The second generation Audi Q3 family is getting
ready to engage in battle with the Mercedes-Benz GLA and BMW X1. The newly introduced model has
more generous exterior dimensions than the car it replaces, along with a new
design inside and out, technologies, engines and even platform, in an attempt
to grab a good chunk of sales in the premium subcompact crossover segment.
Development of the new Audi Q3 hasn’t ended yet, as
the automaker is also working on two high-performance versions: the ‘S’ and
‘RS’. And it’s the latter that was imagined by XTomi with a new grille,
reworked bumpers and side skirts, black accents, RS badges, lower ground
clearance and larger wheels.
These virtual upgrades look to be spot on, although
we’ll have to wait until early 2019 to find out, as that’s when the new Audi RS
Q3 is expected to be officially unveiled. For power, Audi Sport is rumored
to employ the use of the turbocharged 2.5-liter five-cylinder engine from the
RS3 Sportback. In the compact hot hatch, the unit generates 400 PS and 480 Nm of torque, and it could very well produce the same
output in the upcoming RS Q3.
If true, it’s expected to complete the zero to
100 km/h run in around 4.5 seconds, and hit a top speed electronically
limited at 250 km/h or 270 km/h.
