Review: Audi 8VS A3 Sedan (2013-20)

Review: Audi 8VS.I A3 Sedan (2013-16)

Overview

Released in Australia in December 2013, the Audi 8VS A3 Sedan was a compact sedan. Manufactured in Gyor, Hungary, the 8VS A3 Sedan range consisted of 1.4 TFSI, 1.8 TFSI and 2.0 TDI variants, all of which had a ‘Start-Stop’ function which enabled the engine to shut down when the vehicle is stationary. The 1.4 TFSI engine also featured a cylinder on demand (COD) system that could deactivate two cylinders when cruising to further reduce fuel consumption.

Body and dimensions

Like the Volkswagen Mk.7 Golf , Skoda 5E Octavia and Audi 8VS A3 Sportback , the A3 Sedan was underpinned by Volkswagen’s MQB (Modularer Querbaukasten) platform. Compared to the 8VS A3 Sportback , the 8VS A3 Sedan was 146 mm longer (at 4456 mm), 11 mm wider (1796 mm) and 9 mm lower (1416 mm), though wheelbase length (2637 mm) was unchanged.

Suspension

The Audi 8VS A3 Sedan had MacPherson strut front suspension with A-arms and aluminium pivot bearings that were mounted on an aluminium subframe, while the independent, four-link rear suspension was mounted on a steel subframe.

All-wheel drive (quattro)

For the Audi A3 Sedan 1.8 TFSI, the ‘quattro’ all-wheel drive system utilised a newly developed multi-plate clutch which was hydraulically actuated and electronically controlled. In normal conditions, drive was directed to the front wheels though, according to Audi, the system could transfer up to 50 per cent of the engine’s torque to the rear wheels ‘in just a few milliseconds’.

Safety equipment

Standard safety equipment for the Audi A3 Sedan included dual front airbags, a driver’s knee airbag, front side airbags, full-length curtain airbags, ABS, electronic brake force distribution, brake assist, electronic stability control, traction control and fronts seatbelts with pre-tensioners and load limiters.

The 8VS A3 Sedan was also available with an optional Assistance package which included the following –

• Adaptive cruise control (ACC): radar-based cruise control which maintained a preset distance from the car ahead. For models with the S-Tronic transmissions, ACC included a ‘stop & go’ function for low speeds;
• Pre-sense basic: if the vehicle were to lose traction, the front seatbelts would be tensioned and the windows – and sunroof where fitted – were closed;
• Pre-sense front: in the event of a pending front-to-rear collision with the vehicle ahead, the driver would be progressively is warned and brakes could be applied autonomously. At speeds below 30 km/h, nearly full braking force would be applied;
• Side assist (lane departure warning): a blind spot monitoring system which monitored lane changes with rear-facing radar; and,
• High-beam assist: would automatically deactivate the high-beam headlights when oncoming traffic was detected.

Euro NCAP testing

In Euro NCAP testing , the related three-door Audi 8V1 A3 hatchback received a five star safety rating which included a 95 per cent adult occupant protection rating and an 87 per cent child occupant protection rating. In the front offset crash test, occupant protection was generally good, though chest protection was rated as adequate for the driver. Maximum points were awarded in the side impact test though, in the more severe pole test, chest protection was rated as adequate. Under ANCAP’s methodology, this testing resulted in a five star adult occupant protection rating with a score of 36.41 out of 37.

Features: A3 Sedan Attraction & Ambition

Standard features for the Audi A3 Sedan Attraction included 17-inch ten-spoke alloy wheels with 225/45 R17 tyres, an eight speaker sound system with an Audi’s Multi-Media Interface (MMI), a 5.8-inch colour display, CD player, MP3/WMA/ACC compatibility, auxiliary inputs (3.5 mm/USB/SD card) and Bluetooth connectivity, dual-zone climate control air conditioning, leather upholstery, cruise control, automatic headlights, rain-sensing wipers, rear parking sensors, a leather-wrapped steering wheel with gearshift paddles, 60:40 split and folding rear seats, remote central locking, power windows and heated mirrors, a height and reach adjustable steering wheel, an electromechnical parking brake, tyre pressure monitoring, a 12 volt power outlet in the centre console, a trip computer and an immobiliser.

