All-paw mega-hatch gets even more power — and a higher price The ascent of the humble hot hatch continues. In 1975, the original Volkswagen Golf GTI developed 108bhp, hit 60mph in about nine seconds and weighed just 810kg. Four decades later, the latest Audi RS3 packs 362bhp, wallops to the national limit in half the time and weighs very nearly twice as much. It is, for those who set store by such things, themost powerful production hatchback we’ve yet tested, edging out the almost equally bonkers 18-month-old Mercedes-Benz A45 AMG, precisely as it was meant to.Not dizzying enough for you? The extra power extracted from the 2.5-litre five-cylinder engine makes even the likes of the Porsche Cayman GTS inferior to the RS3 purely on under-bonnet potency. A current Golf GTI is 145bhp less powerful.This kind of reputation, of course, is temporary. Rest assured, as certain as death and taxes, Audi’s German premium-brand competitors won’t rest until the RS3 is no longer sitting pretty on top of the hot hatch horsepower pyramid. And a more permanent sort of reputation – such as the one that makes the 41-year-old Golf GTI revered today – needs thecar in between the numbers to be brilliant.On this point, Audi’s past record is not so hot. The first RS3, powered by a slightly less powerful version of the same engine, was fast, certainly, but it was also as unyielding as a trolley jack and about as much fun to drive.Although it prefers not to concede weaknesses, Quattro GmbH – the maker of all RS-badged Audis – has been quick this time around to emphasise that the latest RS3 not only comes with a new headline power output but also some fettling to the all-wheel drive system to make its handling a little more balanced and interesting.It’s not the first time we’ve heard that from the spin machine at Neckarsulm, yet we live in hope – because the prospect of the RS3 finally becoming the hot hatch doyen that its price has long since suggested it might be is a compelling one.from Autocar RSS Feed http://ift.tt/1MI1Qg0
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