Geneva 2012: Audi A3 Previewed, Minus Two Doors

Derek Kreindler
by Derek Kreindler

The Audi Q3 may not have much visual impact, but this is an extremely important car for the Volkswagen Group. As the first car to be built on the new MQB modular platform, the A3 is literally the next generation of car for the entire consortium.

Europe will get a diesel (2.0L, 150 horsepower) and two gasoline TFSI engines, a 1.4L 122 horsepower or a 1.8L 180 horsepower mill. This 1.8TFSI engine is expected to replace the venerable 2.5L 5-cylinder so derided by VW fans. The hatchback is 176 lbs lighter than the outgoing car – North Americans are expected to get a sedan, but news of any hatch variants have been scant. The 5-door is far more likely to arrive than the 3-door seen here. We’ll also be getting a 2.0TFSI engine as well, with a diesel likely to follow.




Derek Kreindler
Derek Kreindler

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  • Buzzyrpm Buzzyrpm on Mar 06, 2012

    I can't understand the rear light treatment on Audis. Definitely the worst angle. Why does the Audi design philosophy of "same sausage different sizes" have to extend to their cars AND SUVs. This A3 has the same rear look of the Q5 not pretty and definitely not sporty.

  • Akitadog Akitadog on Mar 07, 2012

    The good thing is that this will be the basis for the next GTI. I await it with bated breath.

  • CanadaCraig You can just imagine how quickly the tires are going to wear out on a 5,800 lbs AWD 2024 Dodge Charger.
  • Luke42 I tried FSD for a month in December 2022 on my Model Y and wasn’t impressed.The building-blocks were amazing but sum of the all of those amazing parts was about as useful as Honda Sensing in terms of reducing the driver’s workload.I have a list of fixes I need to see in Autopilot before I blow another $200 renting FSD. But I will try it for free for a month.I would love it if FSD v12 lived up to the hype and my mind were changed. But I have no reason to believe I might be wrong at this point, based on the reviews I’ve read so far. [shrug]. I’m sure I’ll have more to say about it once I get to test it.
  • FormerFF We bought three new and one used car last year, so we won't be visiting any showrooms this year unless a meteor hits one of them. Sorry to hear that Mini has terminated the manual transmission, a Mini could be a fun car to drive with a stick.It appears that 2025 is going to see a significant decrease in the number of models that can be had with a stick. The used car we bought is a Mk 7 GTI with a six speed manual, and my younger daughter and I are enjoying it quite a lot. We'll be hanging on to it for many years.
  • Oberkanone Where is the value here? Magna is assembling the vehicles. The IP is not novel. Just buy the IP at bankruptcy stage for next to nothing.
  • Jalop1991 what, no Turbo trim?
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