A new flagship version of the Audi Q3 series is starting to take shape as the German company has begun testing prototype models of what may end up carrying the ‘S’, ‘RS’ or even perhaps a different moniker altogether on the famous Nürburgring racetrack.
We first received concrete proof that Audi is contemplating the development of a high-performance version of its Q3 compact crossover during a press event in Switzerland when the Ingolstadt-based automaker gave journalists the opportunity to drive a test model equipped with the force-fed five-pot found in the TT RS and RS3 models.
And while the prototype shown in these pictures looks like a normal Q3 fitted with an S-Line aero package, the huge drilled brakes as well as the fact that our spies told us that they could clearly hear the five-cylinder engine “screaming during testing”, leave few doubts that this is the ultimate Q3.
It is believed that the hotted up Q3 will use a slightly de-tuned version of the 2.5-liter turbocharged five-cylinder engine producing around 300-horses instead of 340HP, with all those ponies channeled to all-four wheels through Audi’s quattro system and a 7-speed dual-clutch S-tronic transmission.
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