Audi’s Q3 is now in its third and biggest ever generation with new looks, new tech and an odd new approach to stalks.

Audi is on a bit of a roll at the moment, with a whole lot of new products bursting forth from Ingolstadt’s corridors. The last twelve months has seen a geyser of machinery including the lovely new A5, the A5 Avant, the Q5 and accompanying SQ5, the A3 update and this very important new Q3.

As is Audi’s wont, the looks are an evolution, the powertrains very familiar but there’s a lot that’s gone on to make it feel like a genuinely new car, even if a bit safe and, like the cars I’ve just mentioned, Not Quite Finished.

How much is an Audi Q3 what do I get?

The Q3 comes in two body flavours, the SUV with its more upright backside and the slightly swoopier Sportback. As you can see it’s an almost Mazda-like range, running from the front-wheel drive three-cylinder turbos to the quattro 2.0-litre TFSI with 195kW.

There were a bunch of Launch Editions when the car was released in April, but probably not relevant at this point, so I’ve left them out.

Model	+ ORC
Q3 SUV TFSI 110kW	$61,600
Q3 Sportback TFSI 110kW	$64,600
Q3 SUV TFSI 150kW quattro S Line	$70,200
Q3 Sportback TFSI 150kW quattro	$72,700
Q3 SUV TFSI 195kW quattro	$81,900
Q3 Sportback TFSI 195kW quattro	$84,400

My ride for the week was the spiciest on offer, the Q3 Sportback TFSI 195kW quattro, a snappy title if ever there was one.

At $84,400 before on-roads, you still can pack it with more options, as you’ll shortly see.

This one leaves the factory with 20-inch Audi Sport alloys, progressive steering, S-Line styling pack, auto LED headlights with auto high beam, auto wipers, powered and heated exterior mirrors, panoramic glass sunroof, LED taillights with illuminated Audi rings and a powered tailgate.

Inside you’ll find more S-Line styling cues, acoustic glass for the front windows, heated and powered front sport seats, fake leather, aluminium inlays, coloured ambient lighting, 12-speaker Sonos-branded audio, head-up display, wireless phone charging with cooling, adaptive cruise, parking sensors and 360-degree cameras.

The new Audi MMI system features a 12.8-inch media screen to go with the 11.9-inch virtual cockpit, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, remote connectivity with Audi Connect Plus and various other systems.

This car also had matt effect Madeira Brown paint for $6370, advanced lighting package for $4225 and exterior black pack for $2080. The 20-inch wheels were switched for a different pattern for a further $650. None of these things are anything but cosmetic except for some of the lighting functionality.

This took the total price to $97,725.

Cabin

It’s really nice in here and extremely spacious. The difference between the Q3 and Q5 is bafflingly small but the price difference isn’t.

The front seats are very comfortable and despite my terrible photos making the leather look shiny and slippery, it isn’t. Everything is nicely put together and the worst of the plastics are down where they should be, where you kick them when you get in. That’s kind of the point of them.

The steering wheel is heated, you get a panoramic glass roof, privacy glass, S-Line stuff everywhere, stainless steel pedals, a black headlining, a head-up display and a Sonos-branded sound system.

Behind the wheel is Audi’s wacky new stalk replacement. Car companies all over the world are cleaning up the centre console by moving the shifter to the right hand side replacing what used to the wiper stalk.

Of course, that makes everything really annoying to use, as seen in the Q5 and A5 with the giant panel of buttons on the door pull instead of, well, a door pull. For the smaller cars, including A3, Audi has gone with a weird vertical flap on either side of the steering column.

I like the idea but I’m not in love with the execution. It feels clicky and while not exactly flimsy, I was left a bit cold. But as I spent more time with it and the funny little dial for the wipers, I grew to see how it solves the left-hand-stalk-with-everything in it conundrum.

Truth be told, it felt like something Citroen would have done in the 1980s in its CX had they half the chance and I am on board with Weirdly French Things. Odd at first, then second nature.

And no Spiderman ads in the screen, if you’re wondering (yes I know, BMW Australia wasn’t silly enough to do that and good for them)(I mean, honestly, who thought that was a good idea and then when it wasn’t, defend it as a “themed experience” – get wrecked).

