GENEVA MOTOR SHOW: Audi plugs in hybrid A3 etron

Audi took an enormous risk in December when it announced the shelving of its entire electric car future, but the Volkswagen luxury brand is about to show it’s not done with battery power.

The German premium brand will unveil the production version of its plug-in hybrid A3 etron at the Geneva motor show in two weeks, complete with 50km of pure electric range.

The series hybrid, based on the five-door A3 Sportback, mates a production 1.4-litre TFSI four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine with an all-new electric motor and an all-new gearbox.

Due in production from the middle of the year, the A3 etron will have a combined 150kW of power and a strong 350Nm of torque, which will be enough to accelerate it to 100km/h in 7.6 seconds.

With a top speed of 222km/h, Audi claims its A3 etron will consume just 1.5L/100km, which equates to just 35g/km of CO2 emissions on the ECE’s consumption standard for plug-in hybrids.

More pointedly, the plug-in hybrid system will give A3 etron drivers the choice to stay in full electric or full petrol modes, or to use them both at the same time for an extra accelerative boost.

Audi claims the A3 etron is capable of reaching 130km/h on electric power alone and (when driven less enthusiastically than that) can stretch the pure electric range out to 50km, which should mean zero-emissions driving most of the time for city-dwellers.

The A3 etron generates 110kW of power from its 1.4-litre TFSI engine mounted across the engine bay, which is attached via a coupling to a disc-shaped electric motor capable of 75kW of power.

The biggest step forward is the integration of the electric motor inside the new ‘e S tronic’ transmission, which is a six-speed dual-clutch unit that also controls which motor will be delivering the torque to the wheels at any given time.

The front-wheel drive A3 etron can drive exclusively on either engine, though the electric motor’s torque peak falls away after 2000rpm, while the petrol engine reaches its torque peak at 1750rpm, making them almost seamless accelerating companions.

The plug-in system stores its electricity in a lithium-ion battery pack, which operates independently of the 12-volt system that runs the rest of the car.

Read the latest news and reviews on your mobile, iPhone or PDA at carsales' mobile site…