For the moment, the only member of the Audi A3 family available in the U.S. is the A3 Sedan, with the A3 hatchback arriving next year as a diesel-only model. Consumer Reports took Audi’s smallest sedan for a drive and found it to be a competent car that feels like an Audi, especially with the 2.0-liter turbocharged gasoline engine producing 220 hp.
The Audi A3 Sedan is described as fun to drive and refined, as opposed to its main rival, the Mercedes-Benz CLA, which lacks in this department. But there is another VW Group vehicle that feels equally fun to drive and refined as the A3 Sedan: the VW Golf Mk7 which uses the same MQB platform.
Consumer Reports’ Tom Mutchler asks why not go for a Golf instead of the A3 Sedan. The answer is that the Golf doesn’t come with all-wheel-drive in the U.S. and is not available as a sedan, a body style that is more popular here than the hatchback.
By Dan Mihalascu
VIDEO