A car for people who love classic sedans but can do without suspenders. Audi's new sportsman in a limousine outfit in a first driving report.

Audi S3 sedan

Nice / Monaco. When it comes to the presentation of new automobiles, the region between Cannes and Monaco is very popular with German automobile manufacturers. While we have the wet and cold autumn weather, autumn on the French Riviera also means longer skirts, collapsed collars and one or two silk scarves around your neck - but also mild temperatures, lots of sun and the best test conditions.

Meanwhile, life on Nice's waterfront promenades is becoming a little quieter. Joggers, cyclists, strollers and walkers no longer line up in the collective traffic jam in front of the next “kiosque”. Life seems to slow down as the season changes. However, concerns about slush remain low. The hours of sunshine alone are decreasing.

But the region on the Côte d'Azur has more to offer than crowded waterfront promenades, overpriced hotels, picturesque side streets that smell of fish soup and anchorages for the yachts of Russian oligarchs. If you drive north, you will find lonely country roads, curves in various levels of drama and the famous passes of the Maritime Alps. Monte Carlo. The memories of “The Night of the Long Knives” and the Col de Turini have made the hearts of motoring journalists beat faster for generations.

Fortunately, those who are not on the road with an ecologically correct fun brake can count themselves lucky - but in a 300 hp all-wheel drive limousine.

The test car:

• Model Name: Audi S3 sedan
• Vehicle class: Compact sports sedan
• Delivery: February 2014
• Power: 300 PS

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Base Price:

40.4 k € 

Opposite the Audi A3 sedan got the S3 sedan missed a noble jogging suit. The grill received the S-typical double chrome struts, the air curtains in the bumper were widened and defused with a chrome clasp at the same time in their effect. The sill was shaped stronger, the wheels in the wheel arches are at least 18 inches tall and optionally also filled with 19-inch and 235er wide tires and the rear seated on the boot lid a cute little tear-off. Less discreet the four tailpipes with chrome look, of which each framed on the left and right of the indicated diffuser.

Enter. Feel good. Off to the lake Alps.

Anyone who has sat down on the Recaro sports seats, brought the steering wheel into the correct position and pulled the belt over their shoulders, is ready for the first excursion with the reincarnation of the Audi S2. Above all, the Audi S2 sedan (until 1995) was a similar sheepskin for a real highway wolf. Even if it is just an unconfirmed legend that Audi sedans were still delivered in series with flesh-colored suspenders back then - in addition to the innovative full galvanization, Audi sedans were one thing above all else: stuffy.

The S3 sedan may belong to one of our less respected vehicle segment, but stuffy it certainly is not.

300 hp. Six gears and the flap exhaust

The two-liter four-cylinder engine hums loudly when you press the start button. Turbocharger, four-valve technology, direct injection and continuous adjustment of the inlet and outlet camshafts allow the petrol engine to gain 300 hp. Between 1.800 and 5.500 Newton meters, there is also always 380 Nm of power available. Far less would be enough to leave the parking lot at the port of Monaco. But you can already see the Sea Alps on the horizon. It should go up there - without wasting time. A little performance can not be a hindrance.

Audi offers the S3 sedan with both a manual six-speed gearbox and the well-known six-speed dual-clutch gearbox. The manual switch impresses with dry, precise gear changes and a somehow “classic”-looking connection between machine, person and mountain tour. The DSG cannot be blamed for anything. It shifts faster than humans could, it shifts both comfortably and quickly. It can be tuned for efficient driving using “Audi Drive Select” and taken on the rough stage between Col de Turini and Col de Braus using “Dynamic mode”.

However, the DSG variant clearly wins the acoustics rating. A short “ploop” and the next gear is in, while the engine barely had time to convert the speed jump into a thermodynamic vocalization (vulgo: exhaust sound) to wrap.

Col de Braus

Ankle-high stone walls are to protect the motorists before the departure into the depth. I remain skeptical and prefer to rely on the four large brake discs, ABS and the grip of the quattro drive. Along the mountain slope the changeable asphalt band stretches to heaven. Eyes open, behind every serpentine curve, a red wine could look for his personal limits. The limits of the S3 sedan, however, can not be found here. First gear turns leave the liability reserves of the Quattro drive in the distance. The rack-and-pinion steering delivers a convincing performance, especially in dynamic mode. Direct, with plenty of feedback and thanks to a curb weight of 1.430 kilograms, the energetic S3 sedan can be swung and a ballerina, in dance, drive to the pass heights.

Power:

300 PS

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torque:

380  Nm

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Sprint 0-100 km / h:

5.3 sec.

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Ballerina from the gym.

Were S model once wolves who wore their sheep's clothing with the suspenders, so the new S3 sedan as a ballerina in front of us. Beautifully clear and serious in the language of form. But still with that clear visual message that tells of many hours in the gym.

But instead of degenerating into a mindless muscle man, Audi concentrated on the most important characteristics of an athlete in a concentration phase that soothes the brand. With 1.430 kilograms is the S3 sedan (according to technical data!)  also 155 kilograms lighter than the competitor from Stuttgart. And even if the CLA 45 AMG with the strongest production two-liter turbocharged engine and 360 PS can shine, this fitness advantage for the youngest member of the squad of Ingolstadt sports talents is a trump card not to be underestimated.

Calculated are now so 4.4 per kg of horsepower in Stuttgart, the 4.7 per kilogram of horsepower from Ingolstadt.

While I do the math again in my head, I switch the Audi Drive Select switch to “Comfort” and let my gaze slide over the promenade – out to sea. It's a mild 18° here in Nice. Rain, autumn storms and so on are waiting at home Winter tire Weather auf mich.

I stay here a moment longer - on the beach. Keep in mind a tally for the number of joggers trotting briskly away and make up my mind as soon as I see the first braces!

Promise.

Technical data: