Audi A3 updated for 2024 with light makeover for both saloon and hatchback
S3 variant gets most significant upgrade
To tide over the Audi A3 until it’s replaced by an all-new, pure-electric successor in 2027, the German carmaker has revealed a subtle midlife update for its C-segment hatchback and saloon. Design and technology tweaks feature on the inside and out, though the choice of engines is largely unchanged.
Slimmer components for a wider look
Audi’s exterior designers were given enough budget to give the A3 a nip and tuck all round, performing a bit of rhinoplasty on the nose and tweaking the rear end, while also updating its wardrobe with a couple of new paint colours. Progressive Red is a new option, as is District Green, pictured here.
That car is in S line specification, which serves to highlight the changes to the design best. Up front, for example, the radiator grille — “Singleframe” in Audi-speak — is wider and yet more shallow than before with a new treatment for within the grille itself. It’s topped by a flatter interpretation of the traditional four-ringed Audi badge, located higher up the now-frameless grille.
The new grille design has allowed more room to sculpt the rest of the front bumper, and it’s clearly influenced by the RS 3’s aggressive appearance. That approach extends to the new rear bumper, which features an airflow diffuser-like section in the S line cars.
Adding further definition to the front are redesigned headlights. As before there are regular LED items and the more sophisticated Matrix LED units, which are full beam by default and dip around cars on the road ahead, but now they all also get selectable daytime running light signatures. The owner can choose from four unique designs thanks to the inclusion of 24 “pixel” elements in each of the lights. There’s a fresh style for the rear LEDs, too.
Enhanced infotainment and tech
A new menu in the infotainment system allows for that while also incorporating upgrades of its own. It’s more connected than before, with an integrated app store allowing owners to download third-party apps to the car without using their phones.
British buyers get the full “MMI navigation plus” system as standard, including DAB+ radio, a 10.1in touchscreen, wireless phone charger, USB-C ports front and rear and the digital driver’s display, called Audi virtual cockpit plus.
While this represents part of a more generous standard specification, the upgraded connectivity also brings with it the controversial functions-on-demand feature, allowing buyers to activate systems pre-loaded in the car as part of a subscription through the myAudi app. Both adaptive cruise control and high-beam assist are offered in this manner, available for one month, six months, one year, three years, or permanently.
The adaptive cruise control system now comes with an assisted lane change function available above 56mph. Using the rear radar, it displays white arrows in the digital instrumentation and head-up display to show the safe directions for lane changing. If the driver then taps the indicator stalk, the system assists with the steering.
Elsewhere, the cabin has received a few minor updates, extending to restyled air vents, a new sustainable fabric material for the dashboard, much more extensive use of ambient lighting and a restyled centre console surrounding a flat new drive selector — for the cars fitted with an automatic gearbox.
Petrol, diesel, PHEV and S3 confirmed
At launch, the updated A3 will be offered in 148bhp 35 TFSI (petrol) and TDI (diesel) guises, both using a seven-speed, dual-clutch automatic transmission. Further petrol and diesel options will come on stream later this year, as will an updated plug-in hybrid (PHEV).
Though Audi has not detailed the latter, it is expected to follow the recently-updated Volkswagen Golf in the move to using a 1.5-litre engine as its basis (the previous A3 e-tron PHEV employed a 1.4), along with a significantly higher-capacity battery pack for an electric range of about 60 miles.
Updated S3 en route, too
Fans of faster versions of the Audi A3 will be glad to know that they’ve not been forgotten in the update. Though not revealed as part of the wider range details today, the new S3 gets more power and responsiveness from its turbocharged 2-litre petrol engine — up to 328bhp — along with the sophisticated ‘torque splitter’ previously used exclusively on the RS 3 to enhance the driving experience from a keen driver’s point of view while also making the car safer at the limit.
The S3 will be unveiled in full early next month, just ahead of UK pricing and specifications for the entire Audi A3 line-up.
Related articles
- If you were interested in the updated Audi A3, you may like to read about the updated Volkswagen Golf, too
- We’ve already driven a prototype of the new Audi S3
- Did you see the Dakar-inspired special edition of the Audi Q8 e-tron?
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