The Soul of an Audi

Recently we had the pleasure of spending a week with Audi’s S3 Premium Plus. As we road-tripped from Utah to Montana and back, the compact sport-sedan left us questioning the definition of what it means to feel connected to the road.

What makes up the soul of a sports car?

Is it the engine? Is it the transmission? A bespoke chassis? Does a car need one certain thing to make those behind the wheel feel connected to the driving experience?

These are questions that enthusiasts have been asking themselves more and more over the last twenty years as automakers have added more and more technology to their products.

In today’s market, modern customers demand comfort, efficiency, and isolation. Gone are the days of premium interiors being wrapped in shiny opulence. Today’s word for luxury has become “minimalist.” Lavish surfaces and meticulously ordered control panels have been replaced by infotainment screens of comically increasing size.

Gone again is the era of choice and customization, when a customer could walk onto any showroom floor in the United States and speak with a salesman about ordering the model of their choice equipped with any combination of options available. From engine displacement to interior materials and even paint color, each new “option” is hidden behind the pay-wall of a Package.

But they aren’t really options, are they?

Move up a level to get your stereo of choice, and you must get the leather seats. Remove the premium exhaust or the custom wheels, and away goes the more powerful engine option. Almost every vehicle in the current market is sold in this new way. Though the industry has grown, conscientious buyers are still left feeling like they somehow have less choice than in years past. Due to constant efforts to reduce production cost and increase profits, enthusiasts and casual buyers alike have suffered.

Further limiting options in modern vehicles are environmental regulations. On this point, I’ll give manufacturers credit. As regulations tighten their stranglehold on displacement, modern turbo technology has given rise to a new generation of smaller engines. Engines that are in many cases nearly as powerful or sometimes more so than their predecessors with higher cc’s.

Manual transmissions have, in many cases, been another casualty of this war on cost and inefficiency. Many automakers simply don’t see returns on the cost of tooling necessary to provide a manual gearbox in most cars. While commuter vehicles suffer the worst, many of the sportier options in each segment have met the same fate.

This is the world we live in, the backdrop for which I was given this:

The 2025 Audi S3 Premium Plus

Engine: 2.0-liter turbocharged inline-4 0-60 mph: 4.4 seconds

Horsepower: 328 hp Top Speed: 155 mph

Torque: 295 lb-ft Curb weight: 3,400 lbs

Transmission: 7-speed dual-clutch automatic Fuel Economy: 26 mpg combined

Drivetrain: Quattro all-wheel drive MSRP: $49,995 - $56,195 (Price as tested: $52,395)

At this point you might be wondering, “Is this car the exception to the rule? A callback to a bygone era?”

Not even close. This car plays victim to every plague the car community faces in the modern era.

And it still f*cks.

Packing a 2.0 liter turbocharged inline 4-cylinder (how small did you say?) and mated to a 7-speed automatic (seriously you don’t even get to row your own gears), this car sports the name “Premium Plus” to emphasize which package the buyer has chosen. But what if I wanted the blacked-out wheels? Guess I should have sprung for the "prestige" package...

So the S3 has a small engine, no manual, and is ingratiated in the tiered structure of modern automotive packaging.

That's 3-strikes. Actually 4; if you count the fact that it sits on essentially the same MQB chassis as a Volkswagen Golf.

So… what makes this thing so damn special? In a world where every normal, boring commuter sports a small displacement turbo-four, shared chassis and auto gearbox? What gives this car a soul?

Driving Impressions

I started my journey with the Audi S3 off by asking myself a more simple question: what makes a great luxury sport sedan?

Arriving at the appointed destination to pick up my ride I noted that the S3 immediately met condition #1: strikingly good looks. Though this is the most compact version of Audi’s current design language in their sport sedan lineup, the S3 has an unquestionably sharp design. I found this example wearing District Green Metallic paint, and sporting it’s aggressive front fascia like a sinister predator, ready to pounce.  

As I swapped my luggage over from our rented adventure-ready jeep loaded down with camping gear, I noted that the German Engineering Team had accounted for condition #2: usability; and given it to us in spades. The trunk offered ample room for all our bags stuffed to the brim for a 2-week road trip. I’d later find that the rear seats offered ample room for a short drive around town with some friends, although taller passengers would likely have become cramped if pushed for a longer stint.

Nevertheless, the S3 Proved to be a perfect cross-country tourer for two. Compact though it may be, the front seats were plush and supportive for our all-day drive out of Salt Lake and up to Jackson Hole. With infinite adjustability from the electric controls, we both found our sweet spot and started chewing up the miles.

Crossing a curvy mountain pass between Salt Lake and Park City, the metallic green Audi showed us it’s performance and handling chops. Ripping up and down the mountain at breakneck speed, anyone behind the wheel would’ve been hard pressed to remember that this beast was riding on a Golf chassis.

Dropping the drive selector into sport mode, the ride stiffened, and the RPMs rose as the dual clutch 7-speed worked just as much magic on it’s own as we could with the paddles. In auto mode the transmission knew what gear to be in at all times, and the shifts were snappy and efficient in manual.

As the Quattro AWD system gripped the road without a falter, the little 2.0 liter sang a song so beautiful we actually had to get out and look to make sure there wasn’t a V-8 hiding under the hood. Seriously, the S3 is without a doubt the best sounding 4 cylinder on the market. And the only one that sounds good at low RPMs. No other 4-banger we’ve driven hits a perfect bass note without being obnoxious. Crisp and clean even at casual speeds around town and out of sport mode, the low growl of the S3’s exhaust note made us crack smiles daily for the duration of our trip.

Condition #3: Performance and Handling; Check. And serious bonus points for surprising sound quality.

A Sedan Worth Savoring

So just like that, the S3 proved itself to be a contender, if not the leader in the compact sport sedan arena. But I couldn’t help but feel like this car was something more than simply a bright spot in the sport-luxury segment.

This car defied logic.

Despite being powered by a 4-cylinder turbo mated to an automatic transmission, and riding on a front wheel-biased AWD system, this car had a soul. No doubt about it.

But how is this possible? The S3 is a vehicle plagued by nearly every symptom of what’s wrong with the current market. But it still excites. It still begs to be driven. It makes you WANT to drive.

Around the block, across town, over a mountain, across the country, anywhere. The S3 simply delights in spirited driving. Despite every compromise, every modern convenience that enthusiasts love to hate.

Against all odds, Audi’s standout sport-sedan offers a surprising amount of driving engagement; and leaves you wanting more.

Which brings us back to the question at hand. What makes up the soul of a sports car? 

The Audi S3’s soul is one of eager connection to the driver. It doesn’t need an oversized engine, a bespoke chassis, or even a manual transmission. The S3’s individual components appear to be a recipe that spells disappointment for the enthusiast. But the Audi is better than the sum of its parts; and executes perfectly in every meaningful category.

The Dual Clutch feels made for this turbo four, and Audi’s torque management system livens up even this “safety oriented” all-wheel drive setup. Meanwhile the exhaust is tuned to perfectly sing this motor’s engine note. It all works together to deliver an engaging driving experience that you just can’t get enough of.

Our week with the S3 went by too fast. But it didn’t take 7-days for us to learn: the soul of a sports car can’t be determined by one attribute. No single component, no stat on the build sheet could have ever given us an indication of how much fun this car would be.

This Audi makes it clear: the soul of any great car lies in its ability to connect with the driver.