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By
EWAN KENNEDY
8 October 2007
In the Audi world the letter ‘S’ signifies special, sporting,
sizzling, cars. The S variants are based on the standard models in the
German marque’s range, but are heavily modified and aimed at giving
the driving enthusiast a lot of added pleasure.
The latest Audi S3, based, as the name may suggest, on the Audi
A3, is the smallest in the group. It’s not cheap, at $65,500, or
almost twice the price of the entry level A3 1.6, but you do get a
lot of car for your money.
Using a 2.0-litre turbocharged engine that produces 188 kW, the
new S3 has the traction advantage of being driven through all four
wheels (quattro) to let it accelerate from rest to 100 km/h in 5.9
seconds. You needed an expensive supercar to achieve that sort of
performance only a few years back.
Using a 2.0-litre turbocharged engine that produces 188 kW, 250
horsepower, the S3 has the traction advantage of being driven
through all four wheels (quattro) to let it accelerate from rest
to 100 km/h in 5.9 seconds. A six-speed, close ratio manual
gearbox is the only transmission.
More importantly than the power that lets you scream away from
the traffic lights is the impressive 330 Newton metres of torque
that gives strong overtaking power at almost all revs. So good is
the design of this direct-injected engine produces that it
produces that big 330 Nm all the way from 2500 revs to 5000.
Unless you are really hustling the S3 along you will be doing
virtually all of your driving in the peak torque band.
Which makes for low emissions and fuel consumption. Driven in a
day-to-day manner in the suburbs the engine is likely to use
petrol at the rate of 10 to 11 litres per hundred kilometres.
Hurry it over your favourite bit of driving road in the country
might see it using another litre or two per hundred. But on a
cruisy journey on a motorway you should have no trouble in getting
the consumption under eight litres per hundred kilometres.
Using the three-door hatch body from the A3, the new Audi S3
has a bold, egg-crate single-framed grille with bright sporting
highlights. That certainly lets those in front of you see what's
coming, but other than the grille the styling is surprisingly
subdued. No, not ‘surprisingly’ because the Germans tend to go
for a more restrained shape to their hot cars than, say, the
French, the Italians and the Japanese.
Those who do know and appreciate their cars will notice the
S3's wider side skirts, special design of 18-inch wheel, rear
diffuser and the stubby rear wing atop the rear hatch.
Inside there are additional aluminium highlights, leather trim,
including a stitched finish on the handbrake lever and steering
wheel. The latter carries an S3 badge.
On road this new Audi S3 is a sheer delight to drive in
virtually all conditions, even in traffic if that’s what you’re
stuck with on a daily basis. The engine has minimal lag thanks to
the new design of turbocharger, and sounds great when you work it
hard – though a little bit more volume would be nice!
The gearbox snicks from ratio to ratio in a manner that
disguises the fact that the gearbox is a long way from the lever.
There's something about a sporting small car that makes it so
much nicer than a large one. The added nimbleness and the way it
can be slotted into small spaces in the traffic adds greatly to
the driving pleasure. In the case of the Audi S3, the way the
quattro traction advantage lets it grip the road has to be felt to
be believed. Making the well-bolstered sports seats all the more
welcome for the body support they provide.
Ride comfort is generally pretty good, but some dips and bumps
do catch out the suspension and can send a sudden jolt through the
car. But this is a sporting model and ‘real’ drivers will
clearly understand the compromises required.
Access to the rear seats through the front doors is never going
to be easy, but Audi's system of sliding the front seat out of the
way works nicely. Once installed in the back seats a pair of
adults will find reasonable space, though it will be necessary for
the front travellers to give up a little space to make those in
the rear comfortable.
The Audi A3 and S3 have surprisingly large boots considering
their compact overall dimensions. This car could certainly be used
as a family machine for those with pre-teen children.
Those who are into the hot-four scene and can afford something
more than the usual Japanese offerings, or perhaps who want to
sample a taste of Germany for the first time, should most
certainly have this special little Audi on their shopping list.
AT A GLANCE
MODEL RANGE
S3 TFSI quattro 2.0-litre three-door hatch - $65,500
FEATURES
ABS Brakes: Standard
Air Conditioning: Standard
Automatic Transmission: Not offered
CD Player: Standard
Central Locking: Standard
Cruise Control: Standard
Dual Front Airbags: Standard
Front Side Airbags: Standard
Stability Control: Standard
Traction Control: Standard
SPECIFICATIONS (Audi S3 TFSI quattro 2.0-litre three-door
hatch)
ENGINE
Capacity: 1.984 litres
Configuration: Transverse, four cylinders in line
Head Design: DOHC, four valves per cylinder
Compression Ratio: 9.8:1
Bore/Stroke: 82.5 x 92.8 mm
Maximum Power: 188 kW @ 6000 rpm
Maximum Torque: 330 Nm @ 2500-5000 rpm
DRIVELINE:
Driven Wheels: All-wheel drive
Manual Transmission: Six-speed
Automatic Transmission: Not offered
Final Drive Ratio: 4.24:1
DIMENSIONS, WEIGHT AND CAPACITIES:
Length: 4214 mm
Wheelbase: 2578 mm
Width: 1765 mm
Height: 1399 mm
Turning Circle: 10.7 metres
Kerb Mass: 1455 kg
Fuel Tank Capacity: 60 litres
Towing Ability: Not supplied
SUSPENSION AND BRAKES:
Front Suspension: MacPherson struts, aluminium subframe, lower
wishbones, anti-roll bar
Rear Suspension: Four-link, subframe, anti-roll bar
Front Brakes: Ventilated disc
Rear Brakes: Ventilated disc
PERFORMANCE:
0-100 km/h Acceleration: 5.7 secs
Standing 400 Metres: 14.4 secs
FUEL CONSUMPTION:
Type: Petrol 98RON
Combined Cycle (ADR 81/01): 9.2 L/100km
STANDARD WARRANTY:
Three years/unlimited km
© Copyright
Marque Publishing Company
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