With the current A-class, Mercedes-Benz has a real winner. Since the car was introduced in 2018, many competitors have been devastated, including the Audi A3. However, with an all-new generation, the Ingolstadt brand is making another attempt to overthrow the Stuttgart hatchback.
In two years’ time, the fourth generation of the Mercedes-Benz A-Class came out as the winner in all comparative tests in this magazine. That is quite clever, because we have not really made it easy for the car. The car competed with the previous and current generation of the BMW 1 Series, with the previous Audi A3, the Volkswagen Golf (VII) and the Mazda 3. This puts a very tough task on the shoulders of the new Audi A3 , but as a brand-new model, the compact Audi has at least kept its age.
At first glance, little may seem to have changed, but the car is still brand new. This is most evident around the strikingly wide wheel arches. What remains is the signature Sportback shape. The extra window behind the rear door gives the car a somewhat station wagon-like appearance, but that does not result in an abundance of space. The luggage space is almost the same as that of the A-class and the situation in the back seat does not earn the designation ‘spacious’ in either of the cars. Yet it is not too tall adults in both cars to bear, with the A3 scores extra points with more headroom, a nicer sitting position and a less confined feeling. It is also noticeable that the quality experience in the Audi is of the highest level. The brand has a reputation to uphold in that area and does not disappoint with the second smallest model. It is inevitable that here and there more hard plastics can be found than in larger and (even) more expensive models, but the build quality is impeccable. Moreover, the whole has a remarkably frivolous design for Audi standards. This is mainly due to the arrangement of the ventilation grilles, which are placed in full view on both sides of the instruments. On the other hand, they are inconspicuously integrated into the dashboard opposite the passenger, so that there is plenty of room for a touchscreen mounted in a pleasant place. That’s one: the two-screen setup is reserved for models from the A6 size. However, that is hardly a loss. In the more expensive Audi’s, the bottom screen mainly serves to operate the climate control, but the traditional buttons of the A3 actually like it better in that area. Now that the Volkswagen Group has opted for touch-sensitive sliders for the Golf, among others, that are not to everyone’s taste, the row of buttons in the A3 is an extra pleasant surprise. Fortunately, the screen that is there works very well. An always-visible tile row on the left of the screen ensures that it is never a long search for a main menu, while the quick response to touches will prevent annoyances. The digital instruments are also well organized, as we are used to from Audi. With buttons and a scroll wheel on the steering wheel, it is easy to call up a variety of setups, where an impressive amount of information can be displayed simultaneously. The large screen behind the wheel is also standard in every A3, although it must be said that the number of functions in the simplest version is very limited. The main criticism of the Audi infotainment is that the dashboard lighting is dimmed via the screen and the screens are just too bright for really dark conditions, even in the darkest position. A small thing, but still.