Safety

ANCAP: 5 Stars

Along with the usual airbags galore (10, I think), you get active lane assist, junction assist, around-view cameras, front and rear parking sensors, park assist, speed sign recognition, front and rear AEB and plenty of other bits and pieces.

Like just about everything these days it’s a bit pushy on the lane assist, but it’s not as intrusive as some.

Service and Warranty

Audi offers a five-year/unlimited kilometre warranty with a five year roadside assist package.

A prepaid service plan – always the wisest choice with a German brand – runs for five years and will cost $3330. A further two years of warranty and service is another $3250.

If that latter figure seems steep – and it is – it’s in today’s money and if you run your cars into the ground or for a long time, it’s worth it.

Chassis and Drivetrain

2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
195kW/400Nm
7-speed twin-clutch gearbox
All-wheel drive
0-100km/h: 5.7 seconds
Fuel economy (claimed): 8.1L/100km

VW’s EA888 returns for more duty. It seems to be in everything now, and I’m not complaining. It’s a ripper of an engine whether bumbling along in 150kW guise or nearly double that in a Tiguan R (well, the old one).

In the Q3 it comes in 195kW tune with 400Nm for a decently swift run to 100km/h in 5.7 seconds, which is (very) warm hatch territory.

The seven-speed gearbox is very well-acquainted with this engine and as before, is just getting better and better with every version. It’s almost as good as Hyundai-Kia’s spectacular eight-speed twin-clutch as found in the i30 N, Kia Sorento and all manner of cars from that maker.

Underneath you’ll find the MQB Evo platform, which is exactly no surprise to anyone who has been paying attention, with struts up front and multi-link suspension at the rear.

Here in this version you get adaptive damping which respond to changes in the drive mode to firm things up in Sport or calm things down in comfort.

The red brake calipers don’t mean anything, but they look good on darker cars (in my humble opinion).

Driving

The first Q3 was fine, I guess. It really did feel like a raised A3 because, well, that’s what it was. It wasn’t its own thing so the pedals were in the wrong place in relation to the seat and really it could just have been more friendly.

People bought it by the boatload, so what the hell did I know back then? Or now, really. It looked pretty good for its time, though and given the competition was the original X1, that’s unintentionally damning it with faint praise.

Anyway this is the third-generation Q3 now. It still shares much with the A3 but that means it shares much with so many other cars as well. The Germans do platform-sharing extremely well and MQB has continued to spit out all manner of excellent vehicularage for well over a decade now.

Straight away this Q3 feels a lot more capable than the old one, which was a pretty good car. Obviously being the top of the range with all the gear and the most powerful engine, it should feel it.

I really like the way this car drives. It’s actually been a them of Q3s to not be overtly SUV feeling, which is why I’ve liked them despite not always being the most comfortable to drive. Things have improved slightly in this generation because I feel like the wheel comes out further meaning I can sit further back and not scrunch up my ankles.

Once I’m comfortable, it’s raring to go. You can actually have some genuine fun in the Q3 and I very much enjoyed ripping around in it. The seats are comfortable and grippy, the steering wheel just right – I quite like these squared-off wheels – and the engine and gearbox happy to work together.

My only gripe was that the ride can be a little spiky on rumbly concrete, but that’s about it.

The bumbling around feel is good, with quick enough steering, responsive brakes and good front grip. It makes any drive quite pleasant.

Actually, there is more than one grip and that’s the software. The Q3 seems to have landed the way the A5 and Q5 landed late last year with glitchy, annoying software. Apple CarPlay was an occasional struggle to work reliably and I didn’t pass any toll gantries (well, when I did, the connection held).

Given the A5 and Q5 cleaned up their acts by early this year, I’m fully expecting the same of the Q3.

Redline Recommendation

I think the Q3 is the best mid-size SUV you can buy. The related Cupra Terramar runs it close but the Q3 is, ultimately, a bit more practical and with up-to-the-minute gear.

It looks good even in this weird Madeira Brown matt that presents as a deep grey except, of course, in my photos.

It drives really well, has room for the family and their stuff and you could point this at a far away destination and arrive perfectly intact.

Or you can chuck it around a bit and have some fun. And if you can’t stretch to – or wait for – the expected next version of the RSQ3, this is not a bad choice at all.