Photo: Audi
It's hard to ignore the armies that the Germans are amassing in the horsepower war right now. You've got twin- or tri-turbo diesels that are as good as powerful as their petrol-burning counterparts, downsized little monsters that defy the laws of physics and powerful range-toppers with 600 hp or so.
In 1997, Audi's S6 sports saloon made 280 HP from a 4.2-liter engine that's still around to this day. But today, the automaker has unveiled an S3 model with even more power coming from an engine with half the displacement and number of cylinders.
The new S3 is not 100% new to us. The three-door version was unveiled last year at the Paris Motor Show in September, but this is the newly launched five-door version, which has a longer wheelbase and a lot more practicality.
With a large boot, full leather interior and the latest Audi MMI infotainment system, the S3 five-door does the boring stuff quite well. But it's also the perfect way to get five people's pulse racing. That's because its 2.0-liter TFSI engine has been tuned to produce no less than 300 HP and 380 Nm (280 lb-ft) of torque between 1,800 and 5,500 rpm under the hood.
The S3 Sportback is available with a standard six-speed gearbox that gets it from 0 to 100 km/h in 5.6 seconds. But, this sort of luxury compact is best bought with the S tronic gearbox, which makes the car a lot quicker off the line: 0 to 100 km/h in just 5.0 seconds. In both cases, the top speed is electronically limited to 250 km/h (155 mph).
Despite the mental power and performance, the S3 Sportback can also be frugal if it wants to. On the combined cycle, both gearbox versions deliver about 7.0lt/100km, or 1.5lt/100km less than the previous S3 Sportback.
The new S3 is not 100% new to us. The three-door version was unveiled last year at the Paris Motor Show in September, but this is the newly launched five-door version, which has a longer wheelbase and a lot more practicality.
With a large boot, full leather interior and the latest Audi MMI infotainment system, the S3 five-door does the boring stuff quite well. But it's also the perfect way to get five people's pulse racing. That's because its 2.0-liter TFSI engine has been tuned to produce no less than 300 HP and 380 Nm (280 lb-ft) of torque between 1,800 and 5,500 rpm under the hood.
The S3 Sportback is available with a standard six-speed gearbox that gets it from 0 to 100 km/h in 5.6 seconds. But, this sort of luxury compact is best bought with the S tronic gearbox, which makes the car a lot quicker off the line: 0 to 100 km/h in just 5.0 seconds. In both cases, the top speed is electronically limited to 250 km/h (155 mph).
Despite the mental power and performance, the S3 Sportback can also be frugal if it wants to. On the combined cycle, both gearbox versions deliver about 7.0lt/100km, or 1.5lt/100km less than the previous S3 Sportback.
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