Audi Q3 review

The Audi Q3 is an upmarket compact SUV that delivers owners loads of high-tech features and lots of cabin space. It’s not that enjoyable to drive, however

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wowscore
8/10
This score is awarded by our team of
expert reviewers
This score is awarded by our team of expert reviewers
after extensive testing of the car

What's good

  • Packed with latest tech
  • Roomy cabin for passengers
  • Big boot compared with alternatives

What's not so good

  • Automatic gearbox can feel unresponsive
  • Less fun to drive than some alternatives
  • Some desirable features cost extra

Find out more about the Audi Q3

Is the Audi Q3 a good car?

The Audi Q3 is a spacious and stylish family SUV with a great interior and lots of hi-tech features. It’s an alternative to the BMW X1 and Volvo XC40 and sits between the Q2 and Q5 in the enormous range of SUVs available in Audi’s line-up.

That line-up can be a bit like watching Eastenders and trying to decide which Mitchell brother is on the screen – they do look very similar. That’s good in some cases and bad in others, depending on the price they’re charging. The Q3 is, thankfully, in the sweet spot.

The Audi Q3’s grille looks like a smaller version of the Q8’s, for example, while the exterior design is similar to the Q5’s, but smaller. This kind of Russian-doll styling is common in a lot of car manufacturers, so we can’t hold too much of a grudge.

All Audi Q3s get a set of digital dials with sat-nav functionality and more, which is great to see – and the standard infotainment screen is sharp and easy to use. The Q3 scores highly for tech, as it feels like a more expensive model in that regard.

It’s a similar story when it comes to upholstery and interior materials, as the Q3 is well-built, looks smart and has some customisation options including an Alcantara trim that looks and feels great.

It has a typically high-up SUV driving position with plenty of adjustment, which means you can get comfortable quite easily. Plus there’s lots of room in the front seats and no headroom issues at all.

There’s no doubt the Audi Q3 has been inspired by the vast Q8 SUV – that giant grille, for example, makes it look just like a toddler that’s trying on its Grandparent’s dentures

Mat Watson
Mat Watson
carwow expert

Plus, in the rear seats the Q3 has more room than you’ll find in many other cars of this size, and you can slide the rear seats forwards and backwards to prioritise either passenger legroom or boot space.

Impressively, even with the back seats in their most rearward position, there’s more space in the boot than you get in a BMW X1. With them set forward, the boot is really big and practical. Fold the back seats down and there’s easily enough room to carry a bicycle.

There are a few engines to choose from, starting with a 150hp petrol engine in the 35 TFSI model going right up to a 233hp petrol in the 45 TFSI, with 150hp and 190hp diesels in the mix as well. The entry point makes the most sense for most people as it’s better value for money.

A seven-speed automatic is available, but as it’s a bit slow to respond when you put your foot down, the manual model is absolutely fine. Some models have four-wheel drive (Audi calls it quattro) for extra grip, but it’s not necessary and adds to the cost.

Though the Audi Q3 is comfortable and composed, it’s more suited to motorways than country roads. It has a slightly stiff edge to the ride in versions with larger wheels and stiffer sports suspension, but at higher speeds, it’s smooth enough.

Light steering means it’s easy to drive, but it’s not particularly fun – a BMW X1 or Mini Countryman is a better choice for those who love driving. You get plenty of active safety kit as standard, but you’ll have to pay extra for adaptive cruise control.

The Audi Q3 is a great all-around family SUV, with strengths in the key areas buyers of these cars want. It’s spacious and has a great interior with loads of tech included, even if it’s on the expensive side. Still, you should be able to find a good deal by heading over to our deals page.

How practical is it?

The Audi Q3 might be a fairly compact SUV, but there’s loads of space inside for tall adults – the only real criticism is that there’s a large lump in the floor that cuts into a middle passenger’s foot space.

