Audi India opens bookings for new Q3

Audi India has started accepting bookings for the third-generation Q3 from today. The new Q3 can be reserved by paying a booking amount of Rs 1 lakh via the Audi India website, the myAudi connect application or at the brand’s dealerships. Prices will be announced next month.

New Audi Q3: Exterior design

Up front, it gets LED headlights, LED daytime running lamps (DRLs) that double up as turn indicators, a wide grille and an even wider air dam section. The Audi logo is now 2D instead of 3D, and there are no chrome trim pieces on or around the grille. A ridged silver skid plate is placed below the air dam to add some contrast.

The new Q3 is 4,531mm long, 1,859mm wide and 1,623mm high, with a 2,681mm wheelbase, and compared to the outgoing model, it’s larger in every dimension. In profile, it gets 18-inch alloy wheels, roof rails and a thick L-shaped chrome trim piece for the beltline. The door handles retain a traditional pull-type design and are not flush-fitting units.

The rear profile features LED tail-lamps, flanking an illuminated Audi logo. Below is a sculpted body-coloured bumper with a silver skid plate. Notably, the India-spec Q3 does not get the sportier S-Line styling package available in some global markets.

New Audi Q3: Interior and features

Inside, the new Q3 gets a 12.8-inch touchscreen, an 11.9-inch digital driver’s display, a new squircle-shaped steering wheel and a row of buttons placed under the AC vents in the centre. The centre console has a gloss-black finish and houses a wireless charging pad, the engine start/stop button, a media control knob, the electronic parking brake switch and a pair of cup holders. Audi has removed the conventional drive selector and instead shifted the function to a stalk behind the steering wheel. The light and wiper controls have been folded into the other stalk.

Other features include a Sonos sound system, a panoramic sunroof, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, automatic climate control, paddleshifters, ambient lighting, a powered tailgate, a 360-degree camera setup and more.

New Audi Q3: Engine and gearbox

Like the outgoing Q3, the third-gen SUV will get a 2-litre 4-cylinder direct-injection turbo-petrol engine that develops 204hp. Transmission duties are handled by a 7-speed dual-clutch automatic unit, which sends power to all four wheels via Audi’s Quattro all-wheel drive system. As per Audi, the new Q3 does the 0-100kph sprint in 7.1 seconds, maxing out at a top speed of 229kph.

New Audi Q3: Price and rivals

Audi may price the new Q3 around Rs 55 lakh to Rs 60 lakh, ex-showroom. It will be locally assembled and continue as the brand’s contender in the entry-level luxury SUV segment, rivalling the BMW X1 and Mercedes-Benz GLA.