Audi RS Q3 Sportback Edition 10 Years 2023 Review

The 2023 Audi RS Q3 Sportback Edition 10 Years is priced at $102,900 plus on-road costs.

That makes it $6800 dearer than the regular RS Q3 wagon (from $96,100 plus ORCs) and $3800 more expensive than the RS Q3 Sportback with which it shares its raked profile.

Limited to 555 examples globally, Audi Australia says it has secured between 10 and 20 per cent allocation of Audi RS Q3 Sportback Edition 10 Years models; so about 100 cars.

Audi says the premium over existing RS Q3 models is justified by additional standard equipment and trinkets which we’ll detail in the sections below.

At that money, the RS Q3 Sportback special-edition finds itself in sparse company. There are smaller, less powerful options including the BMW X2 M35i (from $78,800 plus ORCs) and Mercedes-AMG GLA 35 (from $97,800).

Alternatively, further up the food chain there are larger family-friendly performance SUVs like the Audi SQ5 (from $112,200) and BMW X3 or X4 M40i (from $126,800).

Some seriously rapid dual-motor EVs are also getting about these days for similar money, including the Kia EV6 GT (from $99,590).

The 2023 Audi RS Q3 Sportback Edition 10 Years builds on the bones of the regular RS Q3 range.

The latter already includes 21-inch alloy wheels, a honeycomb grille and black styling package, privacy glass for the rear windows and Matrix LED headlights with dynamic indicators.

Comfort and convenience features fitted as standard include Nappa leather upholstery with honeycomb stitching, three-zone climate control and a triple-split folding rear seat that slides fore and aft for added luggage space or legroom.

The Edition 10 Years goes a step further by offering unique black alloys (still 21-inch) and black brake callipers, which contrast against the Dew Silver (matte) or Chronos Grey (metallic) body colours, the latter reserved exclusively for the special-edition.

Inside the cabin there are manually adjustable carbon-fibre RS bucket seats upholstered in a black leather-microfibre combination and contrasting with copper-coloured honeycomb stitching.

Three-stage seat heating is included as standard up front, as are an Alcantara-clad steering wheel and gear selector, RS Q3 floor mats and edition-specific illuminated door sill trims that project a red 3D rhombus onto the ground when the doors are opened.

The Audi RS Q3 Sportback Edition 10 Years is backed by a five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty in Australia. Service intervals are spaced every 12 months or 15,000km, and Audi says a five-year servicing pack will set customers back $3580, a provision covering five years or 75,000km.

The 2023 Audi RS Q3 Sportback Edition 10 Years builds on the safety wares of its donor.

It doesn’t carry an official ANCAP safety rating, but the Q3 on which it is based offers a five-star score from testing carried out in 2018.

There are six airbags, as well as adaptive cruise control, active lane keep assist/lane departure warning, emergency assist, 360-degree camera, rear cross traffic assist, hill descent control, hill hold assist, autonomous emergency braking (AEB) with pedestrian and cyclist detection, and tyre pressure monitoring.

What technology does the Audi RS Q3 Sportback Edition 10 Years feature?

Infotainment in the 2023 Audi RS Q3 Sportback Edition 10 Years is controlled by a 10.1-inch centre infotainment touch-screen.

On newer Audi models, this would normally be underscored by a separate 10.1-inch haptic touch-screen for all the climate controls. But such is the age of the current RS Q3, which has been around for a few years now, that area is adorned in bland black plastic – with a separate bank of hardwired buttons and switchgear underneath (which is no bad thing).

Other tech features include a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster, Bang & Olufsen 3D Sound System (15 speakers, 680 Watts), satellite navigation, wireless smartphone charging, Android Auto, wireless Apple CarPlay, four USB outlets and Audi connect plus services.

The 2023 Audi RS Q3 Sportback Edition 10 Years draws power from the brand’s prodigious 2.5-litre five-cylinder turbo-petrol engine.

Outputs carry over from the all-paw donor, which might be perceived as a missed opportunity. However, with 294kW and 480Nm on offer, the RS Q3 Sportback Edition 10 Years is hardly shy on grunt: 0-100km/h takes 4.5sec claimed and the top speed is rated at 250km/h.

Elsewhere, there are two RS-specific modes for the Audi Drive Select system, sports suspension with electronic damper control, an RS exhaust system, a specific steering tune with variable-ratio rack, and a trick torque vectoring function that electronically controls spinning wheels.

Powerful brakes with six-piston callipers up front ensure ample stopping power.

