2.0-litre TFSI turbocharged engine now produces 245kW of power and 420Nm of torque
There is a saying that goes something like, “A bad day at the track beats a good day at the office.” And when you are hustling a new Audi S3 around the tightest racetrack in the country, it’s hard to disagree with this statement.
Audi’s S3 has been given a cosmetic makeover with some added tech and goodies on the inside. Which we have covered already. You don’t come to a racetrack to admire the styling of a car or to experience the new ambient lighting in the cabin. You come to experience the performance on offer. And offer performance the new Audi S3 does!
The 2.0 TFSI engine now delivers 245 kW of power and 420 Nm of torque, which is up a full 32 kW and 20 Nm over the previous gen model. Married to a seven-speed S tronic transmission that has had some software tweaking to allow for quicker gear changes, you know it’s going to haul in a straight line. For the statisticians, the 0-100 km/h time is claimed to be just 4.7 seconds while top speed is electronically limited to 250 km/h.
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Thrilling drive
But how does the new Audi S3 go around corners? The Achilles heel of previous generation Audi S3s was understeer. Push them and they were renowned for wanting to go straight. BMW fanboys were quick to remind you that this was not exactly exciting. And they were right.
Well for 2025 the Audi S3 offers a torque splitter that enables fully variable torque distribution from 100% left to right and back again between the rear wheels while still maintaining to 50 – 50 front to rear split the standard quattro system offers. The torque splitter uses an electronically controlled multiple disk clutch on each drive shaft to optimally distribute the torque between the rear wheel on the inside and the outside of the curve – depending on the driving situation and the chosen Audi drive select mode.
In addition to the familiar profiles (auto, comfort, dynamic, individual, and efficiency), Audi drive select now includes dynamic plus mode, which – as the name suggests – offers especially high driving dynamics. In this setting, torque is channelled primarily to the outer rear wheel, generating a controlled oversteer effect while engine and transmission mapping are sharpened to their max.
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Menace on track
This was the mode we used on the track, and it made for an Audi S3 that now could be pushed harder than ever before in the corners. And if you got it right and turned in aggressively enough, the rear would rotate and allow you to get on the power earlier without any understeer. The Audi S3 is far more playful and fun at the track.
Less in your face are the suspension refinements that enhance both agility and control on the track and on the road. You have wishbones with stiffer bearings and new pivot bearings that allow for increased negative wheel camber, improving steering response and providing greater lateral grip when cornering.
The progressive steering has also been recalibrated, delivering more precision particularly around the centre position for sharper handling. And the S sport suspension is fitted as standard and lowers the body by 15 mm compared with the normal Audi A3. You also get an optional S sport suspension with adaptive dampers has been specially tuned to work in harmony with the torque splitter and the individual Audi drive select modes.
Audi S3’s upgraded hardware
A new generation of Electronic Stabilisation Control has also been introduced, with wheel-selective torque control further developed to subtly brake the inside wheels during cornering. Traction and deceleration behaviour have also been refined, resulting in dynamic turn-in, more balanced handling, and improved stability at the limit.
19-inch wheels with an 18-inch brake set-up that feature 34 mm discs that are 357 mm in diameter are fitted as standard. The two-pistons calipers at the front are new too. They further improve braking performance, as do larger pads and larger friction surface of the disks, which have a significantly higher thermal, and thus also a higher load capacity.
Dynamically, the new Audi S3 is better all round than it was before. It has transformed from straight line boy racer in a business suit, to boy racer in a race suit when the urge grabs you.
Audi S3 pricing
- S3 Sportback TFSI 245 kW quattro S tronic – R1 091 100
- S3 Sedan TFSI 245 kW quattro S tronic – R1 106 100
*All derivatives include a 5-year / 100 000 km Audi Freeway Plan. Finance options are available through Audi Financial Services, including Audi Assured.
