What's all this about?

Audi has already given us the third-generation Q3 SUV, one of its big-selling models - more than two million have found homes across the first two generations - and now here comes the expected coupe-ified version of it, known as the Audi Q3 Sportback. It's only the second of this particular vehicle type after the Mk2 Q3-based original.

So what have we got?

Well, like the all-new Q3 it is based upon, which looks very much like a shrunken Q5 or Q6 e-tron, the Q3 Sportback wears Audi's current corporate styling inside and out. That means fancy LED head- and taillights with variable signatures available on the exterior, while within there's a huge Digital Stage interface that sites a 12.8-inch MMI touchscreen infotainment system alongside an 11.9-inch instrument cluster and associated head-up display. So far, so mid-2020s Audi.

The difference, then, is that the swooping roofline of the Sportback is 29mm lower than that of the regular Q3 SUV. This'll marginally affect rear headroom, while it also takes a chunk out of the cargo capacity. Both iterations of the new Q3 can swallow 488 litres of clobber with all seats in use, but with the second row folded down the SUV trumps the Sportback with figures of 1,386 and 1,289 litres respectively. Still, many will pay the minor price of reduced practicality for the exterior appearance.

Does the Sportback drive differently? What are the drivetrain choices?

Aside from the fact that the Sportback will come on a minimum of 18-inch alloy wheels, when there's a 17-inch option for the regular third-gen Q3, we can't see anything in the specs which suggests the Sportback has been tuned for a racier driving experience. It remains to be seen if we get a replacement for the madcap RS Q3 Sportback that appeared a few years back, apropos of nothing in particular.

Therefore, the same five drivetrains are available for the Sportback as you'd get in the Q3, which are three petrols, one turbodiesel and a plug-in hybrid (PHEV). There's a 150hp 1.5-litre TFSI with cylinder on demand technology, as well as a couple of 2.0-litre turbo petrols with either 204- or 265hp (the latter being the engine from the current Volkswagen Golf GTI or the Skoda Octavia vRS). Sitting alongside them is the solitary TDI turbodiesel soldiering on into the modern era, a 2.0-litre unit with 150hp like the 1.5 TFSI (but which has considerably more torque, at 360Nm plays 250Nm for the petrol). Above these is the e-Hybrid PHEV, pairing the 1.5 with an 85kW e-motor and 19.7kWh (net) battery for system outputs of 272hp and 400Nm.

All of these are four-cylinder powerplants accompanied by a seven-speed S tronic dual-clutch gearbox, with only the 2.0-litre TFSIs gaining Audi's fabled quattro all-wheel drive. The two 150hp Q3 Sportbacks and the PHEV are all front-wheel drive. So, what with their traction advantages, the 2.0 TFSIs are either almost as quick or a lot quicker than the PHEV - 0-62mph times are 9.1 seconds for the 1.5 TFSI, 9.2 seconds for the diesel, 7.1 seconds for the 204hp petrol, 6.8 seconds for the PHEV, and finally 5.7 seconds for the one with the heart of a GTI.

Why do I sense there's a 'but' coming?

Probably because there sort of is. Audi hasn't explicitly mentioned weights or aerodynamic drag for the Sportback (but we know the regular Q3 has a 0.30Cd figure anyway). Yet there's clearly something amiss with the new coupe model, possibly those 18-inch wheels even, as on almost every powertrain it turns out that Sportbacking your Q3 results in slightly lower top speeds and increased fuel consumption/CO₂ emissions.

The 1.5 TSI does 130mph flat out as the normal SUV, with fuel consumption of 42.8-47.1mpg and CO₂ outputs of 137-151g/km. For the Sportback, the equivalent data is 128mph, 42.2-46.3mpg and 138-153g/km. The TDI diesel (SUV: 129mph, 48.7-53.3mpg, 139-152g/km; Sportback: 128mph, 47.9-53.3mpg, 139-153g/km) and the 204hp 2.0 TFSI quattro petrol (SUV: 142mph, 33.6-36.2mpg, 176-192g/km; Sportback: 141mph, 33.2-36.2mpg, 176-193g/km) see the same sort of nominal deficits. Even the PHEV suffers, because while the fuel economy range is identical for both Q3 SUV and Sportback (a theoretical 128.4-166.2mpg, although always take those numbers with a huge heaping dose of salt), the latter emits more CO₂ (40-50g/km v 39-49g/km for the SUV), it consumes energy from its battery more rapaciously (14-15.1kWh/62.1 miles v 13.9-15kWh/62.1 miles for the SUV) and, concomitantly, its all-electric range is reduced (73 miles instead of 74 in the SUV).

Presumably, such trifling losses won't put people off the Audi Q3 Sportback?

Probably not, no. It's due to land later this year, with exact prices and specs for the UK to be confirmed. However, Audi UK has intimated that the Sportback will be around £1,500 model-for-model more expensive than its equivalent Q3. That means the cheapest Q3 Sportback, likely to be a 150hp TFSI Sport, will be £39,800, while the most expensive should be the 265hp TFSI quattro Edition 1 with a £53,950 asking price. The dearest e-Hybrid PHEV, incidentally, will also be an Edition 1 at £52,850.

Matt Robinson - 3 Sep 2025