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Review: 2009 MTM Audi A3 Sportback is a singular sport (with) utility

Chris Paukert — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 11:57:00 EST

Filed under: Aftermarket, Performance, Europe, Hatchback, Audi, New Car Reviews

2009 MTM Audi A3 Sportback - Click above for high-res image gallery

In the automotive world, price is increasingly a function of degrees. How's that? Dial in a faster windscreen angle, aggressively rake the rear glass and - voilà! - you've just padded your margins to the tune of a few thousand bucks. Take a plain-jane sedan, hire some stylists to turn it into a "four-door coupe" with a racy greenhouse, and you can use the same mechanicals and still charge a mint. The same goes for crossovers - just steepen the backlight and you're in the ducats. Not convinced? See the Mercedes-Benz CLS and BMW X6 for field notes.

MTM is planning on selling only 15 of these in the U.S.

We note all of this because we're sure you're going to look at the upright profile of this MTM Audi A3 Sportback and dismissively turn up your nose when you learn its pricetag is around $55,000. But if we lopped off a couple of doors or gave it a less formal roofline, we'd be willing to bet that its price would suddenly look a lot more palatable. All of which is understandable, really, as $55k is a lot of coin to be shelling out - especially considering that at a few shekels over $27k, a base A3 starts at roughly half the money.

But shelve your bodystyle prejudices and bear with us for a moment. If you're like us, you've looked longingly at a lot of what the Four-Ringed Wunder has been kicking out on its home continent - models like the RS6 Avant, TT-RS and S3. And unless you've got some seriously deep pockets, an inside man on the gray market and a relative who owes you a favor at the local DMV, you haven't got a prayer of landing any such tasty treats here in the U.S. So while the folks at Motoren-Technik-Mayer (MTM) can't source you an assembly-line-fresh S3 for your middle-American driveway, they can build you a road-legal doppelganger, and as it turns out, that ain't half bad.

We've talked up the Audi A3's virtues and vices before, so we'll spare you the gab about how much we enjoy its well-resolved interior, grippy Quattro all-wheel drive, planted handling and surprising utility. We've also not been shy in mentioning how its price tag can get disastrously dear with just a brief once-over of Audi's options list - and that's before handing it over to a tuner like MTM. But enough with the apologies - ride along with us past the jump to see if this hot hatch is full of excuses... or full of win.

Gallery: Review: 2009 MTM Audi A3 Sportback

Continue reading Review: 2009 MTM Audi A3 Sportback is a singular sport (with) utility

Review: 2009 MTM Audi A3 Sportback is a singular sport (with) utility originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 21 Dec 2009 11:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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2009 Audi A3: Tweaked and priced

Damon Lavrinc — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 16:58:00 EST

Filed under: Car Buying, Hatchback, Audi

Click above for a high-res gallery of the 2009 Audi A3

Audi gave up the details on the European-spec A3 earlier this year, but it took until today for it to disclose what changes will carry over to the U.S. model when the 2009 A3 goes on sale later this month.

A cursory inspection of the exterior and specs doesn't reveal much, but dig a little deeper and the revisions become obvious. The fascia has been tweaked with a few cues from the recently revamped A4, including new LED daytime running lamps, and redesigned rollers fill the wheel wells, hiding Audi's optional Magnetic Ride suspension system.

The five-door's powertrain choices remain, with either a 2.0-liter turbocharged four or a 3.2-liter V6, and all-wheel-drive is finally available as an option on the 2.0T model. Previously, Audi's hill-start assist was only available with the S-tronic dual-clutch transmission, but it's now standard on models fitted with the six-speed manual.

Pricing has been set at $26,920 for the front-wheel-drive, six-speed manual model equipped with the 2.0T, while the top of the line 3.2-liter Quattro variant comes in at $36,975.

Gallery: 2009 Audi A3

2009 Audi A3: Tweaked and priced originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 05 Sep 2008 16:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Audi announces new A3 will reach U.S. in Fall

Damon Lavrinc — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 20:03:00 EST

Filed under: Car Buying, Hatchback, Audi

Click the image above for a high-res gallery of the 2009 Audi A3.

For those of you aching to get your hands on the 2009 Audi A3, we have good news: it will go on sale this September and pricing information should be available close to that date. Audi's adapted press release for the U.S. market is available after the jump, but the short and sweet version is we get a choice of either the 200 hp, 2.0-liter TFSI or the 250 hp, 3.2-liter six with Quattro. If you want your power dolled out to all four wheels, but want the turbo'd 2.0-liter, you'll be able to swap cogs with Audi's S-tronic transmission. Hit the jump for all the details.

Continue reading Audi announces new A3 will reach U.S. in Fall

Audi announces new A3 will reach U.S. in Fall originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 24 Apr 2008 20:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Audi unveils updated A3

Drew Phillips — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 02:02:00 EST

Filed under: Wagon, Hatchback, Audi

Click above for a high resolution gallery of the S3 Sportback

Audi has revealed the model updates for the European-spec 2009 A3 and S3. Both are slightly larger than the previous version, and the S3 is now available in the 5-door Sportback version. The front of the A3 receives a freshened look including a more complex design around the grille and more modern headlights with optional bi-xenon units that incorporate LEDs. At the rear there is a modified tailgate and the taillight design uses fiber optic rods to create a pretty cool effect. The interior features new aluminum design trim and new colors and fabrics for the seats, and the controls for the audio system have been given a new look. As for the powertrain, the Euro-only diesel engines have been reworked to include an updated fuel injection system. All engine options are now available with the S tronic transmission, and the 1.6, 1.4 TFSI and 1.8 TFSI engines can be paired with a newly developed seven-speed version.

Follow the jump for the full press release with all the details for the updated A3 and S3, and check out the galleries of each car below.

Gallery: 2009 Audi S3 Sportback

Gallery: 2009 Audi A3

[Source: Audi]

Continue reading Audi unveils updated A3

Audi unveils updated A3 originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 24 Apr 2008 02:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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