What a Car - UK - (2020-04)

Mercedes-Benz

A-Class

Priceybutwell

equipped,witha

dazzlinginterior.

RIVALS

BMW1 Series

Goodtodrive,with

class-leadinginterior

quality.It’squite

noisy,though.

10 April 2020 whatcar.com

TALKABOUTTOUGHactstofollow.Theoutgoing

Audi A3 was the motoring equivalent of Floyd

Mayweather, winning our overall Car of the

Year award back in 2013 and remaining the

undisputed king of premium hatchbacks

throughout its entire seven years on sale. In

fact, if you twisted our arm and asked us to

name the greatest car from the past decade,

we’d have to give it to the A3.

That might seem like a slightly pragmatic

choice in a period that saw the launch of real

game-changers such as the fully electric Tesla

Model 3 and the ultra-trendy Volvo XC40. But

when you consider tness for purpose and

all-round brilliance, the A3 was as close to

perfect as cars get, making even the mighty

Volkswagen Golf of the era seem ordinary.

Audi A3 Sportback

Our long-time favourite premium family hatchback get sharper looks and a

‘digitised’interiorforitsfourth iteration On sale May Price from £23,000 (est)

With that in mind, it’s hardly a surprise to

discover that Audi hasn’t thrown the proverbial

baby out with the bathwater in designing

its replacement. This new model, which is

available to order now, with rst deliveries

expected in May, is actually based on the

same underpinnings as the outgoing model.

Codenamed ‘MQB’ in the world of the VW

Group, it’s the same basic structure that also

underpins the new, Mk8 Golf and fourth-

generation Seat Leon.

Likewise, the styling is evolutionary, with the

silhouette of the new A3 not being drastically

different from that of the car it replaces.

However, there are some clear differences,

including the ‘concave anks’ that haven’t

been seen on an Audi before. In plain English,

that means each side of the car bows inwards

dramatically between the shoulder line

and sill, emphasising the bulge of the wheel

arches. Apparently, the inspiration came from

an unlikely source: the wacky Lamborghini

Countach supercar from the 1980s.

The shoulder line is also higher than the

previous car’s and tapers up towards the rear

FIRST LOOK

Will Nightingale

[email protected]