---
title: '2026 Audi RS3 Review'
source: 'https://youtube.com/watch?v=qAE92HXhMrA'
video_id: 'qAE92HXhMrA'
date: 2026-06-29
duration_sec: 784
---

# 2026 Audi RS3 Review

> Source: [2026 Audi RS3 Review](https://youtube.com/watch?v=qAE92HXhMrA)

## Summary



## Transcript

You're watching Throttle House. I'm
Thomas. And I'm James.
And this is the RS3.
Audi's little 394
horsepower pocket rocket. We've already
shown it going toe-to-toeish with a BMW
M4 [music] Competition in a straight
line, but isn't there more to life than
just being really, really, really
ridiculously quick moving? So, with a
facelift this year, we want to see what
else it's got, and we want to make sure
that the new updates don't subscribe it
to the everinccreasing plague of
inshitification.
Let's do this.
If you're new to Throttle House,
>> we do car reviews, track tests,
and quite a lot of messing around.
So, subscribe and enjoy the show.
[music]
>> Ready?
>> Yep.
>> Just smoked all four tires.
Okay.
>> Oh, that is really, really quick. I
forgot how quick it is.
>> It's quick. It's quick. 3.8 seconds to
62 mph.
>> And the sound of the five cylinder.
>> Oh yes. [laughter]
So, today we celebrate that this is now
available in Canada, the return of the
RS3. Now, we did sneakily film one of
these, even when it was US only,
>> Jesus.
>> But now it's been updated.
This is uh this has always been a
really, really good car. But it brings
up the very important question is why
wouldn't you get a Golf R
>> for the cost saving?
>> For the cost saving because in Canada
anyway, it's like 30 grand cheaper to
get a Golf Rake.
>> I guess the answer is speed, power,
noise,
>> and and a fixed interior. The big big
answer is the extra cylinder because
this noise is unique to this car [music]
now
>> in the world
>> and the TTRS which is gone.
>> That is just it's a it's a little baby
V10. It's half a V10. And I absolutely
love [music] the sound this car makes.
Fivecylinders are really, really funky
engines and I wish we had more of them.
>> Do you remember the firing order?
>> Uh, 1 2 4 53.
>> Correct.
>> Yeah,
>> that was the [laughter]
>> any other math test in the world, you
would have failed.
>> I can't I can't do any numbers in
memory, but that one.
>> So, while we celebrate that this has now
come to Canada, let's also look over the
fact that there is a new interior change
going exteriors as well. We're going to
get to that in a minute. As far as
driving changes are concerned, there's
software tweaks.
>> Yeah, it it's more drifty on corner
entry.
>> Yeah. So, the updates that are always
made to an RS3 is we think we figured
out how to do less under steer.
>> Yes, exactly. And the good news is every
year they do like we put wider tires on
the front, which I think this still has.
>> It does. And then and then it also has
the the torque split in the rear, which
if you I think we've said this a million
times on Throttle House now, but it's
God.
as you were.
>> It can send half of the torque to the
rear and of that half it can send 100%
to an outside wheel when it wants to
drift.
>> I actually have that tattooed to my
back.
>> Yeah.
>> Yeah. Honestly, we need to get the
tattoo. [laughter]
>> It is uh it works really well.
>> No, it actually works really. Only thing
it can't do and the only spot that an
actual rear bias car is superior is that
it can't sustain a drift for a long
period.
>> No. And it feels just like the Golf R
which has the same sort of diff. It
feels quite assisted and digital and
artificial.
>> Yeah. It's like engineered drifting but
it's still fun. Like drifting is
drifting.
>> Yes.
>> Okay. So inside
>> Yeah.
>> You will notice we've got the new Audi
steering wheel.
>> This has been very controversial. The
steering wheel.
>> This bit has people are a fan. So, this
is now a flat bottom and top.
>> Yeah.
>> Yeah. And it's got Dynamica. That's what
they call the Alcantara for Audi.
>> Yeah. They've been doing that for You
haven't called it Dynamica for years.
>> I just I just
>> I only just realized it.
>> Oh. [laughter]
>> And if you option it, which you can't in
North America, they are they make carbon
bucket seats now for the RS3 that have
