The A3 facelift isn't much to write home about - but the allstreet might be
Remember how funny-looking off-road hatchbacks used to be teased? The Rover Streetwise, the Polo Dune, the Panda Trekking, the Adam Rocks and so on - what scorn was poured upon them, higher up and protected against the elements but front-wheel drive only. We thought they'd been wholly replaced by compact SUVs - but now look: Audi is making a new one from the updated A3, the original slightly posh hatchback. Having already made the A1 City Carver and dropped it in the UK, no less.
This is the allstreet, then, introduced as part of a wider range refresh for the current A3 hatch and saloon. With nothing more on theas yet, it’s as interesting as the model gets for the moment. It rides 15mm higher than standard on its own spring and damper settings . A new matte black grille aims to make it resemble a Q SUV, the front spoiler looks like a skid plate and the rear bumper is ‘robustly designed’. It’s not a Golf Country for the 2020s, sure, but then it doesn’t claim to be.
Audi hasn’t forgotten the core appeal, however, and it’s not looking a bit cooler. It’s the reason all of your parents’ friends have something vaguely SUV-shaped: ‘Thanks to the slightly raised seat position, the A3 allstreet offers increased comfort when entering and exiting the vehicle and a better command of the road’. Winner. This has to be preferable to a Honda Jazz Crosstar.
That Audi makes much of the third-party apps available in the MMI infotainment and the ability to select from four different daytime running light signatures demonstrates that this isn’t exactly a comprehensive overhaul. No doubt an A3 EV is waiting in the wings once everyone has had their fill of allstreet/Allroad. As if to prove the point, the new A3 range will launch in March with just a pair of 150hp engines, the 35 TFSI and 35 TDI.
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