2017 Audi A3 vs 2019

What's the difference?

Audi says each model is not only more fuel efficient and, despite modest price rises, is better value with up to seven grand more stuff depending on the model. The surprise packet in the range is the 1.0-litre entry level. While it feels slow off the mark, it’s quite jolly once on the move and the low starting price means you can load it up with stuff if you don’t mind the pedestrian performance.

The sweet spot is a line-ball decision between the 1.4 COD and the 2.0 TFSI Quattro. Both are great to drive, basically the same to look at and have good bang for buck compared to the front-drive 2.0 TFSI. 

The update has been subtle on the cosmetic front, but the new A3 is quieter, better value and a bit more fun into the bargain. Whether it can maintain its lead with such a quiet visual change remains to be seen, but a good car is now better. 

Great looking and good to drive, if only the A3 35TFSI Sedan was better value for money, had more advanced safety tech and a little extra room.

Well, you might want to hold onto your money and wait. A new generation A3 is coming within the next 18 months and it should tick a couple more of those boxes – can you wait that long?

The third-generation A3 is a familiar sight on our roads and you’ll need your specs on to spot the differences. There’s new bumpers front and rear, new headlights and taillights and the usual detail changes to the front grille - it’s now wider and a bit more aggressive (though not very much).

The Cabriolet and sedan are both handsome designs while the hatch is fairly demure, although the new front and rear bumpers add the tiniest of edges. Some may feel the sedan looks “too much like an A4” as though that’s an insult. You won’t miss the new Vegas Yellow, one of four new colours.

New wheel options are available too, but that’s about the speed of it. Get used to this A3, too, because word on the street is that the A3 will be with us for a while longer than usual due to the sins of parent company Volkswagen.

Inside is largely the same, although you can now specify the fully digital 12.3-inch Virtual Cockpit that is shoe-horned into the existing pod on the dash. There wasn’t a lot wrong with the A3’s interior, so it’s been left almost completely unchanged. The 7.0-inch screen still slides silently out of the dash and runs an updated MMI system familiar from the new Q7 and A4.

In my view, the second-most-beautiful small, four-door saloon on Earth is the Mercedes-Benz A-Class Sedan. But the top award has to go to the Audi A3 Sedan. And that's saying something, because while the A-Class Sedan has only just arrived, the A3 Sedan has been around since 2013 - and it still looks stunning.

Yes, there has been some cosmetic surgery – the grille has grown and the headlights have been redesigned, but mostly everything has been left as it was when it first appeared six years ago.

That's a good thing, because it's beautiful; from that sharp character line which leads down the side to the little boot lip, to the perfect proportions which make it look like a mini Audi A8 limousine.

And it is small. The dimensions show it to be less than 4.5m long, two metres across (counting the side mirrors), and only 1.4m tall. How does that affect practicality? Hold your horses, we're getting there.

The A3 35 TFSI Sedan's cockpit has a modern design with clean styling, but that seven-inch media screen is beginning to look small compared to the latest, larger ones now that have now become common. The 12.3-inch virtual instrument cluster you can see in my images (sorry about the dirty windscreen) looks amazing, but it's an option.

A3s, no matter what the grade, have almost identical cabins as standard – so you're not missing out on much in the way of luxurious touches by choosing the entry car. They all have the same aluminium inlays and metallic treatment on the air vents. The seats are leather, but they aren't the same sports buckets you'll get on the higher grades.

Virtually nothing has changed on the practicality front. There’s the same four cupholders, the same four bottle holders and the volumes and passenger comfort all remain identical. Naturally, the Cabriolet's lack of rear doors means it loses two bottle holders.

The Sportback’s boot will swallow 380 litres with the seats up and 1220 seats down, the sedan’s 425 (just 55 off the A4’s) and the Cabrio will take a still-okay 320 litres, although the shape is a bit weird.

Front and rear space for passengers is adequate for most. Rear passengers will find headroom fine and kneeroom less fine but every car in this segment has the same problem. It’s probably the least compromised in that respect.

Cabriolet passengers are rather less well looked-after. Roof up it's claustrophobic and dark while dropping the lid will only reinforce just how little space there is between the front and rear seats. Makes a Jetstar seat look positively luxurious.

The A3 35 TFSI Sedan has five seats, but I'd only want to sit in two of them – yep, the front ones. Rear headroom is limited by that roofline to the point that I can't sit comfortably in the back (but I'm 191cm), but even if it was good, I've got almost zero leg room behind my driving position.

Boot space is good at 425 litres (85 litres more than the Sportback's cargo capacity), but cabin storage isn't terrific with two cupholders in the front but none in the back (you'll need to option them), a small centre console bin and tiny door pockets in the rear, but decent-sized ones in the front.

As for power outlets – there are two 12V points (one in the front and another in the rear) and one USB port which is for charging only.

The 35 TFSI is the entry grade of the A3 Sedan range, with a list price of $42,300. Just an FYI, that's $2300 more than the same grade in the Sportback range. Yes, you're being asked to pay more for the same car with identical features, only it has a sedan-style boot.

