First look: new Audi RS 3 facelift does Nurburgring hot lap before August reveal

The new updated Audi RS 3 mega hatch is primed and ready to be revealed on 20 August. To prove it, a pre-production model has set a compact car class lap record at the Nürburgring with a time of 7:33.123 minutes – five seconds faster than the BMW M2 that previously held the record.

Audi’s hyper hatchback and saloon is still powered by its famous turbocharged 2.5-litre five-cylinder engine with 395bhp and 500Nm of torque at the driver’s disposal – the same as the out-going pre-facelift models. 

But refinements have been made to the chassis to improve handling, including brake torque vectoring that reduces the amount of steering effort required when cornering. This, in turn, also creates less friction and easier acceleration.

Other features on the Audi RS 3 include a torque splitter with fully variable torque distribution between the rear wheels, plus electronic stabilisation control, RS sports suspension with adaptive dampers, Pirelli P Zero Trofeo R semi slick tires and ceramic brakes.

We can see that Audi has tweaked the styling of the RS 3 as well, adding its recently redesigned four-ring logo, a new grille pattern, a simplified front bumper and a set of its matrix LED headlights. The rear appears to have been cleaned up as well; there is a new tail-light design and small elements on either side of the bumper that help emphasise the car’s width.

The upgraded Audi RS 3 will be available to order from the end of August. The current RS 3 is priced from £56,675, but we expect prices to increase slightly for the new revised model.

Now read our review of the RS 3's arch rival, the BMW M2...