The Audi RS Q3 rides on a MacPherson strut front suspension and a four-link rear suspension configuration.

Though it’s inherently front-drive-biased, Audi says up to 100 per cent of drive can be shuffled to the rear wheels in certain circumstances.

The German car-maker claims a fuel consumption average of 8.9L/100km for the 2023 Audi RS Q3 Sportback Edition 10 Years on the combined cycle using minimum 98 RON premium unleaded fuel.

On test, we managed 10.5L/100km in a mix of conditions including a fair stint in sporty settings.

The 2023 Audi RS Q3 Sportback Edition 10 Years makes no apologies for its sporty positioning.

From the moment you jump into its heavily bolstered, carbon-fibre-backed bucket seats and depress the starter button, it’s a vehicle that means business: feedback from the controls is rich, road noise is persistent and there is a sporty premise to everything this high-riding performance car does.

The Sportback body style also imposes some compromise in terms of rearward vision; however, it’s nothing the RS Q3’s on-board cameras cannot help to mitigate.

And those observations are not a slight. The RS Q3 is a refreshing reminder of what a genuine performance SUV can and should be. In a world of so-so warm SUVs, the RS Q3 isn’t for the faint-hearted.

The drivetrain is naturally quite elastic in its initial take-up – a symptom of the dual-clutch transmission and the turbo-petrol engine. It means it feels quite excitable upon pulling away from rest before settling into a more rhythmic cadence around the 2000-2500rpm marker, offering easy and refined passage through its seven ratios.

The thrum and burble from the prodigious five-pot is great, too. Even in everyday settings.

From a ride perspective, the RS Q3 Sportback Edition 10 Years niggles and fidgets over road imperfections, traits augmented by relatively heavy low-speed steering telegraphing lots of on-road feedback, plus ever-present road and tyre noise.

It’s a small trade-off to make given the point-and-shoot handling credentials of Audi’s pocket rocket. On the right road, the RS Q3 enamours with its grip, poise and agility – not to mention the incredible sense of theatre wrought mostly from the five-pot engine.

The 1.8-tonne SUV belies its mass and high-riding stature with tenacious body control and the almost maniacal sense of urgency to put its Continental rubber to tarmac. Throttle response is excellent and although the all-wheel drive system feels fundamentally front-biased, there is enough lateral leeway to put a smile on your face before the electronic nannies intervene.

In short, the price of entry to Audi’s limited-edition hi-po SUV is well and truly justified when you’re sinking your foot into it.

The 2023 Audi RS Q3 Sportback Edition 10 Years reflects the performance brief with lashings of Alcantara and lots of black.

It is also a vehicle that is well versed on practicality: space is surprisingly generous across both rows of seating, especially given the 4.5-metre length, and the flat and long 530-litre boot will swallow a couple of full-size suitcases or a set of golf clubs no dramas.

The caveat is there is a tyre inflation kit in lieu of a spare wheel.

Drill in a little deeper, though, and the RS Q3 Sportback is feeling a little tired inside against Audi’s newer model offerings.

The dashboard centre fascia is a case in point. Rather than two 10.1-inch screens sitting on top of one another – the top controlling infotainment and bottom climate control – the RS Q3 foregoes the latter for a bland section of unused plastic.

It looks like vacant real estate from the front seats of the cabin and detracts from an otherwise well-sorted and well-put-together interior replete with deep door pockets and ample storage.

Build quality is excellent, and the installation of the carbon-fibre-backed seats dresses up the interior ambience considerably.

Those bulky seatbacks do impose some compromise for outward vision from the rear pews, which are otherwise accessed by air vents, a pair of USB-C power outlets (just like the front) and comfortable, supportive seats and soft contact points.

It means the RS Q3 will ferry a couple of adult passengers across the back in relative comfort, or, at a pinch, a couple of child seats.

If your SUV buying choice is predicated on a sense of theatre and uniqueness, the 2023 Audi RS Q3 Sportback Edition 10 Years should be at the pointy end of the list every day of the week.

It’s fun, it’s definitely theatrical and with an estimated 100 units to be offered locally, you’re unlikely to cross paths with another one on your daily commute.

The five-cylinder turbocharged engine remains the other huge drawcard; it won’t be around forever, and in a world of largely humdrum SUVs, it still serves as a refreshing change.

2023 Audi RS Q3 Sportback Edition 10 Years at a glance:
Price: $102,900 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Engine: 2.5-litre five-cylinder turbo-petrol
Output: 294kW/480Nm
Transmission: Seven-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel: 8.9L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 204g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety rating: Not tested