2022 Audi RS 3 Reviews, Pricing & Specs

The A3 is Audi’s most affordable vehicle for the United States, with a starting price of around $36,000. It’s a delightful entry-level luxury sedan that’s fun to drive, comfortable, and has plenty of tech features. Drivers seeking a bit more performance will likely gravitate towards the S3, a sportier version of the A3 that is some $10,000 more and gets a 105-horsepower boost along with sharper handling. It’s much more exciting to drive with minimal sacrifices to ride comfort.

The 2022 Audi RS 3 sedan is the high-performance version, with one more cylinder, even more power, and a chassis tuned for the track. It rides slightly lower than the S3 and has a wider stance, giving it a more hunkered-down, athletic appearance. That look is reinforced by a blacked-out grille that extends into the headlights, stylistically suggesting that it’s larger, to feed a more powerful engine. The RS 3’s design is more aggressive than the sedate A3, but doesn’t come off as cartoonish or juvenile. It meshes perfectly with the RS 3’s personality, best described as “seriously fun.”

On the inside, the RS 3 is more in line with the supporting A3 and S3. The dash features the same bold blade-like slash, which houses glossy displays for infotainment and instruments. The cabin is tastefully understated with only subtle reminders that this is the range-topping model. There’s a badge at the bottom of the steering wheel, as well as an additional RS button on the three-o’clock spoke.

Interior quality is the same as the supporting siblings, with premium materials and robust construction, though the dash topper could use a little improvement. The sport seats feature deeper side bolsters to keep you better secured when cornering, but they’re not overly constricting and don’t impede entry or egress.

Extroverts seeking a more visual impact may be enticed by the Lamborghini-esque Kyalami Green paint and matching interior flourishes. For more modest tastes, the standard and more restrained interior combined with less showy exterior paint give the RS 3 a mischievous sleeper personality, representing a Clark Kent counterpoint to the flashy Superman style.

We are firmly in favor of the subtle, sneaky look, noting that good design typically whispers, rather than shouts. We’ll leave the shouting for the road.

The RS 3 is powered by an unusual 2.5-liter turbocharged five-cylinder engine that produces 401 horsepower and 369 pound-feet of torque. Audi estimates the RS 3 will accelerate to 60 mph in 3.6 seconds on its way to a 155-mph top speed. If you opt for the Dynamic package, that increases to 180 mph. The RS 3 also lapped the Nürburgring Nordschleife in an impressive 7 minutes 40.748 seconds.

At idle and at low engine speeds, the engine feels and sounds a bit rough, but in a good way. It’s similar to a hot-rodded motor or a V-twin Ducati, suggesting that this engine wasn’t designed for loping around. It was meant to run hard and fast, and that’s when the roughness gives way to a smooth flood of power. The engine also sounds different, with a fuller tone that’s bolstered by notes that are reminiscent of a baritone five-part harmony. At full throttle, it crescendos at a higher pitch and is as inspiring as a power chord ripped across a Fender Stratocaster. It may seem trivial, but the RS 3’s engine and exhaust noises encourage you to explore its full potential and add a lot to overall enjoyment.

Mated to the engine is a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission that routes power to all four wheels through Audi’s traditional Quattro all-wheel drive (AWD), but there’s more to that story, too. The RS 3 features a new RS Torque Splitter rear axle that expertly send the right amount of power to the rear wheels to keep it delicately balanced at the handling limit. In particular, more power is sent to the outside wheel in order to reduce understeer, or front-end plow. There’s also a special RS Torque Rear mode that makes it easier to drift with tail-happy joy.

The RS 3 is gifted when it comes to cornering. It’s precise and trustworthy, allowing you to confidently point it into a turn knowing that you have all the grip you need. The Dynamic drive mode firms up the dampers to dial out body roll, but the ride quality is compliant enough to not be affected my mid-corner bumps. Selecting the more serious RS Performance mode sharpens responses from the steering, engine, and transmission. The suspension also feels a bit more rigid in some circumstances, but compliance remains appropriate.

