Pole Position
The Audi A3 offers a stunning combination of practicality, quality, and drivability. But can it keep Audi at the top of the luxury sales charts in India?
To say that the A3 is an important model for Audi would be a gross understatement. You see, they’re quite serious about retaining their tag as the number one luxury automaker in India – and the A3 is central to this aim.
Fortunately, then, the A3 is an extremely capable vehicle that does a fine job of balancing performance and practicality. Sure, you could look at it as a pimped up Volkswagen Jetta, but it’s the only luxury sedan in its segment – and that makes all the difference, especially when it comes to kerb appeal.
Styling wise, the A3 sticks to the tried-and-tested Audi DNA. But, in the blue of our test car, it looked absolutely stunning. On the inside too its typical Audi, and so build quality and fit-and-finish is impeccable. The cabin actually feels quite refreshing – there’s a 7-inch infotainment (MMI) screen that takes centre stage, with a smattering of interesting pieces of trim and turbine-esque AC vents that are both beautiful and functional. The AC knobs, for instance, feel like they’ve been milled from a single piece of aluminium – and it’s these little details that make all the difference. The driving environment is pretty good too – the seats are supportive, gauges are clear, and the steering feels nice to hold.
With 425-litres of boot space, it’s even quite practical. The only area that you could mark the A3 down for is rear seat space – and even that isn’t too bad. It’s certainly more comfortable than its main rivals, the Mercedes A Class and BMW 1 Series.
The 2-litre diesel powerplant is very refined – with just the slightest clatter at idle. On the whole, refinement and NVH levels are excellent – and very much in keeping with its luxury car tag. It’s once you get out on track, though, that it all seems to come together. The six-speed dual clutch transmission is instant in its response – although you do miss paddles to change gears, especially on track. Other than that, though, the A3 is exceptional. In most cases, it even fools you into believing that it’s running Audi’s famed Quattro running gear – that’s how composed and planted the A3 feels at the limit. The 320Nm of toque kicks in from just 1,750rpm, while the 140 horses are very keen to make their presence felt all the way to the 5,000rpm redline. Out on the road, the A3 does just as well – and the suspension is perfectly set-up to tackle our roads, as the A3 doesn’t crash through even the most severe potholes.
Given all of this, I suppose it’s not surprising that the Audi A3 is the current World Car of the Year – and that it’s second in this test. In our market, it makes luxury just that little bit more attainable – and it’s not bad from the drivers’ seat either!
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