Pocket Rocket: The Audi RS 3

SINGAPORE — In the world of German high-performance cars, each of the big luxury brands has its go-faster outfits: BMW has M, Mercedes has AMG, and Audi has RS.

Each has a unique brand character. An RS car will usually be a wagon, be easier to drive quickly than its rivals, pack in all-wheel drive and appear as if it is powered by racing fuel and many small mammals.

The RS 6 Avant is a prime example of this, but like all cars of this sort, it comes with a price which is in excess of S$500,000. But Audi has finally succeeded in distilling all of those key ingredients into a car that will not require you to eat bread and water for the next 10 years.

Enter the new RS 3 Sportback. While it is not Audi’s first iteration of the “small car, RS performance” idea — see the 2012 Audi A1 Quattro — it is arguably the one that best delivers the full RS experience.

HATCHING A POCKET MONSTER

The RS 3 looks as if someone bred a miniature RS 6, or fed a normal A3 hatchback a diet of steroids and anger. Like the former, it has the same wide, low air-dam flanked by silver ducts that give the appearance of fangs.

A wider track and slightly bulged fenders end loudly with a rear end that has a massive air diffuser and two large exhaust pipes. It is not a wagon, but a hatchback, nevertheless it gets faux roof rails to help it carry off the estate look.

The much-feted 2.5-litre, five-cylinder engine (from the previous RS 3, as well as the old TT RS) returns, but produces more power and torque. Its maximum torque range — available from 1,625rpm to 5,550rpm — is conspicuously wide, even by high-performance engine standards and doesn’t taper off much even above that.

Audi’s all-wheel drive system helps translate all that grunt into forward motion, rapidly. The torque band is so wide the car never seems to run out of pace even towards the engine’s rev limit. Gear changes happen almost instantly, and quickly releasing the throttle results in a series of pops and bangs. The result? Its 0-100kmh time of 4.3s is 0.3s quicker than the first V8-powered Audi R8 of 2007.

That it sounds stunning is the icing on the cake, the odd-cylindered layout delivering a throaty rumble at low speeds but echoing the current R8 sports car’s V10 at full throttle. Big 19-inch wheels frame huge brake callipers and lightweight discs which, despite their race-spec looks, offer progressive, smooth performance when you want to slow down quickly.

CIVIL SUIT

All that hair-raising performance means the RS 3 gains speed almost without a second thought, and it could surely land you in jail eventually if not for its best party trick and another Audi RS hallmark: The ability to transform into something that is almost civilised.

Switch the car’s driving mode from Dynamic to Comfort and the exhaust quietens down, the steering becomes less quick-draw and you can drive home without waking up the neighbours. If not for the orangey Catalunya Red paint job, it would be hard to identify this as a pocket monster in repose.

And being based on the normal A3, it still has space for four (five in a pinch) plus hatchback versatility and other higher-end features like LED lighting and navigation.

If there’s any complaint, it’s that the A3’s upper silhouette does not quite gel with the lower RS half as well on a small machine. The RS 3 also looks somewhat gangly from some angles.

Some might say that paying close to S$300,000 for a small hatchback is madness, but this is Singapore, and those needing the kind of madness the RS 3 possesses are actually getting something of a bargain.

Consider the performance that this car delivers — it beats “proper” sportscars silly and the further up the performance scale you go, the more diminished the returns.

If you need anything more than an RS 3 for normal roads, perhaps a mental institution is more fitting. A pocket monster that can really go, like this one, is more than enough.

Audi RS 3 Sportback

Engine: 2,480cc, in-line five, turbocharged, 367hp, 465Nm

Performance: 250kmh, 0-100kmh: 4.3s, 8.1L/100km, 189g/km CO2

Price: S$287,800

On Sale: Now

PROS: The full RS experience in a small package

CONS: Looks awkward from some angles