Audi A3 Saloon

35 TFSI Black Edition 4dr S Tronic [2025]

If you had seen an Audi on the road in the late 20th century, the chances are it would have been a saloon, which dominated its range for a time.

Estate cars have also been prominent in recent decades, and, of course, the surging popularity of SUVs means you can ride high in an Audi of just about any size today.

The SUV trend means that the popularity of the traditional family hatchback and saloon is diminishing. So, it was somewhat of a surprise when Audi took the former - a hatchback - and made it into the latter - a saloon.

The first-generation Audi A3 was first unveiled as a three-door hatch in 1995, before a five-door version, called the Sportback, was introduced in 2004, derived from the second-generation model.

However, when the third-generation model kicked in during 2012, Audi unveiled a saloon version, which debuted the next year, followed by a cabriolet in 2014.

The current fourth-generation A3 was ushered in during 2020, but only features the five-door ‘Sportback’ and the saloon.

Now it's had a facelift.

Does that bring it back to the front regarding the tiniest executive saloons?

We will see if we can find out.