New Audi Q3 Sportback revealed: new coupé-SUV gets plug-in hybrid power
New Audi Q3 Sportback eschews electric power but brings in bold looks and a tech-heavy interior...
On sale Late 2025 Price from £39,800
Amid a tide of new electric SUVs coming to the market, the new Audi Q3 Sportback stands out like a sore thumb – but not because of the way it looks. Indeed, the most distinctive thing about this rakish variant of the recently updated Audi Q3 family SUV is that there’s not an electric version in sight; it’s likely to be one of the last combustion-engined models the German car maker launches.
Set to take on rivals including the BMW X2, Cupra Formentor and Range Rover Evoque, the new Q3 Sportback understandably has much in common with its squared-off sibling. Their faces are identical, sharing the bolder front grille, larger side air intakes and upswept LED headlights that came with the Q3’s recent update. Speaking of those lights, they can optionally include matrix technology, enabling them to shape their beams around oncoming traffic to avoid dazzling other drivers. They can also project a warning onto the road ahead of you if there’s a vehicle in your blindspot.
The Q3 Sportback has a more steeply raked roofline than the regular Q3 and is 29mm lower overall, helping to give it a sportier appearance. At the rear, you’ll find OLED lights that include an illuminated strip running across the full width of the car, with Audi’s four-ring logo shining bright at the centre. Alloy wheel designs range from 17 to 20in, with 18in styles fitted as standard.
Kicking off the Q3 Sportback’s engine line-up is a 1.5-litre petrol with 148bhp. With this, 0-62mph takes a fairly sedate 9.1sec, but with official average fuel economy of 46.3mpg, it should be reasonably cheap to run, helped by the included mild hybrid technology. High-mileage drivers might be tempted by the 148bhp 2.0-litre diesel, which promises 53mpg.
For those who crave a bit more power, there’s a 2.0-litre petrol engine in 201bhp and 261bhp guises, both of which bring four-wheel drive. The most powerful brings the 0-62mph sprint time down to 5.7sec – which is just short of the BMW X2 in its raciest M35i form.
There’s also a 268bhp plug-in hybrid (PHEV)that combines a 1.5-litre petrol engine with an electric motor and a 19.7kWh (usable capacity) battery for an official electric range of 72 miles. That trounces the 38.5 miles the rival Evoque P270e PHEV can officially take you, and isn’t far off the 81 miles promised by the most efficient version of the bigger, pricier Mercedes GLC 300e.
As with the regular Q3, it’s inside where you’ll notice the biggest change over the previous Sportback; it’s been thoroughly overhauled. The centre console no longer hosts the gear selector; instead, this now takes the form of a stalk to the right of the steering wheel. The indicators and windscreen wipers are now controlled by a stalk to the left of the wheel.
We’ve already taken the chance to sit inside the new Q3 Sportback, and found that the 11.9in digital driver display and 12.8in touchscreen infotainment system not only look swish but also respond quickly to your inputs. It’s a shame, though, that the climate control buttons found in the previous Q3 Sportback have been replaced by shortcuts on the touchscreen. These tend to be more distracting to use on the move than dedicated buttons. Also disappointing is that the Q3 still doesn’t feel quite as plush and upmarket inside as the Evoque and Volvo XC40.
Despite its sleek looks, the Sportback offers the same 488 litres of luggage capacity as the regular Q3 (375 litres in the PHEV), so a couple of holiday suitcases are likely to slide in just fine. If you choose to drop the rear seats to extend the boot, though, the available space is a little down on the more angular machine.
The new Q3 Sportback is expected to cost around £1500 more than the equivalent regular Q3, with prices starting at £39,800. That’s a moderate increase over the outgoing model and means you’ll pay more than you would for a Cupra Formentor, but less than for an X2 or an Evoque.
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