The A3 comes with 18-inch alloy wheels, digital instrument cluster, smart key entry, tri-zone ventilation, ambient lighting, parking sensors front and rear, heated front seats, wireless phone charger, power adjustable driver’s seat, adaptive cruise control and a suite of active safety systems, including blind spot warning, exit warning and active lane assist.

Seats are trimmed in a mix of cloth and faux leather and there’s a 10.1-inch infotainment screen incorporating wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity.

There’s a 10-speaker sound system that and two USB-C ports.

The S Line design pack is also included, bringing unique bumpers, a roof spoiler for the Sportback and other design tweak, including S badging.

A $2000 Style pack includes tinted windows and adds the ability to change the ambient lighting colour. There are also various black design highlights, including the window surrounds, mirror caps, wheels and Audi rings in the grille.

Audi says most owners are expected to tick that option, in part to get the blacked-out look.

Servicing is due every 12 months or 15,000km and Audi offers a pre-paid service plan covering the first five check-ups for $2520.

Driving Impressions

The latest Audi A3 might be the entry point to the refreshed – and truncated – A3 line-up but it is no barebones hatchback.

You get that walking up to it. While the 2025 model is only amid-life update – the body is unchanged and still has some plainness – there’s quite a different look now the S Line design pack is standard.

The new grille adds modernity, and the overall aesthetic looks vaguely racy with its S Line exterior and updated design with fresh bumpers front and rear. It’s certainly closer than ever to an S3 in the way it sits on the road.

Inside, the layout is also unchanged, which is no bad thing. Clean lines and an infotainment screen tilted towards the driver set the scene. Physical buttons for the ventilation system are simple but effective.

The volume control touchpad to the left of the gear selector allows you to swipe or spin it to adjust volume, skip tracks, or mute the audio.

Existing owners will notice the redesigned gear shifter among other detail tweaks.

But it’s the attention to detail and added brightwork that has purged some of the drabness and made for a noticeably more upmarket core. Fresh finishes with added metallic touches make a big difference.

Sportier seats help, too, and the race-style layout with fixed headrests feature Audi’s familiar S embossing and team with those upmarket finishes to create an ambience that better lives up to the price point.

Plumping the A3 full of additional equipment also helps with justifying its place in an intensifying luxury field.

The 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster is crisp and clear with a more traditional layout that opts for classic round dials. Press the View button on the steering wheel and those outer dials shrink to allow more room for whatever it is you want to prioritise, from navigation to trip data.

Similarly, the 10.1-inch central touchscreen does the job without breaking any new ground. Tiles to send you into different menus – media, navigation, phone and car data, for example – make it easy to thread your way through it. And main menu icons down the right-hand side act as shortcuts to commonly used features.

There’s still wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and it all works well, making smartphone integration easy.

Those going for the hatch get slightly better rear headroom, which is a bonus for adults given the back seats aren’t exactly overloaded with sprawling space. Knee room is OK, but only if those up front don’t want to have the seats way back.

The hatch also gets a 40:20:40 split-folding back seats versus the 60:40 of the sedan. All of which had us wondering why the sedan commands that price premium.

For now, there’s only one engine choice in the A3 35 TFSI, although it seems the 40 TFSI ePHEV (plug-in hybrid) is likely down the track.

The 35 TFSI continues with a 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder that punches out 110kW and 250Nm. They’re modest numbers but helped by the availability of the full 250Nm way down low in the rev range, at just 1500rpm.

It’s paired with a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission that occasionally stumbles. Off the line it can hesitate, and there’s sometimes a split-second of lag as it figures out which gear it wants to be in. Around town, it can feel a bit too eager, or conversely, a bit too lazy — almost as if it’s trying too hard to be sporty and occasionally trips over itself.

That said, once you’re up and moving, the engine is smooth and reasonably flexible. The gearbox responds better on the move, and there’s enough torque to build pace without too much fuss — just don’t expect fireworks. It pulls respectably across its middle rev range, the huff of the turbo keeping things bubbling along.

There are no selectable drive modes, just a Sport shifter setting that holds onto gears more and shifts down sooner. It’s simple but effective.

And the A3 is impressively frugal. Against a claimed fuel figure of 5.3L/100km during our spirited drive it returned 6.5L/100km.

It’s also impressively quiet when cruising, though there’s some tyre roar on rougher roads.

The A3’s suspension feels well-tuned for Australian conditions. Decent compliance ensures it’s comfortable. It steers predictably and rides confidently, even without adaptive dampers.

All of which adds up to a slick compact luxury machine with a stronger premium vibe. It may not be as fast as it looks, but for those wanting a classy daily driver that looks and feels like more than a base model, the A3 mounts a strong case.