A guided missile on wheels, the Audi RS3 warrants that comparison thanks to the bellowing 2.5 TFSI 5-cylinder engine and trick all-wheel drive Quattro system. My colleague Chad Lückhoff had the RS3 Sedan on the test, and you can watch his video review here.
Related: Which is the best variant of Audi RS3?
'Racing Sport', translating from the German word 'RennSport', is the naming designation for the pinnacle of high-performance Audi vehicles. Track performance all the time, every time. From the gnarly styling, pin-sharp handling and the RS3's callbacks to Audi's Group B rally days, the RS3 is quite prolific in the compact sedan space. Now, the RS3 receives some upgrades to enhance the guided missile experience further. Bear in mind that we sourced the information in this story from a UK press release, and with upgrades, we can safely assume will make their way to the South African market. The updates apply to both the sedan and hatchback styles.
New Audi RS3 exterior
The exterior receives slight tweaking, but you'll appreciate the details. The fascia's most prominent feature in front is the hexagonal grille with rhombus patterning finished in gloss black. The functional side air intakes have vertical slats sticking out, making the RS3's front end look as though it's bearing its fangs. The side pieces now join the main air dam, and the front splitter has been redesigned. Regarding redesigns, the daytime running lights have been updated with a checkered pattern mimicking a checkered flag. Oh, did we mention the Matrix LED headlamps as well? You can choose between three additional daytime running light designs in the MMI infotainment display.
At the rear, we have the front-end treatment mimicked to a degree. It looks as though the rear bumper protrudes more, thanks to the larger diffuser that's specific to the RS. A centre red reflector in the diffuser is flanked by the dual oval exhaust tips with black frames to accentuate their size. The reflectors have been flipped and are now in vertical orientation. Last up, the taillights received a redesign in the form of an arrow sequence running from inside the light. New colours include metallic paints like Ascari Blue, Progressive Red and Daytona Grey in matte finish. In the UK, the RS3 will come with matte black finished 19-inch aluminium cast wheels.
New RS3 interior
Jumping into the aeronautics-styled cabin, you'll find new seating, displays and a new steering wheel. The perforated leather-finished wheel has a flat bottom and a flat top. The RS Sports seats have been redesigned to offer more support and some fine looks, like the seat centres, which are finished in Nappa Leather and complemented with RS honeycomb stitching and Dinamica microfiber accents. You can't miss the contrasting stitching in black, green or red. The centre console now has a flatter shifter
Other new interior features include a storage box in the centre stack and the centre console with cupholders. These features are all highlighted now by the RS3's standard contour and ambient lighting. A new nighttime lighting feature called planar lighting, where a light source in the door panel backlights many rhombus-shaped artefacts of various sizes. This sequence takes place when locking and unlocking the vehicle. The door handles are finished, and the steering wheel cover clip, air vents and shift paddles are finished in a vanadium look, which stands out when light hits them.
The 12.3-inch Audi virtual cockpit plus builds on the pre-facelift RS3. A new rev counter displays the r/min in the centre of the cluster. This comes with displays for power output, torque, G-force, Lap times, and acceleration. When set to manual transmission mode, the shift light indicator changes the r/min display from green to yellow to red. Other vital information like the oil, coolant engine oil, and transmission oil temperatures are shown in colour via the 10.1-inch screen. The RS3 now also features an app store with applications that can be used directly on the vehicle display as installed on the RS3's infotainment system.
Any performance updates?
The performance figures remain the same at 294kW and 500Nm. The 5-cylinder's symphony of sound now has a body to it, especially complemented by the RS Sport exhaust system. This is particularly true with the three Audi drive select modes. Optimisations have been made to the exhaust flap control between 2200 and 3500 r/min, making your drive all the more emotive.
Tweaks have been made to the chassis in optimisations to the existing features. The Torque Splitter has been refined for better variable torque distribution between the rear wheels. Depending on the selected drive mode, you can unlock agility earlier and with better control with calibrated brake interventions at the inside wheels during corners. Due to improved algorithms, the components connected to the vehicle dynamics controller, like the electronic stabilisation control, torque splitter, and adaptive dampers, now respond more sensitively to their respective situations. You can expect increased stability as a result. With improved driving dynamics, you can now expect higher cornering speeds and even better oversteer characteristics. Performance mode can now be easily accessed via the steering wheel with other new buttons, like the checkered flag icon and red RS button, with quicker access to the RS individual mode.
Verdict
The upcoming updated Audi RS3, both in sedan and hatchback form, has some welcomed tweaks and refinements that many petrolheads will appreciate. Again, we are yet to hear when the updated RS3 will hit South African shores, but we'll be sure to love it when it does! In the meantime, check what used Audi RS3 offerings are available on our website and sell your car too.