dynamic inserts and they look wicked.
And we don't get them. We just get the
sport. Of
>> course we don't. Uh, these are quite
comfortable but
>> really like the steering wheel, by the
way. It's nice, isn't it?
>> I really I don't mind the the airbag
shape. I know circles are
>> I I think a little bit sportier looking,
but this works. It just It's a nice
looking wheel.
>> It tells you you can get used to it
because I I hated it in the S5.
>> You did? Yes.
>> And now I'm just like, this is like the
third car I've been in with it. And I'm
like, yeah, it's fine. Yeah.
>> And I I like that we gain the checkered
flag button on the left, which just
takes you immediately into the most
aggressive modes. It wakes up that
exhaust. It wakes up the engine.
It's [music] good. It's good. I really,
really like this car. I honestly I I
really like driving it. I just I think
it's a bit too much money [music] no
matter what you do.
>> Yeah, but it is a lot of car. It is an
all-wheel drive 5cylinder, unique,
really perfectly sized, compact, well
riding in comfort, can be absolutely
normal when you want it to be, and then
breaks Nurburgring lap records when you
put it into the sport mode. It's like,
>> yeah, but what if it was a hatchback?
>> Well, there is one. We just don't get
it.
>> I know. It's annoying.
So, oh yeah, it's it's not anywhere near
a BMW M car in terms of that sense of
the front end grip that just is
unrelenting.
>> And that smells like bias, but Thomas is
not being biased. It is It is different.
>> It is different. It's still very much an
Audi,
>> I have to say. I know the M car has the
better front end grip, but I feel so
much more in control of an Audi RS3.
>> Oh, you are more You are more in control
of an Audi RS3.
>> It's so easy.
>> Yes, it is. No question.
>> It's such a great daily. It's such a
great daily.
>> The ride is I'm even in the stiffest
mode and the ride isn't even bad right
now.
>> I know. I know.
>> If I put it in comfort.
>> And we've got the comes with Audi now.
We got the cartridge shifter instead of
the little
>> Oh, yeah. Okay. It's fine.
>> Little penis we used to have.
>> But yeah, beautiful door cards, carbon
fiber trim. I think these red accents
are new. I don't remember those.
>> And that I could do without those.
>> Yeah, that is about it. That's [music]
about it for the new stuff on the
inside.
>> Yeah, it's a celebration. That's why we
wanted to drive it.
>> Yes. And I I now that I've had a Golf R
for almost 3 years now, I need that
reminder of Oh god, it's so annoying
that I'm in the fixed version. In fact,
the S3,
>> you feel that?
>> Yeah. The rear just starts to I mean,
honestly, after spending some more time
with this car, if I bought a Golf R, I'd
feel like a huge
>> No, it's a [music] huge, huge question.
[laughter]
But the S3 fixes the interior. And now
the S3 has that torque diff split thing
>> and it's got Yeah. And not only is the
interior fixed versus a Golf R in terms
of ergonomics and buttons, even though
they've gone for these sort of half
capacity.
>> Yeah, I don't like these.
>> They're fine. I get over it. Just get
over it.
>> The point is Audi care in a way that
Volkswagen don't. They care so much that
in the press release of this car, they
talked about the smell and how important
the smell is and how many smell testers
go through and in fact because it's so
important to them. And when you get in
an Audi, you do smell Audi, right? When
you get in, you're like, and it's on
purpose, I found out. And once it's all
done, and once it's all checked, there's
[music] five chemists. This feels like
I'm talking about Toyota Dentry. There's
five chemists that have to check and
smell the car to make sure it is up to
Audi standard and smells like an Audi.
>> And that's so funny. All of that work
and pretty much the only thing I can
smell is the [music] schwarma burp that
you did 8 minutes ago.
>> But I I got so much love for the RS3.
I've always had so much love for the
RS3. You know where it's not improved
though?
>> What?
>> It's the exterior.
>> Yes, it has.
>> What's wrong with it? Look at it. I
don't know. Okay, hold on. No, no. I'm
