Geneva Motor Show this year, Audi gave us a first look at the next generation of its series of A3 with a sports sedan concept packing a powerful 408-horsepower under its hood. Now, we learn that the Ingolstadt automaker returns to the Swiss show next year with the actual production version of the premium C-segment model
The third generation of the A3 will be lighter and more fuel efficient than its predecessor, while Audi will expand the range to include more variables.
In an interview with German magazine Auto Motor und Sport, the head of Audi designer Stefan Sielaff said the company's response to the BMW 1 Series and Mercedes-Benz next to be "clearly recognizable as an A3."
This means that the design of the new model will be an evolution of the current model, the adoption of the brand new style elements like the front grill of six points.
Sielaff said the company is investing heavily in the new A3 "precision and quality, so that the customer understands what you spend your money."
The new A3 is the first model is based on a new platform architecture VW Group's MQB modular, that is the basis of a variety of models from the Polo to the Passat. The new platform is designed for transverse engine application, but is flexible enough for use in cars that vary significantly in size.
This flexibility also applies to the A3, offered in four body styles sporting two different wheelbases. Apart from the three-door models and convertible measured 4.26 m in length and have a 2.595 mm long wheelbase, the A3 range will also include five-door Sportback and four-door sedan models, both with 2,630 mm in length , wheelbase.
"We basically created two couples, like the Audi A4 and A5 wide" says Sielaff. "The front is identical in all four versions, but the sedan and convertible have wider wheel arches and a slightly different side panels and tail lights."
Sielaff also reveals that the interior of the production version of the A3 is identical to the Shanghai Motor Show A3 e-tron Without the concept of white skin that covers the dashboard. Its main features include four round holes in the air, the wide center console with MMI control module media and pop-up screen on top of the dashboard.
The all-new A3 will be around 10 percent lighter than its predecessor and among the other engines, 140 hp will have new VW Group's turbocharged 1.4-liter TFSI with cylinder deactivation system that allows you to work on two cylinders on charges partial, thereby contributing to reduce the consumption of the new model.
Less than six months left before its official release, the A3 is almost ready. Sielaff, however, ends with another revelation about Audi's plans: "We are currently working on TT's successor, the new Q7, R8 and the successor of the A4/A5 immediate family."
