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Introduction, styling

In the past any hatchback with about 130 to 140bhp under its bonnet can be considered to be hot. Well, those were the days of the Renault 5 GT Turbo and the early generation Golf GTIs. As cars get heavier these days though, iconic hot hatches like the Golf GTI need at least 200 horses to deliver hot hatch like performance while the top echelon of hot hatches will need to have at least 240bhp. In recent years though, the hot hatch genre have seen new models breaching the 270bhp mark on the power front. With so much power on tap, these hot hatches seem to have spawned a new genre then - the hyper hatch. Last year we saw the 305bhp Ford Focus RS and now Audi debuts the hottest hyper hatch of them all - the 340bhp RS 3 Sportback.

Audi has a habit of introducing hot RS versions only very late into a model's life as a sort of a last hurrah for it before the new generation replacement comes along really soon. This is certainly the case for the B6 and B7 RS 4 as well as the C5 and C6 RS 6. The RS 3 also follows this trend as it is based on the eight-year old second generation A3, a model which is due for replacement really soon. Incidentally, the RS 3's closest premium German rival, the BMW 1 Series M coupe is also based on an outgoing model rather than the latest generation 1 Series.

The RS 3 is available only in five-door Sportback body style and it won't be difficult to differentiate the RS 3 Sportback from the regular A3 Sportback or even the S3 Sportback. The hot five-door hatch has been endowed with all manner of 'RS' style aerodynamic enhancements on the outside.

The RS 3 Sportback will show off its exterior enhancements in bright or light hues best like in RS exclusive colours like Misano Red or Suzuka Grey. The styling has the right amount of aggression and sophistication nonetheless - it looks more purposeful more than anything else.

Performance, ride and handling

Underneath the bonnet lies one of Audi's greatest masterstrokes - the unique, award winning 2.5-litre five-cylinder turbocharged engine that is shared with the TT RS. Audi had specifically chosen a five-pot design for this RS motor as it wanted it to evoke the spirit and replicate the unique noise of the mid-1980s quattro Group B rally cars.

Sure, the soundtrack can do with a tad more volume but Audi's RS is more about being subtle rather than loud or noisy. Engage the innocent looking 'S' button on the centre console to open the exhaust system's butterfly valves and the exhaust note becomes slightly deeper though. In addition to opening a flap in the exhaust, the 'S' button's Sport mode also sharpens throttle response and firms up the magnetic dampers on cars fitted with the latter option.

With the help of Launch Control, the TT RS coupe will shoot to 100km/h from rest in a scant 4.3 seconds while the heavier RS 3 will do the same in a quoted, slightly less quick 4.6 seconds. Compared to its 256bhp S3 brethren though, the RS 3 is a full second quicker to a hundred from rest. On the road, the RS 3 offers exploitable and useable lag-free performance that is available in an instant. To further put things in perspective, the RS 3 betters the equally powerful 340bhp 1 Series M Coupe's 0-100km/h time by two-tenths of a second and matches the significantly more expensive V8 powered M3 coupe DCT's time.

Unlike Volkswagen's dry clutch 7-speed DSG transmission, the RS 3's new generation wet clutch S-Tronic doesn't feel lazy or lurchy at crawling speeds. The transmission also hooks up cleanly and pretty instantly when taking off from standstill. The speed and smoothness of the gear changes can never be faulted. Moreover, the RS 3's S-Tronic box one of the few of its kind that won't upshift on its own at the rev limiter when set to full manual mode, giving the driver full manual control like all Audi and Volkswagen twin clutch gearboxes should.

In the wet, the RS 3 will reign supreme thanks to superior traction and stability of its quattro all-wheel drive system. Traction out of corners is really good. There's no wheel spin to speak of, even so in the wet - quattro's presence in the wet or during heavy downpours is especially reassuring as we discovered during our drive. In addition, with quattro, the RS 3 Sportback is also more stable when braking hard from high speeds. In appalling wet and slippery conditions, the RS 3 has the ability to run rings around more powerful performance models on a B-road or racetrack.

Interior and conclusion

The standard A3's cabin is a nice place to be in overall, even though the model first made its debut about eight years ago. The RS 3 Sportback's has been enhanced further to make it feel even more special than the lesser models'. The front seats might not look too overtly sporty but they certainly provide good lateral support and are electrically adjustable.

The bespoke instruments feature grey-coloured rings around the dials and an optimistic 310km/h speedo while other go-faster bits inside includes aluminium-look foot pedals, a leather-bound, flat-bottomed steering wheel and a fantastic looking gear knob with the RS logo on it. The multi-function screen within the instruments also offers a turbo boost gauge and lap timer display for your occasional track day foray. There are RS 3 logos on the front seats, side sills, steering wheel and rev counter among other places.

With two extra doors, the Sportback body style is definitely more practical than three-door A3 models. Ingress and egress to the rear is now a simple cinch but rear legroom is just about average. There's enough room in the rear for the average adult but it could be a tight squeeze if you need to anchor an unwieldy baby seat.

The RS 3 is not all perfect on the handling front and feels aged in some areas but its superb performance from that awe inspiring engine and its tasteful looks inside and out will surely surpass its shortcomings to retain its desirability, so much so that it is number one on my Christmas wish list this year.

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