New 2024 Audi A3 priced from £28k as battle restarts with BMW and Mercedes

The newly facelifted Audi A3 is now available to order with an entry-level 1.5-litre petrol engine, which has slashed over £3,000 off the starting price for the upmarket hatchback and saloon. 

The 1.5-litre four-cylinder ‘30 TFSI’ engine produces 114bhp and 220Nm of torque, which is good for 0-62mph in under 10 seconds for both the A3 Sportback and saloon. It can also return up to 54.3mpg, and is available with either a six-speed manual or seven-speed S tronic automatic gearbox.

Thanks to this more modest powerplant, the updated Audi A3 Sportback now starts from £28,920, while the A3 Saloon is priced from £29,485 – down from over £32,000 when orders opened in April.

Sitting above the 30 TFSI motor is the 1.5-litre petrol four-cylinder ‘35 TFSI’, with 148bhp and 250Nm of torque, that’s offered with manual and automatic transmissions, and starts from £30,530. 0-62mph takes 8.4 seconds with the manual, or 8.1 in automatic cars. 

There’s also a 2.0-litre ‘35 TDI’ diesel with 148bhp and 360Nm that starts from £33,935, but is only available with the auto, while a ‘45 TFSI e’ petrol-electric plug-in hybrid powertrain will join the line-up later this year, along with a five-cylinder Audi RS 3 range-topper – which we’ve spied testing on the Nurburgring.

Order books are open right now for the hotter Audi S3, which delivers 328bhp and 420Nm of torque from its 2.0-litre four-pot engine, and features quattro four-wheel drive. This all helps the updated S3 hit 62mph in 4.7 seconds. Prices start from £46,925.

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Audi A3 trim levels and specifications

Every Audi A3 features an updated version of Audi’s ‘Virtual Cockpit’ driver display and a 10.1-inch central touchscreen running the brand’s latest infotainment system, plus wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Sat-nav, a wireless smartphone charging pad, three-zone climate control, front and rear parking sensors and Audi’s parking aid plus system are standard too. 

Entry-level Sport trim comes with a set of 17-inch alloy wheels, badging on the B-pillar, heated front sports seats with cloth upholstery and two USB-C charging ports in the rear. 

Above this is the mid-range S Line, which adds new features like 18-inch rims, dark aluminium interior accents, multi-coloured interior ambient lighting and a flat-bottomed leather steering wheel. It also has S Line exterior styling, sports suspension, LED lights front and rear, plus different seats and illuminated door sill logos. 

The A3 Black Edition is equipped with a new set of 19-inch matt-grey alloy wheels, black interior fabric inserts, the black styling pack for the exterior, and ‘Audi beam’ puddle lights.

Along with new alloy wheel designs, new paint finishes have been added to the line up with Arkona White, Arrow Grey, Ascari Blue, Progressive Red and District Green now available. 

The new Audi A3 can be distinguished from the old model by a new flatter grille design, plus larger, more angular air intakes and a new two-dimensional four-ring logo first seen on the Audi Q8 e-tron SUV. A new bumper and diffuser are found to the rear. Inside, there are new fabrics, revised air vent shapes and a new S tronic gear lever design for the automatic models. 

Audi’s updates could come at a better time; the revised BMW 1 Series is almost ready for launch and the Mercedes A-Class gained its mid-life refresh in 2023. The Volkswagen Golf, which uses the same basic platform as the A3, was also treated to a subtle nip and tuck earlier this year.

Click here for our Audi S3 prototype review...