Audi S3 opens more doors

The S3 Sportback will arrive in time for Christmas and should be priced close to the $65,900 three-door.

Audi spokeswoman Anna Burgdorf says pricing has yet to be confirmed but she expects the Sportback to be less than $70,000.

“Obviously, with the two extra doors, we expect the Sportback to appeal to a broader range of buyers,” she says.

“It makes sense to have the three and five-door here, particularly given that our market loves five-door small cars.”

The Sportback will be equipped with the same engine as the three door, the re-engineered hot direct-injection 2.0-litre TFSI.

This engine produces 188kW at 6000 revs and 330Nm from 2500 to 5000 revs and is mated to a six-speed manual transmission.

The beefy engine catapults the three-door to 100km/h in 5.7 seconds and 5.8 seconds for the Sportback version.

The car's top speed is limited electronically to 250km/h and yet the S3's fuel consumption is reasonably contained at an average of 8.5 litres/100km.

The six-speed transmission works through Audi's quattro all-wheel driveline, and 18-inch wheels and sports-tuned suspension enhance handling.

Visually, the S3 is 25mm lower than the standard A3 and integrates lightweight aluminium components.

To cope with the power the car gets beefier 17-inch disc brakes.

Like the three-door, the Sportback has a deep radiator grille, front bumper with integrated spoiler and a spoiler on the roof, as well as aluminium-look exterior mirrors.

At the back, a modified hatch and tail-light design uses fibre optic rods to create a bright, clear look.

As a result of the redesigned bumpers, the new A3 has grown 25mm to 4240mm. The sporty proportions of the Sportback remain virtually unchanged at 4290mm.

The Sportback benefits from a slightly larger boot, 20 litres more than the three-door when the rear seats are upright or folded flat.

Inside, it has leather-clad sports seats, but racing-style bucket seats will be available as an option. Also part of the equipment are aluminium pedals, automatic airconditioning, twin-exhausts, anti-theft alarm and xenon-plus headlights with LED daytime running lights.

The second-generation S3 made its debut last June and Audi Australia has sold 45 so far this year. The company expects to sell about 100 S3s a year. Audi sold 380 of the previous-generation S3, which sold here from 2000 to 2003.