Skip advert
Advertisement

Audi A3 review - better than a BMW 1-series? - Design

Audi’s posh Golf is a massive sales hit and it’s not difficult to see why, though rivals drive better

Evo rating
RRP
from £20,365
  • Beautifully designed, impeccably built and competitively priced premium hatch
  • All just a bit too grown up and sensible, needs a more playful side

The A3 may be a victim of its own success, its omnipresence meaning you’re unlikely notice it, especially if you’ve chosen one of the more sober greys, black or dark blue on offer on the colour charts. Audi offers a wide range of smart alloy wheel options if you want to be different - and spend money and time on the configurator.

Advertisement - Article continues below

What the A3 does do very well is look premium, it may be sutble, but elements like the brightwork and lighting signatures make this very obviously an Audi. It may lack the crisp surfacing quality of the new A4, but the advantage of keeping the car subtle, is that it still looks fresh, despite being past the halfway mark of its life cycle. 

There’s plenty of headlight choices, including full LED lights, Audi also offering exterior trim choices like privacy glass, a panoramic roof, aluminium trims, black packs for added personalisation. S line models come with the most appealing combination of options, for the best looking A3 you can have without stretching to the S3 flagship. 

Skip advert
Advertisement
Skip advert
Advertisement

Most Popular

Four fun used hot hatches that should hold their value
Used hot hatches
News

Four fun used hot hatches that should hold their value

Fast fun cars that won’t break the bank, to buy or when it comes time to sell
29 Oct 2025
New Honda Prelude review – the Audi TT alternative you’ve been looking for?
Honda Prelude front
Reviews

New Honda Prelude review – the Audi TT alternative you’ve been looking for?

The Honda Prelude returns after 25 years, with Type R suspension and glider-inspired styling
27 Oct 2025
BMW M2 CS review – another all-time great M car?
BMW M2 CS – front
Reviews

BMW M2 CS review – another all-time great M car?

The original M2 CS is one of the best M cars of the modern era, and the first BMW to win evo Car of the Year. Can this new G87 version repeat its succ…
27 Oct 2025