Audi A3 News

The three-door Audi A3 hatch on show in Geneva previews the vehicle due to go on sale in Australia early next year and is incrementally a smarter car in from the lightweight panels to the new multimedia interface. The body looks slightly more chiselled, there's more interior room and width despite overall length not increasing, and there are three new turbocharged direct-injection engines with idle stop/start helping with average fuel savings of 12 per cent. Options run from xenon headlamps to safety software such as adaptive cruise control, lane departure warning and blind spot assist. The new A3 will launch in Europe with a diesel and two petrol engines, though a hybrid system, engine with cylinder deactivation and performance quattro versions will soon follow. The base 1.4-litre petrol engine is good for 90kW/200Nm, with power transmitted via a six-speed gearbox to the front wheels.  The same configuration underpins the 110kW/32Nm 2.0-litre turbodiesel, while a seven-speed automated manual transmission is standard with the 132kW/250Nm 1.8-litre petrol engine. The diesel uses a claimed 4.1 litres/100km against 5.2 litres/100km for the smaller petrol and  5.6 litres/100km for the 1.8. The infotainment system combines telephone functions, voice control, navigation and media interfaces, with a pop-up screen from 5.8-7inches, depending on the car's specification - Attraction, Ambition or Ambiente. One tick for the 1.8-litre Ambition will be the standard inclusion of the "drive select vehicle dynamics system". It lets owners adjust the response of the accelerator pedal, power steering and auto transmission in five modes - comfort, auto, dynamic, individual or efficiency.

... rival the prices on the BMW options' list for things like salad and spuds.So it's no surprise that the top end of town calls the shots at the Palexpo alongside Geneva Airport as Europe's carmakers go head-to-head for the first time in 2012. Ferrari and Lamborghini battle for go-faster bragging rights as Rolls-Royce and Bentley get serious about family motoring for the ultra-rich, while Infiniti pitches an new exotic coupe and even Ssangyong of Korea goes upmarket with a new concept. There are also dozens of one-off dream machines and hotrod tuner cars in Geneva, a show that is traditionally dominated by European design stars including Pininfarina and Giugiaro. But there is plenty, too, for ordinary car buyers as the Fiesta ST brakes cover, Hyundai updates the i20 and teases with the Veloster Turbo, Jaguar confirms an XF station wagon, Audi and Mercedes-Benz previews their A3 and A-Class, and Ford even updates its box-boring Transit workhorse. Picking the best of the best is tough with so much gorgeous stuff on the stands, but Alfa Romeo is the winner for 2012 and edges out the Infiniti Emerge-E with its Disco Volante.The pretty little red coupe is dreamy without being stupid and is already confirmed for production, although the slightly-retro body will be draped over Alfa's existing 8C Competizione chassis - 4.7-litre V8, 335kW, 0-100km/h in 4.2 seconds - which means it's no chance for Australia with only left-hand drive.The Ferrari F12 is exactly what you expect from the fastest car to wear the badge - 340km/h and 0-100km/h in 3.1 seconds - including a swoopy body that taps the past as well as the influences that created the California convertible, but Lamborghini goes even better with an Aventador J preview car that is snapped up for a rumoured $2.8 million ahead of genuine production of an open-topped Aventador supercar.Rolls-Royce updates the Phantom with a new nose that still demands respect, as well as tweaking its colour choices with a two-tone approach that triggers memories of cheap seventies vinyl roofs, and Jaguar gets serious for families with an XF Sportbrake that will still struggle in a world of SUVs.Further down the food chain, the Audi A3 looks good but not as edgy as an A-Class that must break away from the bus pass generation into something closer to the Y-Gen futurists, and Volkswagen previews a more car-like Tiguan crossover with its Cross Coupe.Hyundai has a preview of a new flagship coupe called the i-oniq - did it mean ironic? - Kia shows a Track'ster that will become the new Soul, Honda shows the CR-V design that's coming to Australia, and the pocket rocket Ford Fiesta ST breaks cover with a confirmation for Australia.The action and excitement at Geneva goes on and on, and that is - really - the best thing about the show. Detroit in January hinted that the word's carmakers are finally emerging from the austerity and fear of the global financial crisis and the big-spending effort in Geneva confirms it, with good news for almost everyone from Euro billionaires to ordinary Aussie families.PG PICKS:1. Bentley EXP 9 F.Only one word fits - Ugly. With a big capital U. The hulking British bulldog might tick the boxes for cashed-up families, but this SUV makes a LandCruiser look elegant, and subtle.2. Giugiaro Brivido.Exactly what you expect to see in Geneva, as designers go all-out to impress the crowds - and each other. Not for production but a great looker with huge gullwing doors.3. Range Rover Evoque Convertible. A certainty for production as Land Rover milks its most successful design - ever. This one will never go bush but is being fast tracked for Double Bay and Toorak.4. Ssangyong XIV-2. Who knew the South Koreans could trump the Euros with a design that combines SUV practicality with a coupe-convertible body? A big surprise.5. Toyota FT-Bh: Just when you thought the uglies were done, Toyota lobbed with this. If it's the future for hybrid cars then sales will be slow. Very slow.

