2012 Audi RS 3 Sportback First Impressions

[ahmed_7erzon]

For years, we North Americans have envied the Europeans their hot little hatches, and like hungry children, their faces pressed up against the candy shop window, our sense of deprivation grows with every buff book rave and gushing review.


The creative team at Ingolstadt must be chortling into their Weizenbiers – by releasing the Europe-only Audi RS 3 Sportback they’ve rubbed more salt into the wound.

If you can stand to read further without gnashing your teeth, here is what we WON’T be getting.

The strongest new contender on the European performance-hatch scene, the RS 3 has virtually the same running gear as the TTRS; a 340 hp, 2.5L, turbo-charged inline-five cylinder mated to the S tronic dual-clutch, seven-speed transmission.

It sprints from 0-100 km in just 4.5 seconds, yet consumes only 9.1L/100 km of fuel.

Nimble on dry pavement and in the slippery white stuff, the RS 3 boasts the latest in Quattro technology – although the front-biased hatch doesn’t get the trick new torque-vectoring sports differential.

Outwardly, the RS 3 Sportback looks lower, and more potently athletic than the milder A3. Muscular carbon-fiber reinforced plastic fenders wrap around slick, 19” rims – behind which peep huge cross-drilled rotors. The tweaked chassis is 22mm wider, and sports beefier sway bars and firmed-up springs and dampers.

A cute little spoiler tops the rear hatch, while the aggressive front grill features gaping air intakes.

At the recent “Fascination of Quattro” event held at the Mecaglisse facility nestled deep in Quebec’s Laurentian Mountains, journalists were invited to drive a variety of Quattro-endowed Audis around a winding and icy track.

While everyone else was flogging hapless A7s and A1s in the snow and ice, my partner and I realized that a single RS 3 was parked up by the chow house. After much cajoling and begging, we managed to pry the keys from one of the young, distinctly Teutonic company reps. Leaving the facility by way of a narrow forest road, we headed for the highway to give the RS 3 a chance to stretch its legs. Evidently there are no plans to equip the RS 3 with the sports differential torque-vectoring system we experienced on some of the other models, as it would prove too costly to adapt to the 5-door hatchback platform. Nevertheless, the RS 3 proved sufficiently surefooted down the tightly winding road, the Quattro system ensuring grip at all four corners in the ice and snow. The interior is cozy and features typical Audi build quality, heightened with sporty cues like a flat-bottomed, suede wrapped steering wheel, highly bolstered leather seats with alcantara inserts, a shifter ball with the RS logo, and suede-wrapped hand-brake. Selecting the “S” button (for Sport) speeds up the throttle response and opens up an exhaust flap that lets the RS 3 rumble, whuffle and blatt outrageously on downshift. There’s 332 lb-ft of torque, and it’s available as of 1,600 rpms – enough to pin you in the seatback when the throttle’s mashed. Although there are wheel-mounted paddle shifters, I conclude that the S Tronic does a far better job of shifting than I ever could – it flies through the gears like a Gatling gun. The RS 3 isn’t offered in a manual, but even purists will have a hard time bemoaning its lack of a third pedal. The grippy suede wheel provides good feedback, and the steering is sharp and direct. The suspension calibration feels just right – taut and firm, yet not too harsh over uneven pavement. The Audi magnetic ride adjustable suspension system is available as an option, but hardly seems necessary. Even on the rough and climbing forest road, the RS 3 is tight and composed. Eventually, we return the RS 3, but reluctantly – knowing we’ll probably never get another chance behind the wheel. A premium hot-hatch could offer sporty enthusiasts the choice of something a little more upscale than the standard boy-racer fare, and help change the perception that we North Americans have towards small cars. But until then, we’ll have to console ourselves with merely reading about them.