Boot (seats up)
380 - 530 litres
Boot (seats down)
1,375 - 1,525 litres

The Audi Q3’s tall body and boxy styling mean there’s plenty of space inside. You’ll have more than enough room to get comfortable in the front if you’re very tall, and there’s ample adjustment in the seat and steering wheel to help you easily find your ideal driving position.

Manual seat adjustment comes as standard, but you can upgrade to a mid-range S line model to get electrically adjustable seats with added lumbar support to help prevent annoying backache on long drives.

Space in the back seats is very good, too. The Q3’s tall body and fairly large rear door openings mean you don’t have to stoop or step down to climb in and even six-foot-tall adults have enough leg and headroom to sit behind an equally tall driver.

There’s plenty of space under the front seats for your rear passengers’ feet, but a sizeable lump in the floor means someone sitting in the middle will feel slightly more cramped than those in the outer two seats. Shoulder space is still pretty good though, so you can carry three adults side-by-side for reasonably long journeys without them having too much to complain about.

You can also slide the rear seats forwards and backwards by up to 15cm to give your passengers a smidge more legroom or expand the boot if the back seats aren’t being used. With the rear seats moved as far forward as they go, there’s only enough legroom for kids or small adults to sit in the back, though.

Fitting a large child seat is much easier with the seats slid backwards. There’s plenty of space to lift the seat through the Audi Q3’s rear doors and the Isofix anchor points are simple to locate, too.

The Audi Q3’s front door bins are wide enough to hold a 1.5-litre bottle each and there are two large cupholders in the centre console that’ll think nothing of swallowing a giant service station coffee. The glovebox is reasonably deep – but nothing to write home about – and there’s space for a few drinks cans or a couple of phones under the central armrest in the front.

In the back, you get another folding armrest between the rear seats with two built-in cup holders and space for a litre bottle in each rear door bin. Beside each outer rear seat, there’s a handy storage tray that’s big enough to tuck plenty of assorted family bits and bobs neatly out of sight.

The Audi Q3’s 530-litre boot is larger than that in the BMW X1 and significantly more spacious than in the Mercedes GLA. It’s large enough to carry as many as four suitcases and plenty of bulky soft bags under the load cover but you can slide the rear seats all the way forward to boost its capacity by an extra 215 litres – just be careful not to lose small items in the deep gap behind the back seats.

If you need to carry tall boxes, you can lift out the parcel shelf and store it in a handy gap under the boot floor – although you will need to remove two small boards before it’ll fit properly. The boot floor itself is height adjustable to minimise the load lip by the boot opening, too. With it in its most raised position, there’s no load lip to worry about so it’s easy to slide in heavy boxes.

The back seats flip down in a three-way split so you can carry two passengers in the back and some long luggage poking through from the boot at once. You have to flip the seats down from the back doors rather than the boot, but once they’re folded away the Audi Q3’s load bay grows to 1,525 litres – only just shy of the space you get in a BMW X1.

There’s enough room to carry a bike with both its wheels attached and the flat floor makes it easy to slide large or heavy items right up behind the front seats. You also get some tether points and shopping hooks to stop smaller items rolling around when you’re driving.

What's it like to drive?

The Audi Q3 is a doddle to drive and comes with a fair amount of safety kit as standard, but if you’re after for a sporty SUV you’ll have to look elsewhere…

You can get the Audi Q3 with three petrol and two diesel engines and with either a manual or an automatic gearbox. Most come with front-wheel drive as standard, but you can pay extra to get more powerful models fitted with quattro four-wheel drive instead.

If you don’t do many miles a year, you’ll want to choose the 35 TFSI model, with a 150hp 1.5-litre petrol engine. It’s slightly slower than the cheapest diesel models (accelerating from 0-62mph takes a pretty leisurely 9.3 seconds) but it’s smoother and will prove cheaper to run if you do lots of short journeys around town.