just I'm being silly. I think this is a
good looking car, but I just think that
the previous gen it's really slick. I
think the previous gen RS3 is better
looking.
>> The previous gen was cleaner.
>> Yes.
>> But this has got more muscular. So,
okay. So, on this one, on the the new
facelift, these the way this grill looks
is different for it's more aggressive
for more air intake. And then we have
these lights, which have four different
digital signatures that you can choose.
>> I actually like that.
>> What would you choose out of the four
options?
>> I like the checker one, the uh
>> I see. I thought I'd go for that, but I
like the the sort of three aggressive
one.
>> Yeah. Anyway, I haven't seen that
before, and I think it's actually quite
a cool thing that you can just, you
know,
>> but it's gimmicky, but it's fun. It is
gimmicky, but I like it.
>> I like I like this muscular flare here
on the on this generation. That's not
new.
>> They really went all out. Look at that.
[laughter]
>> That's not new on the face of And then
on the back now we have this new
diffuser with the sort of red reflector.
Looks a bit more race car and absolutely
gigantic R8 looking exhaust pipes. Can
you still get fun colors? This is one of
them.
>> This is not one of the fun colors.
[laughter] He said to me, but it pulled
up today. I forgot about this. He points
out, he goes, "Oh, that's one of the new
grays."
>> Yeah, [laughter] except it's not.
>> That's so far from being interesting,
James.
>> There is a new Daytona gray and there is
a new scari blue and a progressive red.
And this isn't any of them.
>> Why is there more than one gray?
[laughter]
>> Oh, it's one of the new grays.
>> This is just what MX5 [snorts] life is
like cuz that's what we get every year.
>> Yeah.
>> Yeah. You can get this in a fun color. I
would get it in a fun color. I've always
like kyami green because it's just fun
to say. You can you can still get
>> still get karma green
>> and look the Audi's and the A4s as well
and the S4s they there is a group about
A4s which is your car looks like traffic
your car meet looks like traffic because
it does just look like traffic but
that's the beauty of this car if you
want it you can if you want get a Larry
Mustang or M2 this is the under the
radar ridiculously probably quicker in
real life than those cars car
>> I think that
>> also works as a daily
>> I I kind of want an RS badge on the
front.
>> Is it gone?
>> It I mean, was it supposed to have one?
>> No, they there was They've been playing
around with removing them in in
different
>> I'm not sure. I think it's fun cuz it's
it's that little like you see it from
your rearview mirror. Damn, that's the
RS.
>> I 100% agree. I would like an RS3 badge.
>> I don't know. I I I think that the
previous gen was a better looking design
and I don't think I I like this grill
more than the pre I think I like the
previous version of this grill a little
bit better. Yes, I do as well.
>> But I don't know. I It's such an
understated car. I think it needs a
flashy color.
>> That's what I would do.
>> Unless you But that's because you've got
something to prove
>> cuz of what what are you going to say?
>> I was going to say something that I
actually think is quite a dated insult
now. [laughter]
>> All right. Okay. Cuz size doesn't
matter. But I like that you can get this
as an under the radar car. I agree
though it is a slightly boring spec, but
you can absolutely monstrously destroy
everyone on the road. Apart from there's
a few people in the comment section
right now saying, "Uh, actually my Tesla
Model 3 is so much quicker." And to you,
I say 1 12453.
>> That's the firing order in case you
missed the first part of the
>> stick that in your battery and smoke it.
>> So, there we have it. By not changing
that much and despite adding another
gray to the landscape, the RS3 still
remains high in our regard. Perfectly
sized, great performance, unique sound,
and now that the neighboring RS5 has
swung even more grand tour with its
added weight and hybrid system, the RS3
is not just the only nimble Audi RS car
left. It's also just one of their best
cars.
Thanks for watching.