Those features include the seven-inch screen, sat nav, a CD player, an eight-speaker sound system, leather upholstery and dual-zone climate control. There's no Apple CarPlay or Android Auto and no wireless charging pad...

The standard running lights are LED but the headlights are Xenon. If you want LED headlights, you'll need to option those, and you can with the $2400 Style Package that was also fitted to our car. That pack also adds rear indicators which light up in the direction you're turning, 18-inch alloy wheels, sports suspension and the 3D design 'Optic' Titanium grey inlays.

Our test car also had the $3400 Technik Package fitted, which brings a more premium navigation system, a 12.3-inch virtual instrument cluster, sports steering wheel and paddle shifters, plus digital radio.

The Glacier White Metallic paint our car wore costs $1190 and the heated front seats that were fitted are another $600.

The value isn't terrific... actually, it's not even good. Yes, the quality, fit and feel of the A3 sedan 35 TFSI Sedan is outstanding, but compared to small cars generally, it's expensive and lacks features such as adaptive cruise control, which you'll find on cars half the price.

Even some of its rivals are better value. The Benz A180 hatch has the same list price as the A3 Sedan but comes with more features, such as the two giant 10.25-inch screens, LED headlights, auto parking, keyless start and digital radio.

The car that really shows the A3 35 TFSI up, however, is the Volkswagen Golf 110TSI Highline, which is a close relation to the Audi but is five grand less and better equipped with standard features.

The model refresh brings Audi’s 1.0-litre three-cylinder turbo (only for the Sportback), lifted from underneath the A1’s bonnet. Generating 85kW and 200Nm, you're not losing much to the 1.4 TFSI it replaces. In the case of torque, you’re not losing a single Newton millimetre. The triple is lighter and just four tenths slower to 100km/h, coming in at 9.9 seconds for 1200kg hatch. Power reaches the road via a seven-speed S-tronic auto (DSG to you and me).

The 1.4 COD (cylinder-on-demand) soldiers on unchanged, developing 110kW and 250Nm and fitted with the seven-speed twin-clutch gearbox.

The new 2.0 TFSI supplies more power and torque than the outgoing 1.8. Power is up 8kW to 140kW while torque is up an extremely handy 70Nm to 320Nm. Audi says much attention has been lavished on the combustion cycle, reducing consumption and emissions while increasing power.

You can have the 2.0 with front-wheel drive or all-wheel drive Quattro along with the newly-developed wet clutch version of the seven-speed S-tronic transmission. The new gearbox has been designed for higher torque values, which explains why past diesels and quicker petrol Audis used the six-speed. The new one has shorter first and second gears for quicker off-the-line performance.

All engines feature stop-start and cut out as you slow or coast to a halt once you drop below 6km/h.

The 35 TFSI Sedan has a 1.4-litre turbo-petrol four-cylinder engine making 110kW and 250Nm. You may have noticed that officially it is called the A3 35 TFSI CoD. The 'CoD' stands for 'Cylinder on Demand' and refers to this engine's cylinder deactivation ability to run on just two when cruising. The fuel saving advantages to this are obvious, but what if you don't do a lot of cruising? See the fuel section below.

It's pretty astounding that an engine this small can make 110kW, but still that's not a huge amount of grunt, and the 40 TFSI above it in the range, with its 140kW, would be my pick.

Now, what the heck does the 35 in 35 TFSI mean? And for that matter, the 40 in 40 TFSI? Well, in 2018 Audi began changing those numerals after the model name, swapping the 1.4 TFSI for 35 TFSI.

Previously the 1.4 indicated the size of the engine, but now the numerals hint at how much power it makes. So, 35 is the designation for an output of between 110 and 120kW; 40 is for 125-150kW; 45 is for those that make between 169 and 230kW and so on all the way up to 70, which is for an output greater than 400kW.

The lowest power an A3 Sedan comes in is the 35, but the Sportback has an even lower output entry grade – the 30, which is for Audis that makes between 81kW and 96kW. In the case of the A3 30 TFSI Sportback, if you're playing at home, it's 85kW.

Clear as dirt mixed with water? Thought so. Back to the story.

The 35 TFSI has a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic, which isn't as smooth as a regular auto, but it shifts faster than one for a sporty driving feel.

The 1.0 TFSI delivers a 0.1L/100km improvement over the 1.4-litre it replaces on the combined cycle while producing the same amount of torque. The 1.4 COD is the same and so the figures are unchanged while the new 2.0-litre TFSI uses 0.3L/100km more on the front-drive but 0.4L/100km less on the Quattro models. Part of the reason the Quattro is relatively frugal is the updated all-wheel drive system that disconnects the rear wheels when not needed to reduce mechanical drag and therefore consumption.

1.0 TFSI: 4.8L/100km Sportback
1.4 COD: 5.0L/100km Sportback / 4.9L/100km sedan / 5.1L/100km Cabriolet
2.0 TFSI:  5.9L/100km / 5.8L/100km sedan / 6.0L/100km Cabriolet
2.0 TFSI Quattro: 6.2L/100km Sportback / 6.1L/100km Sedan / 6.4L/100km Cabriolet

The 1.4-litre turbo petrol engine has cylinder deactivation and when not under load it can run on two cylinders alone. Audi says that after a combination of open and urban roads the A3 35 TFSI should use 4.9L/100km.

