Audi A3 saloon 35 TFSI Edition 1 2020 UK review

Premium compact saloon arrives on a similar theme to before: some choice materials and conspicuous tech adorned over competent dynamics The Audi A3 Saloon is what happens if you go from 17 models to 58 models in 19 years. There are niches to fill and, oh boy, has Audi (and BMW and Mercedes) set about filling them.This latest A3 Saloon is, obviously, the booted version of the new A3 Sportback (a five-door hatchback), arriving on the Volkswagen Group’s MQB platform but, unlike some of its MQB cousins, coming with fully independent rear suspension across the range. At 4495mm long and with a 425-litre boot, it does a job that the A4 would have once done. Prices start at £28,380 and head to £40,000 before options. This one is a 35 TFSI, in left-hand-drive and not quite to any definitive UK specification. It has 18in wheels, like sporty-looking S Line models, but an interior more like that of the pricier Edition 1 launch variant. Either way, we’re looking at a price in the low-£30,000s for an A3 Saloon in this engine specification, which means a modest 147bhp output from a 1.5-litre four-cylinder turbo petrol. Equipped with a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox, as our car is, the engine also gets a 48V very-mild-hybrid stop-start system. Pick a manual and it remains conventionally powered.