Audi A3 sedan hits the production line; India launch in 2014

The Audi A3 sedan, an entry level luxury sedan from the German luxury car maker owned by the Volkswagen group, has hit the production line at Gyor, Hungary. The car will begin appearing at showrooms in Europe over the next few months. In India, the Audi A3 could be positioned as the least priced model in the German luxury car maker's line up, as a foil to the likes of the Mercedes Benz CLA sedan (also launching in 2014) and the BMW 1-Series hatchback (due for a second half 2013 launch). Audi is bullish about the prospects of the A3 sedan. According to the car maker's own estimates, the A3 sedan could mop up 50% of the total sales coming from the A3 line. 

The sales for the A3 sedan will be driven by markets such as China, the United States and India (to a smaller extent) as car buyers in these markets are said to prefer sedans over hatchbacks. In India, sedans have a snob value that hatchbacks cannot match, at least for now. A case in point is the big demand for compact sedans, which are essentially hatchbacks to which boots are attached. In that light, the Audi A3 sedan, if priced close to the likes of the BMW 1-Series and the Mercedes Benz A-Class hatchbacks, will definitely enjoy an image advantage due to the sheer virtue of it being a sedan. 

The other cars in the A3 line are the 3 door and 5 door hatchback versions, the latter dubbed the Sportback. In future, the hatchback and sedan versions of the Audi A3  are expected to be joined by electric and CNG variants. Aimed at younger buyers seeking to sample what the Audi brand has to offer, the A3 sedan that will be launched in India could feature two engine options: a 1.8 Liter TSI turbo petrol engine (180 Bhp-250 Nm) and a 2 Liter TDI turbo diesel engine (150 Bhp-320 Nm). Both engines are revised versions of motors that already exist in the Volkswagen group's engine line up. A 7 speed DSG automatic gearbox will drive the front wheels of the A3 sedan in India. 

Europe will get another petrol engine option for the A3 sedan, in the form of the 1.4 Liter TSI turbo petrol motor. This engine (140 Bhp-250 Nm) serves as the entry level petrol engine for the A3 sedan range. Notably, the engine gets cylinder deactivation technology, a fuel conserving-tail pipe emission cutting feature, that shuts off 2 cylinders out of 4 during low engine load conditions. Audi India, as confirmed by its Managing Director Mr Michael Perschke, has plans of launching the A3 sedan in India during 2014. The Audi A3 range is based on the Volkswagen group's MQB platform. In that light, the Audi A3 sedan will be the second car based on the MQB platform to be launched in India, after the 2013 Skoda Octavia, which bows in later this year. 

Source AutoNews