At the end of my week with the A3 35 TFSI I used 10.2L/100km, but I have to say that higher figure is down to driving it almost the entire time in the city (and also with a bit of enthusiasm). Having driven the entire A3 range I know that balancing this with motorway miles will bring that figure down dramatically.

Across the board, the new A3 is a very quiet, composed and relaxed car. While it may not look a lot different, there’s clearly been a fair bit of work going on underneath the car to improve the driving experience.

Starting with the 1.0 litre, it’s got a little bit of character although some of that comes out in mildly undesirable ways. It’s a very refined unit and is almost as easy on the fuel as the official figures suggest, even in the hands of hooligan motoring journalists (who fought tooth and nail over the car on the launch program). In traffic you’ll barely notice it’s not particularly powerful as the seven-speed is well-matched to the engine and keeps you rolling along nicely on the impressive-for-its-size torque figure.

You know it’s a little engine when it wakes up at the traffic lights, though - start-up elicits a cough and a shudder that you’ll feel through the wheel. The low rolling resistance tyres are also a bit iffy, moaning as you change direction at even moderate speeds. Clearly this car isn’t aimed at the enthusiast, but a bit more grip would be welcome. When driving inside the tyres’ modest limits, it’s a very pleasant place to be, though. This car will tempt a few higher-end Japanese or Korean hatch buyers if they can stretch to a couple of options to make it all a bit more comfortable and on gadget parity. You'll really want to add the Comfort Package and smartphone interface to bring yourself up to speed, nudging you ever closer to $40,000.

The 1.4 COD is, as ever, an impressive machine. The torque figure ensures swift, relaxed progress as long as you’re not expecting fireworks and is unobtrusive in operation. There’s little wind or road noise and as a total package, it’s difficult to pick between it and the next model up, the 2.0 TFSI, except you'll have several thousand dollars to spend on options.

There is a big jump in performance between the two, however, and the addition of the sports suspension is now less of a drama. Over the years Audi has ironed out the bone-shaking ride of its sportier suspension tunes. The latest evolution is quiet, composed and a very useful increase in handling ability without surrendering much of the ride quality.

The Quattro is barely quicker or different to drive in most conditions and it’s only when the surface is loose or slippery where you’re going to notice any real difference between the front-wheel drive machines. In the dry it will dole out the torque more efficiently and get you to 100km/h a bit quicker, but it isn’t starkly different to drive unless you’re absolutely caning it. The Quattro is also slightly noisier with fatter tyres and extra moving parts underneath. But, with such a comparatively small distance between the pricing, you’d be mad (or on already the edge with your budget) not to go to the Quattro.

The Cabriolet is still very much a cruiser. In 2.0 TFSI form it's quick and capable but with the roof down, its body feels a little more flexible than a 2 Series drop-top. It is, however, quieter but it's irritating that seat heating and blow-in-your-ear neck heating is an $1170 option (similarly with the BMW).

If your only two criteria for a new car are that it be good looking and great to drive, then stop reading and buy the A3 Sedan now. Seriously, even though the engine in the 35 TFSI isn't that powerful, the balance and feel of the car when it was in my hands was excellent.

I've driven the entire A3 line-up from the 1.0-litre 30 TFSI to the RS3 monster at the top of the range, and it only gets better as you step up through the grades and models, with each adding more power and agility. But even at the very entry level that DNA is there for a great driving experience.

Our car was fitted with sports suspension that oddly comes with the Style Package, and even with the low profile 225/40 R18 Bridgestone Turanzas the ride was still comfortable and compliant.

The low centre of mass helps keep life composed, too. After having tested so many SUVs lately which often have a bouncy, rolly ride, it was refreshing to steer something low and composed; one that handled flat around corners and didn't become unsettled with a sudden change of direction.

The A3 35 TFSI sedan was given the maximum five-star ANCAP rating when it was tested in 2013. Safety technology has come a long way since then, and while the A3s made in late 2018 have AEB which is designed to detect other cars and pedestrians, we'd like to see other equipment made standard, too.

We're talking about blind spot warning, lane keeping assistance and rear cross-traffic alert. If you want these on any A3 you'll need to option them with the Assistance Package.

For child seats, you'll find two ISOFIX mounts and three top-tether points across the rear row.

A space-saver spare is under the boot floor.

The A3 comes with Audi’s three-year/unlimited kilometre warranty and three years roadside assist.

Three years/45,000km of servicing can be pre-purchased for around $1700. Covered items are laid out on the website but buyer beware when it comes to “scheduled servicing.” Audi expects to see you once a year or every 15,000km, whichever comes first.

The A3 35 TFSI is covered by Audi's three-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty. Servicing is recommended every 15,000km or 12 months. That type of coverage used to be the norm five years ago, but now as more car makers move to five-year warranties, we would expect Audi to do likewise.

A service plan is available – it's a three-year/45,000km program which cost $1680.

This low score is down to the short warranty and a lack of service-by-service capped-price plan that spans a longer time period.