New hybrid A3 unveiled

As part of the brand’s upgrades to its popular A3 and S3 models, new plug-in hybrid drive A3 variants of the popular compact five-door have been unveiled internationally and are under review for Australian introduction at time of writing.

The new A3 Sportback TFSI e is powered by a 1.5-litre petrol engine and a permanently excited synchronous motor delivering 85kW and 330Nm of torque. The 1.5 evo2 replaces the previous 1.4 engine and features a raft of changes including a higher compression ratio, plasma-coated cylinder liners for reduced internal friction and pistons with cast-in cooling channels for optimised combustion.

The electric drive is integrated into the housing of the six-speed S tronic, which now features a more robust gearbox bearing to cope with the higher system output.

Torque is transferred to the front axle and the dual-clutch transmission has an electric oil pump that ensures the change of gears and oil supply even when the TFSI is temporarily deactivated and the vehicle is running purely on electric power.

The A3 TFSI e’s gross battery capacity has been almost doubled to 25.7 kWh (19.7 kWh net) in the new model, resulting in possible all-electric range of up to 143 kilometres (in the WLTP cycle).

Both a 40 TFSI e and a more powerful 45 TFSI e variant of the popular five-door are on offer in Europe with the more powerful model producing 130kW and 250Nm of torque available between 1500 and 4000rpm. Working in combination with the electric motor, the A3 Sportback 45 TFSI e delivers a total of 200kW system output and 400Nm system torque, which translates to a 0 to 100km/h time of just 6.3 seconds and on to a top speed of 237km/h.

The A3 Sportback 40 TFSI e is not far off its more powerful sibling, with 110kW and 250Nm of torque from the TFSI powerplant, while the electric motor ups that to 150kW of system power and system torque of 350Nm. That means the 0 to 100km/h sprint is slightly slower at 7.4 seconds and top speed of 225km/h, while both variants are able to run at up to 140km/h on purely electric drive.

The A3 TFSI e offers various modes for the driver to use to optimise their journey, with the primary operations mode, Auto Hybrid, sharing the work intelligently between the combustion engine and the electric drive, with purely electric driving at low speeds, the TFSI engine at higher speeds and both drives together where appropriate.

Depending on the situation, the A3 Sportback TFSI e can coast, recuperate – both in thrust and braking – or boost together with the electric motor and TFSI. In addition, the hybrid management system keeps the battery charge level constant to save enough electrical energy for later use.

For further recuperation, braking duties up to 0.3 G are taken care of by the electric motor, with the hydraulic brakes only employed when a hard brake application is detected, and the driver can also use the steering wheel paddles to control the degree of recuperation in EV mode.

The suspension and dampers have been specifically tuned to compensate for the weight of the battery which is located under the rear bench seat. This increased spring rate and sportier damping in conjunction with electromechanical steering make for agile handling, while 17-inch alloy wheels and an S line exterior package give the A3 Sportback TFSI ean appropriately sharp, sporty look.

It’s been nearly 10 years since the brand’s first hybrid A3 model, the Audi A3 e-tron made its appearance in Australia. This new A3 TFSI e iteration represents a quantum leap forward in terms of technology, range and power. This new iteration of the A3 TFSI e is currently being evaluated for possible Australian introduction.