There’s a more powerful 40 TFSI model with a 190hp 2.0-litre petrol engine – that’s worth considering if you do a mix of inner-city and countryside driving – and an even sportier 230hp model in 45 TFSI trim. The latter’s more expensive to buy and can’t match the fuel economy of the diesel versions on motorway journeys. It will accelerate from 0-62mph in a reasonably brisk 6.3 seconds.

If you’re a high-mileage driver, one of the two diesels will be much more suitable. Your choice consists of two 2.0-litre four-cylinder units producing 150hp and 190hp. The former – called the 35 TDI – is pretty sluggish, but suits those looking for an economical motorway cruiser. The 190hp version is faster and returns similar fuel economy, but it costs more to buy.

Neither diesel can match the smoothness of the petrol engines, but they all settle into a quiet cruise without any unpleasant vibrations or drones.

The standard six-speed manual gearbox is relatively slick and easy to use in traffic, but if you regularly get stuck in long tailbacks you’ll want to upgrade to the optional seven-speed automatic. It doesn’t lurch at slow speeds and helps take the stress out of long drives but can be slow to hook up from a standstill and change down when you accelerate hard to overtake slow-moving traffic – especially in Comfort or Eco mode.

You sit higher up in the Audi Q3 than in a conventional family car, so you get a good view out over traffic. The pillars between the windscreen and the front doors aren’t particularly large, but it’s still a touch tricky to spot smaller cars approaching at junctions.

Rear visibility is pretty good, though, and you can get parking sensors and a 360-degree surround-view system to help make the Audi Q3 easy to park. In all but Dynamic mode, the steering’s nice and light, too, so your arms won’t start to ache when you’re manoeuvring the Audi Q3 through tight city streets.

Speaking of which, the Q3’s standard suspension does a decent job ironing out the sort of bumps you’ll find in town. Models with the lowered sports suspension and larger alloy wheels feel significantly firmer.

You can pay extra to get the Audi Q3 with adaptive suspension that lets you choose between softer, comfort-focussed setups and stiffer, more sporty settings. Even in the firmest Dynamic mode, however, the Q3 is no sports car. It doesn’t lean too much in tight corners, but the sluggish automatic gearbox and light steering contribute to it feeling less athletic than a BMW X1.

Head out onto a motorway, though, and the Audi Q3 shows itself to be a comfortable and relaxing cruiser. You won’t hear a great deal of wind or tyre noise at speed, but you do have to pay extra for adaptive cruise control that’ll help maintain a safe distance between you and other cars.

Other features you’ll want to consider forking out for include rear cross-traffic assist – that’ll help stop you reversing out of parking spaces into the path of other cars – and traffic jam assist that’ll accelerate and brake for you in heavy traffic.

Thankfully, automatic emergency braking, lane keeping assist and blind-spot detection all come as standard. Something that contributed towards the Audi Q3 achieving the full five stars in its Euro NCAP crash test.

What's it like inside?

The Audi Q3’s interior looks far more futuristic than in most small SUVs. It gets lots of kit as standard, too, but the most eye-catching trims and colours are reserved for top-spec cars.

Audi Q3 colours

Solid - Ibis white
Free
Metallic - Chronos grey
From £575
Metallic - Floret silver
From £575
Metallic - Glacier white
From £575
Metallic - Mythos black
From £575
Metallic - Nano grey
From £575
Metallic - Navarra blue
From £575
Metallic - Tango red
From £575
Pearl - Daytona grey
From £575
Special solid - Pulse orange
From £575
Special solid - Turbo blue
From £575
Next Read full interior review
Buy or lease the Audi Q3 at a price you’ll love
We take the hassle and haggle out of car buying by finding you great deals from local and national dealers
RRP £31,625 - £45,380 Avg. carwow saving £856 off RRP
carwow price from
Cash
£30,506
Monthly
£368*
Used
£23,998
Ready to see prices tailored to you?
Compare new offers Compare used deals
Audi Q3
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