New Audi A3 sedan revealed

Audi has pulled the drapes off its all-new A3 sedan – the latest member of the fourth-generation Audi A3 family.

Claimed to look more like a coupe than a traditional three-box sedan, the smart small and rival for the BMW 2 Series Gran Coupe benefits from the whole host of upgrades introduced by the recently-launched A3 hatch.

Set to arrive in Europe this July and in Australia in the first half of 2021, the second A3 sedan measures in at 4495mm long, 1816mm wide and stands 1425mm tall. That makes it 40mm longer, 20mm wider and 10mm taller than the model it replaces, although the wheelbase remains unchanged.

Inside, Audi claims there's more space, while the boot is a generous 425 litres.

Like the hatch, the latest A3 sedan is based on the heavily updated MQB Evo platform that brings weight savings while being more rigid than the last model.

Far more slippery than before with a drag coefficient of just 0.25, the Audi A3 features electrically actuated grille louvres that pivot closed for better aero and open when added cooling is required.

Under the bonnet, the big news is the introduction of electrified engines that include a 110kW turbocharged 1.5-litre (badged 35 TFSI) petrol paired with 48-volt mild hybrid tech.

Only available with the seven-speed S-tronic dual-clutch transmission, the clever petrol hybrid can reduce fuel use by 0.4L/100km through coasting engine-off and boost torque by up to 50Nm when accelerating.

A 110kW 2.0-litre turbo-diesel is also available and gets the same dual-clutch transmission, with a lower-powered 85kW version of the same diesel set to arrive later.

The cheapest engine in the range will be the entry 30 TFSI that is powered by a 1.0-litre three-cylinder that will come with, or without, the same 48-volt mild hybrid tech as the bigger 35 TFSI.

At the top of the tree, at least until the 300kW-plus RS 3 arrives, is the 228kW S3 sedan that will use the old car’s EA888 2.0-litre turbo-petrol four without any electrification.

Finally, there will be not one but two plug-in hybrid versions.

As well as under-bonnet tinkering, Audi claims the sedan has an overtly sporty chassis tune, to ensure its handling is more precise than the first A3 sedan.

Like the A3 hatch, the sedan gets a centralised dynamic handling ECU that offers superior processing power, enabling its adaptive dampers, and anti-skid control to react quicker and more accurately to what's happening beneath the wheels.

The result, engineers claim, is a car that has both agile handling and a decent ride.

Inside, the A3 sedan features an identical interior to the hatchback – and that's no bad thing since that car feels a step above the heavily-related Golf that it shares its infotainment system with.

Speaking of which, the 10.1-inch screen incorporates Audi's third-gen operating system that is claimed to be 10 times more powerful as the last car and can be operated using natural speak and will soon offer owners the handy Amazon Alexa assistant.

There's no word yet on when the A3 range will land Down Under or what models we'll get, but in Germany the new A3 sedan range kicks off at €27,700 for the cheapest 1.0-litre powered 30 TFSI.