Motoring Audi RS 3 Sportback Quattro

Whilst SUVs remain the focus in the marketplace, Audi has taken its phenomenally successful if mild-mannered A3 and given it the motoring equivalent of tooth and claw, writes Bob Hickman. Welcome the RS 3, the pet sheep in wolf’s clothing

Let’s get this straight from the outset. The Audi A3 is a brilliant car. I owned one, I loved it. But Audi has now produced the RS3 version of the A3 and it is… an outstanding car. With a huge front grille and vents along the side, the RS 3 is both wider and lower than a standard A3 and more aggressivelooking, especially with its huge 19-inch wheels. Bring into the equation the Kyalimi Green colour scheme and you could park it in a 10,000-vehicle lot and still find it, such is its stand-out brilliance.

There is no mistaking that the RS 3 is a serious piece of kit. With a 2.5-litre, five-cylinder, turbocharged petrol engine producing a staggering 400bhp, it’s a fast, fun model to be cocooned in. This is not a hot hatch as we know it, since it has four doors. It’s a very hot saloon.

The RS 3 reaches 60mph in 3.8 seconds and the top speed is limited to 155mph. Phenomenal performance, but it’s not just on the long straight that it excels. The mechanical nature of this particular model makes for a very entertaining drive, especially put through its paces on your favourite twisty roads.

If you fancy taking one for a spin, why not book the family saloon for a track day? Unless you are a professional driver, it will test your driving skills to the limit. It’s superb, and most of us mere mortals will only ever scratch the surface of the handling and performance criteria.

In and around town, I was pleasantly surprised to find the RS3 didn’t rattle the fillings in my teeth. The engineers have done a fine job in making a vehicle that isn’t too firm and handles with a degree of comfort. After all, if you’re called on to ferry the family hither and yon, you want to be comfortable.

Those familiar with Audi quality know to expect wonderfully designed and equipped interiors. They look beautiful, and every last button and control functions superbly, with a resounding click or clunk when necessary. The 12.3-inch instrumentation display, alongside the 10-inch infotainment touchscreen, always produce the information you need, without having to delve into a 500-page handbook. The infotainment system itself works extremely well, and will connect with your Apple Play or Android Auto should you wish to deploy them.

The driving dynamics of the vehicle are exceptional – handling, speed, acceleration all tick the relevant boxes. On the downside, the emissions are extremely high at 205g/km and it won’t be cheap to run. Expect to get in the region of 30mpg on a combined cycle; utilise the performance and you can expect that to be down to the mid-20s.

The RS 3 Sportback Quattro 400PS Launch Edition S tronic I put through its paces was priced at £57,770.

Add in the head-turning exterior paint at £575 and a whopping £1,400 first road tax, and the on-the-road cost was an eye-watering £60,460. For this, you have a vehicle that will perform like you cannot believe and yet will carry the family (or four adults) in absolute comfort.

Audi suggests servicing should be every 19,000 miles or two years, whichever comes first, and provides a three-year or 60,000 miles warranty.

Bob Hickman is a lifelong car and motorcycle fan. After a 30-year career as a police patrol officer, latterly as a sergeant, patrolling the Midlands motorway, retirement beckoned and he embarked on writing about his love of transport. Bob is a member of the Guild of Motor Writers and the Midland Guild of Motor Writers. In his spare time he rides a Royal Enfield Continental GT and drives a 1994 MG RV8.