The A3 Sedan Ambition was further equipped with 17-inch five-spoke alloy wheels with 225/45 R17 tyres, contoured front sports seats, front fog lights, a sports steering wheel, an upgraded trip computer, aluminium interior trim and door sills, and Audi’s ‘Drive Select’ system which enabled the driver to select from Comfort, Auto, Dynamic, Individual or Efficiency drive modes for different steering and throttle response settings.

Option packages

The Audi 8VS A3 Sedan was available with the following option packages –

• Style package: 18-inch alloy wheels, sports suspension, xenon headlights and daytime LED running lights;
• Technik package: Audi sound system, MMI navigation plus with MMI Touch, Audi parking system plus (front and rear parking sensors with reversing camera);
• Comfort package: power adjustable front seats, heated front seats, proximity key (i.e. keyless entry), power retracting mirrors with kerb-view function, and auto-dimming door and rear-view mirrors; and,
• ‘S line’ sport package: 18- or 19-inch alloy wheels, sports suspension, bi-xenon headlights with daytime LED running lights, sports seats in perforated Alcantara/leather with ‘S line’ embossing, flat-bottomed steering wheel, black headlining, matt brushed aluminum inlays and an ‘S line’ exterior package.

Related links

• Press Kit: Audi 8VS A3 Sedan (January 2014)
• Specifications: Audi 8VS A3 Sedan (January 2014)
• Audi Australia: Audi A3 Sedan
• Wikipedia.org: Audi 8V A3

Review: Audi 8VS.II A3 Sedan (2016-20)

Overview

Commencing production in May 2016 and officially released in Australia in November 2016, the Audi 8VS Series II (8VS.II) A3 Sedan introduced a revised range as the 1.8 TFSI variants were replaced by 2.0 TFSI variants, and the 2.0 TDI was discontinued.

Visually, the Audi 8VS.II A3 Sedan could be identified by its wider single-frame grille with which had sharper contours, flatter headlights (bi-xenon units as standard) with jagged bottom edges and new tail-lights. Inside, there were revised air conditioning vents, while the ‘Audi virtual cockpit’ – which replaced the analogue instrument dials with a 12.3-inch TFT screen – was available as an extra-cost option as part of the Technik package.

Significantly, the Audi 8VS.II A3 Sedan was fitted with autonomous emergency braking (AEB) and satellite navigation as standard.

Safety equipment

For the Audi 8VS.II A3 Sedan, standard safety equipment was extended to include –

• Audi pre-sense city with Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB) and pedestrian detection: operating at speeds up to 85 km/h, Audi pre sense city used a windscreen-mounted front camera to scan the road for other vehicles and pedestrians. If there was a risk of a collision, the driver would receive a series of warnings and, if the driver failed to respond, full braking force would be applied autonomously. At initial speeds of up to 40 km/h, collisions can be prevented; at higher speeds (up to 85 km/h), the severity of the collision would be reduced;
• Audi pre sense basic: in the event that a collision was anticipated, pre sense basic initiated occupant protection measures such as electric tensioning of the seatbelts and closing of the windows and sunroof (where fitted); and,
• Attention assist: monitored driver behaviour for signs of inattentiveness and would provide a warning tone and visual signal if detected.

Beyond this, the A3 Sedan 2.0 TFSI Sport and 2.0 TFSI quattro S line models were also equipped with –

• Audi side assist: operating at speeds above 15 km/h, Audi side assist used the two rear radar sensors to monitor traffic up to 70 metres behind the Audi A3 Sedan. If another vehicle approached quickly or was in the driver’s blind spot, a warning LED in the housing of the appropriate door mirror would illuminate. If the driver activated the indicator to change lanes, the LED would blink rapidly to warn the driver; and,
• Cross traffic assist rear: when reversing at low speeds, rear cross-traffic assist used the rear radar sensors to detect approaching traffic. If approaching traffic was detected which may cross the vehicle’s path, the driver received warnings (visual, acoustic and a brief, jolting application of the brakes).

