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By Jonathan Crouch

The much improved Audi A3 40 TFSI e Plug-in Hybrid looks to offer a smart way of combining petrol and electric power. Jonathan Crouch reports.

Ten Second Reviewword count: 63

The Audi A3 40 TFSI e Plug-in Hybrid makes some interesting numbers. It's claimed to return up to 941.6mpg, emit up to 6g/km of CO2, offer 88 miles of EV range and get to 62mph in just 7.4 seconds. Real world economy is way below this number, and the asking price isn't inexpensive but this is a very complete piece of Ingolstadt engineering.

Backgroundword count: 154

It'll be interesting to see how long the Plug-in Hybrid era lasts. Some European governments say they're already looking to ban cars like these by 2035 - which seems a bit premature, particularly as PHEV tech is now really getting into gear. To an extent showcased in the premium compact hatch segment by this car, the Audi A3 Sportback 40 TFSI e. Audi's been offering a Plug-in Hybrid version of the A3 since it launched the A3 e-tron, back in 2016, always with the Sportback body style. The 'e-tron' badge is these days reserved for the brand's full-EVs and was removed from the A3 PHEV in 2020 when the MK4 A3 design arrived in 40 TFSI e Plug-in Hybrid form. Four years on, to coincide with the fourth generation A3 facelift, the PHEV drivetrain gained a much larger battery and an uprated 1.5-litre engine to create the car we're going to look at here.

Driving Experienceword count: 319

Conventional A3 Sportbacks offer a degree of electrification but the mild hybrid lower order petrol versions of this car aren't proper hybrids. If you want an A3 that is, you'll need the PHEV model, specifically the 40 TFSI e variant we look at here. As before, this Plug-in Hybrid borrows the latest version of its drivetrain from a PHEV segment pioneer, Volkswagen's Golf GTE, which means a four cylinder TSI petrol engine now up in size from 1.4 to 1.5-litres, mated as before to a 6-speed DSG auto gearbox. The electric motor this package works with remains at 115PS in output (creating total powertrain output of 204PS) but is now mated to a much larger 25.7kWh lithium-ion battery (up from 13kWh) that when fully charged can offer a WLTP-rated all-electric driving range of up to 88 miles (it was previously 41 miles). And a (rather academic) all-electric top speed of up to 87mph (7mph up). Rely primarily on petrol power and the 62mph sprint occupies just 7.4s en route to 140mph. Starting is always electric, even when the temperature drops down to -28° C. The driver can prioritize electric drive with the EV button in the switch panel or by selecting it in the MMI centre screen, which enables the vehicle to operate like a fully electric model. In 'Auto Hybrid', the primary operating mode, the combustion engine and electric motor share the work intelligently - purely electric driving at low speeds, with the TFSI engine taking priority at higher speeds; often both drive together. Depending on the situation, the A3 Sportback 40TFSI e can coast, recuperate - both in thrust and braking - or boost together with the electric motor and TFSI. In addition, the hybrid management system keeps the battery charge level constant to save enough electrical energy for later use, for example, in a low-emission zone. Otherwise, it's just like any other A3 Sportback to drive.

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