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NEWS
GENEVA MOTOR SHOW: Audi S3 Cabrio
Audi puts more speed into Audi's smallest convertible, but will the chassis cope?Fancy a fast blow-dry with relatively low guilt? Audi is about to slot its strongest four-cylinder engine into the A3 Cabriolet to create the S3 Cabriolet.
Capable of proper sports-car sprinting times, the S3 Cabriolet will debut at next month’s Geneva motor show with 221kW of power and a diesel-esque 380Nm of torque.
Unlike the updated Volkswagen Scirocco, the S3 Cabriolet will use the most advanced chassis architecture in the VW Group, claiming a strengthened development of the acclaimed S3’s underpants.
The four-seat convertible will rip to 100km/h in an impressive 5.4 seconds despite lacking little in standard or optional interior gear.
The S3 Cabriolet uses the same 2.6-metre wheelbase as the five-door S3 Sportback and shares its complex, accurate (and expensive) four-link independent rear suspension system.
One of the reasons the suspension system is so critical is that it allows the S3 Cabriolet to retain a 285-litre boot space, though this shrinks by 40 litres when the roof is down. It can be enlarged by folding down the rear seats.
Audi combines aluminium, magnesium and steel pieces to minimise weight for the support structure of its folding, three-layer cloth roof. Available in three colours for the S3 Cabriolet, the roof can be folded up or down by a single button in 18 seconds (the same time BMW claims for its 4 Series Convertible) at speeds up to 50km/h.
The seats are sportier than the ones in the standard A3 Cabrio and are clad in a finer grain of Nappa leather, while Alcantara is optional. The leather steering wheel gets a flat bottom, the large tachometer plays host to a turbo boost pressure gauge and the pedals and the footrest are clad in brushed aluminium.
Dual-zone climate-control will be standard, as will xenon headlights, though full LED headlights are optional, along with a better standard of MMI screen and navigation system and a Bang & Olufsen sound system with 13 speakers.
While it has had a strong lead with the acclaimed A3 Cabriolet, the extra speed and gristle of the S3 powertrain placed more strain on everything in the car, which forced Audi to lift its dry weight to 1620kg.
Part of this extra weight is dedicated to cooling the engine itself, while the rest goes towards generating extra grip and body rigidity.
The engine is mounted across the front axle, but the top-end is tilted backwards by 12 degrees to lower the bonnet line and to shift the car’s weight further backwards.
Another major weight distribution effort is shunting the Haldex all-wheel drive unit behind the rear differential, plus making the front subframe and pivot bearings out of aluminium. The effort has been partially successful, at best, with 56 per cent of the weight still resting over the front wheels.
The engine itself is a known quantity, the best of the EA888 family (so far), with its torque peak hitting at 1800rpm and holding on until 5500rpm, then its power peak of 221kW arrives at 5500pm and only tapers away at 6200rpm.
As with the S3 Sedan and Sportback, the engine is expected to provide strength across the board from all revs, while the roofless cabin should give added exposure to the deep, rippling exhaust note.
This strength comes from a 2.0-litre all-alloy four-cylinder engine that is force fed by a twin-scroll turbocharger, capable of generating 1.2 bar of pressure, and combines both direct and indirect fuel-injection. Audi insists that old-fashioned indirect injection is actually more economical at lower revs, so switches between the two systems as the engine speed changes.
It also manages the engine efficiency by combining an intake camshaft that can be offset by 60 degrees and an exhaust cam that can be tweaked 30 degrees, plus variable valve lift. As for the basics, there are four aluminium pistons, two counter-rotating balancing shafts to smooth out any wobbles and a silicon-alloy cylinder-head.
Audi combines this with a six-speed dual-clutch transmission and it now includes a launch-control system, though Audi charges extra for steering wheel-mounted shift paddles.
It sits on 18-inch, flow-formed alloy wheels and 225/40 R18 tyres, which help it ride 25mm lower than the A3 Cabriolet, and 19-inch wheels and tyres are optional.
At 4.43 metres long, 1.79 metres wide and 1.39 metres high, the S3 Cabriolet is an unlikely contender for sports-car honours, though its straight-line speed is fast enough. It’s also not quite a contender for fuel-economy honours, either, with an NEDC figure of 7.1L/100km and combined CO2 emissions of 165g/km for CO2.
The new S3 Cabriolet will go on sale in time for Europe’s summer this year, before arriving alongside the new A3 Cabrio line-up in Australia by July.
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Written byMichael Taylor
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