Assistance package

As an extra-cost option, the Audi 8VS.II A3 Sedan could be specified with an ‘Assistance package’ which included –

• Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC): using two front radar sensors and the camera, ACC could maintain a specified distance – from five distances – between the A3 Sedan and the vehicle ahead. Furthermore, ‘Audi drive select’ could be used to adjust the rate of acceleration and other control dynamics;
• Stop&Go function: an extension of ACC, ‘Stop&Go’ operated at speeds of 60 km/h to apply the brakes and bring the vehicle to rest. Once traffic began moving, the Audi S4 would automatically accelerate;
• Traffic-jam assist: another extension of the ACC, the traffic-jam assist function could take control of steering operations at speeds up to 65 km/h on ‘well-developed roads when traffic is congested.’ In doing so, traffic-jam assist used the lane markings and other vehicles on the road for orientation. When the traffic-jam assist function reached its limits – for example, when traffic is sparse or there is a sharp corner ahead – the driver had to take over steering. Hence, the system provided warnings at different levels;
• Audi pre-sense front: scanned the road for vehicles when travelling at speeds up to 200 km/h and for pedestrians when travelling at speeds of up to 65 km/h. If there was a risk of collision, the driver would be warned and partial braking would be initiated automatically. If the collision risk persisted, full braking could be initiated (i.e. autonomous emergency braking or AEB);
• High beam assist: automatically switched between low and high beam headlights for improved visibility, using a sensor to determine when it was safe to do so (i.e. without dazzling other drivers);
• Audi active lane assist: operating at speeds of 65 km/h and above, Audi active lane assist used the front camera to recognise lane markings. As the vehicle approached a lane marking without the turn signal having been activated, the system provided a slight steering intervention to direct the vehicle back into its lane. Through the MMI system, the driver could select whether this intervention occurred at an early stage (in which case the vehicle was steered to the centre of its lane) or only shortly before crossing the line. The steering wheel could also vibrate as a warning signal if selected;
• Audi side assist (see above);
• Cross traffic assist rear (see above); and,
• Hold assist: would automatically apply the brakes when the vehicle was stationary to prevent it from rolling as the driver moved their foot from the brake to the accelerator.

Features: Audi 8VS.II A3 Sedan

Compared to the Audi 8VS.I A3 Attraction, standard features for the Audi 8VS.II A3 Sedan 1.4 TFSI CoD were extended to include Audi’s MMI navigation with a seven-inch high resolution colour display, CD player, SDHC memory card reader, integrated voice control and eight speakers, xenon headlights with LED daytime running lights, illuminated vanity mirrors and floor mats. The A3 Sedan 1.4 TFSI CoD was also equipped with the ‘Audi parking system plus’ which consisted of parking sensors (front and rear) and a rear view camera.

Compared to the 1.4 TFSI CoD, the A3 Sedan 2.0 TFSI Sport added front sports seats, aluminium door sill trims and the ‘Audi smartphone interface’ which provided Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone integration via the USB port. The A3 Sedan 2.0 TFSI Sport and 2.0 TFSI quattro S line were also fitted with ‘Audi drive select’ which enabled the driver to select from five drive modes which adjusted accelerator pedal response, transmission behaviour and air conditioning output.

The A3 Sedan 2.0 TFSI quattro S line was distinguished by its 18-inch alloy wheels with 225/40 R18 tyres, 15 mm lower sports suspension, LED headlights with washers and LED tail-lights.

Matrix LED headlights

As an extra-cost option, the Audi 8VS.II A3 Sedan could be specified with ‘Matrix LED’ headlights which used fifteen LEDs each produce a high beam that radiated from three reflectors. Using information from the forward-facing camera, their control module could turn them on or off individually, or dim them in 64 stages.

Related links

• Specifications: Audi 8VS.II A3 Sedan (November 2016)
• Audi Australia: Audi A3 Sedan
• Wikipedia.org: Audi 8V A3