The Audi A3 has a family look similar to the latest A5 and A6 but significant use of aluminium and lightweight steels means the new model will weigh up to 80 kg less than the outgoing A3 hatch.Witha five-door Sportback, saloon, cabriolet and avant wagon also in the lineup.

...cut over the current model through the use of aluminium and lightweight steels.Quality is also up in the cabin and the basic look shows the family link to the face-lifted A5 and the all-new A6.

The baby of the Audi family is currently only a three-door hatch but there are big plans to grow the range in coming years. The S1 will come first before the end of this year, with an A1 Sportback all-but confirmed for 2012. The A1 E-Tron electric car will come later and there is also a chance of everything from an A1-based RS hotrod to a mini SUV. The only A1 body style definitely out of play, according to senior executives in Germany, is a convertible. "This will definitely not come," an Audi engineer tells Carsguide.  The S1 is confirmed from Audi with a turbocharged engine, most likely from the Volkswagen Polo, and all-wheel drive to continue with the all-paw grip theme of previous S-car models across the range. "First we want to start with the three-door. Further on we are thinking about a five-door in the Sportback," says Holger Baumann, the A1 project leader. Audi has already been busy exploiting the customisation potential of the A1, producing everything from a hunkered-down hotrod concept - with matt-black bodywork and flames down the side - to a retro tribute to the original Quattro rally car in 1980 and even cars suitable for emergency and airport use. Baumann says a youth push is one of the keys to the success of the A1. "Our target was to make a special Audi and a better entry to the Audi brand for young people," he says. "We aim at very young people who are making their first job, say 27 or 29. And young families." But he admits Audi has had to re-adjust its sights following the unveiling of the A1. "In the last weeks we have a focus on older people. They like the compact package."

The price of a Rolls-Royce has tumbled by $50,000, a Ferrari V12 is now $27,000 cheaper and $20,000 has been taken off the price of a top-spec Aston Martin. An Audi A3 can now be bought for under $35,000 while a Porsche Boxster costs less than when it first went on sale more than a decade ago, at $105,000.The tariff cut applied this month, which reduces the impost on imported cars to 5 per cent, came into effect as the government's tax incentive scheme for business vehicle buyers was wound up. The tax break boosted vehicle demand by 9 per cent last year, according to estimates by Toyota.Luxury brands have been quick to reduce prices instead of adding equipment to cars, as they have done in the past when tariffs have fallen."We made the decision to pass on the saving in full -- it was the right thing to do," Bentley spokesman Ian Churchill said.Sales of the elite British brand slumped more than 60 per cent last year as premium makers felt the downturn more than most.

As the first shoots of spring emerge, new car sales figures for September show a jump in convertible buyers. And money is no object, with many prepared to spend up big to pop the roof down.VFACTS industry figures show a modest sales surge of the Mazda MX5, Mini Cooper cabrio, Volkswagen Eos and Audi A3 convertible - all costing more than $40,000. Further up the price list Audi's A5 cabrio, the BMW Z4, Mercedes-Benz SLK and Volkswagen Eos are also popular with prices for some of the German cars topping out at more than $80,000.Dealers and carmakers say the warmer weather is helping. Mazda spokesman, Steve Maciver, said the order books for the company's popular MX5 were growing. "It's a combination of things but once the warmer weather hits, people like the idea of a convertible," he said.September sales figures show a 17 per cent jump in sportscar sales, which includes convertibles. Apart from topless motoring, luxury off-roaders are also proving popular. BMW spokesman, Toni Andreevski, said the company's popular X5 off-roader, which opens around $86,000, surged last month on the back of fresh supply from the United States. "We've got more stock and buyers are prepared to spend," he said.TOP 10  BRANDS    Sept           YTD 2009 (+/- on 2008)Toyota                   16,007             142,898       -22.3%Holden                      9744               85,667       -14.0%Ford                          8427               70,289       -13.7%Mazda                       7205               57,695         -7.2%Hyundai                    5484               47,625        36.4%Mitsubishi                4312               40,092        -16.3%Nissan                       4079               38,446       -15.8%Honda                       3939               31,787       -22.9%Subaru                      2807               27,225         -9.0%Volkswagen             2307               22,717         -5.4%

The compact, front-drive price leader will be revealed next month at the Frankfurt Motor Show. The styling sketch gives very few hints beyond the basic shape, as the finished concept car could easily have either three or five doors.Regardless, the Premium Compact Concept is aimed straight at the BMW 1 Series and Audi's A3. Lexus says the car will ‘demonstrate a mix of technical innovation and ground breaking design’, but refuses any more information until September 15.

This global financial crisis thing is half in the mind, asserts Audi Australia managing director Joerg Hofmann, who has vowed to increase the resurgent marque’s market share in 2009

The carsguide best green car nominations have done nothing, if not underscore the growing acceptance of modern diesel engines as an eco-friendly alternativeto petrol.