2026 Audi RS3 - The Last Naughty Audi?

Performance – Crest. Silence. Violence.

Modern performance cars don’t make you wait anymore, especially EVs. You breathe on the throttle and they’re gone. Instant torque. Instant gratification.

But the RS3 has a noticeable pause. A moment before boost hits. A half-second where it gathers itself. And then it absolutely slams you. That delay is everything for me. It’s rollercoaster engineering. Crest the hill… silence… drop. It feels reminiscent of the old Audi RS4 — that same dramatic swell before a violant shove.

But the RS3 has a noticeable pause. A moment before boost hits. A half-second where it gathers itself. And then it absolutely slams you. That delay is everything for me. It’s rollercoaster engineering. Crest the hill… silence… DROP.

And once you’re on full boost, the lag disappears it just keeps punching through gears like it’s trying to escape, which is an experience of its own. The S tronic gearbox is relentless. No slush. No hesitation. Just sharp, mechanical shifts.

It’s quicker off the line than a Mercedes-AMG A45S and BMW M2 in most real-world digs. Not to mention it's lighter on its feet than the M2, and arguably better looking than the A45.

And then there’s that five-cylinder. That uneven warble doesn’t just sound different. It feels different. It’s mechanical. Slightly off-beat.

You can't help but feel special when you're driving it, because it is. It's essentially the last performance-based five-cylinder product on the market (outside of the Cupra Formentor VZ5, which shares the same engine)

I don't often bring press cars home grinning ear-to-ear after a spirited drive. The RS3 is one of those cars.

HANDLING – Audi’s Best (New) Driver’s Car. Full Stop.

The RS3 is probably Audi’s best driver’s car right now. With the Audi R8 and Audi TT RS discontinued (for now), this is it.

Unlike the other RS cars, this one still feels compact and mischievous. The shorter wheelbase makes it feel like a menace on backroads. It rotates eagerly. It's darty.

The torque-splitting rear diff plays a significant role here. It actively pushes power to the outer wheel mid-corner, helping the car pivot and overcome some of Audi's classic understeer.

The suspension setup feels well-balanced. It remains flat and controlled in the corners. Yet in comfort mode, it could pass for a regular A3. It cruises quietly enough and the suspension is surprisngly compliant. That duality is what makes it so usable. It can be responsible. It just prefers not to be.

It's also the lightest RS product in Audi’s modern lineup, and with cars like the new 2026 Audi RS5 moving toward plug-in hybrid territory, this might be the last properly lightweight ICE RS we get.

That matters because lightness equals playfulness. And playfulness equals naughty. That feeling will become more and more rare in the future of PHEV and EV products.

EXTERIOR – Sharpened, Not Reinvented

The design is classic Audi evolution. No wild risks. No cyberpunk nonsense.

The wheel design is fantastic, with plenty of sharp details that help the RS3 stand out from its S and A counterparts.

The front end is sharp - the grille and bumper push outward with angular aggression. It looks focused. Tense. Like it’s clenching its jaw.

The rear is more restrained, clean and understated. This lends the RS3 an element of "sleeper" car, because it could blend into traffic if you didn't know what you were looking at.

And in a world of increasingly over-styled performance cars, that restraint feels deliberate and on-brand.

INTERIOR – Less Screen. More Machine.

Inside, Audi resisted the temptation to turn it into a rolling cinema like their other new products.

You still get:

• Physical climate buttons (bless)
• Cockpit-style vents flanking the cluster
• A sensibly integrated screen

It feels like a sports car interior, not a tech demo. Yes the new steering wheel design may raise a few eyebrows, and put simply not as good as the pre-facelift. But it looks a lot better here against the digital cockpit than against Audi's new "digital stage" screens.

Rear seat space is tight, as expected of this class, but still useable in a pinch. It’s not a five-adult road trip machine. It’s a compact performance sedan. Always has been.

VERDICT – Get the Naughty One.

Here’s something fascinating. A lot of enthusiasts move from an Audi RS6/7 or an Audi RS4/5 "down" into an RS3 when they want more engagement. I don't have any data to back this up other than anecdotal stories I've seen over the years from social media and dare I say it, reddit.

But it makes sense. It's simply more fun. The larger, heavier RS cars are undeniably fast. They're still a riot in their own right. But the RS3 feels lighter, more reactive, less filtered. Less grown up. It's not their fastest car (although honestly, it trades blows with the fastest). It isn’t their most luxurious. It isn’t their halo. But it might be their last mischievous one.

The last compact, relatively light, five-cylinder RS with a decent dollop of turbo drama and genuine attitude. And if the next one goes hybrid, this generation becomes even more special.

Do yourself a favor and take one for a test drive. I struggled to fault it.