All of this combines to make the RS 3 a better track car than the S3. On public roads, it feels as though you can’t (or at least shouldn’t) realize its full potential, making the S3 our pick in these settings. That said, the RS 3 is well-mannered when driven conservatively. We were concerned that it might have too firm of a ride, but the adaptive dampers in the Comfort drive mode are softened enough to smooth the ride almost as well as the S3.

This range of performance and comfort greatly broadens the RS 3’s appeal. It’s an impressive performer that is easy to drive hard and won’t punish you, either.

There’s plenty of front-seat space for taller drivers and passengers, and the interior feels more spacious than the compact exterior suggests. Primary controls are within easy reach of the driver and they’re logically grouped together. There’s a definite high-tech look and feel to the cockpit and thankfully, there are enough physical buttons and knobs to control the drive modes, climate, and audio with minimal distraction. Nowadays, more carmakers are moving all system controls to a central touchscreen, which results in the driver having to take their eyes off the road to dig through menus.

In terms of personal storage space, the RS 3 is adequate. There’s a rubberized wireless charging pad that keeps your phone from sliding around, a pair of small cupholders, a shallow center armrest bin, and door pockets that can hold a drink bottle.

The rear seats are surprisingly accommodating for adult-sized passengers. A five-foot-ten occupant has enough headroom and legroom to keep from feeling cramped, but there’s not enough room to stretch. These seats are also 40/20/40 split-folding, allowing for some flexibility between passengers and cargo. Speaking of cargo, the trunk is small for the class, at only 8.3 cubic feet. The space is free of obstructions, though, and should be enough for most owners. There’s also a handy spring-loaded hook to keep your bags from tossing their contents.

While these impressions of practicality may seem barely sufficient for the typical sedan, they’re better-than-average for a vehicle with this sort of performance. The RS 3 is definitely a car you can drive seven days a week, rather than a toy to play with on the weekends.

High-performance cars often forego some technology features in a bid to deliver a more visceral and pure driving experience. The RS 3 embraces tech to enhance the joy of driving. The smart Torque Splitter system constantly monitors wheel speed, cornering forces, and steering input to seamlessly maximize grip and balance. You really won’t even know how hard it’s working until you select the RS drive modes. The same holds true for the traction and stability control systems. They’re well-tuned to deliver maximum entertainment and only intervene when you might be getting in over your head.

The infotainment system takes a while to boot-up and also has a slight delay in responses, but is easy to use with a logical menu structure. Wireless versions of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are standard and also take some time to connect upon startup. The Apple CarPlay on-screen app buttons are on the small side, though, and can be difficult to select when in motion. Adding the RS Technology package gets you a navigation system and Audi Connect Plus, which includes a wifi hotspot and remote vehicle monitoring and control via a smartphone app.

Technology is also present on the outside of the RS 3, thanks to matrix-design LED headlights. When driving at night with your high beams on, sensors detect oncoming traffic and block a small section of the light projection to keep from blinding drivers while keeping the high beams active everywhere else. Audi has been using these headlights around the world for a while, but they’ve only recently been approved for use in the U.S.

As of this writing, neither the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) nor the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) have published crash test results of the 2022 Audi RS 3, S3, or the A3 on which they are based. Given Audi’s reputation for safety, we’d be surprised if the RS 3 received anything less than strong evaluation scores.

Standard safety and driver-assist equipment includes adaptive cruise control, forward collision warning with automatic emergency braking, lane-keep assist, parking proximity sensors and a semi-automated parking system. Blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert is also available. The RS Technology package adds a head-up display and a traffic sign reader. In our time with the RS 3, we never experienced any false alarms from the many safety systems and they all operate as intended.

The 2023 Audi RS 3 has a starting price of $59,995 (including destination charges), which is $13,100 more than the Audi S3. The RS 3 doesn’t offer any trim levels but does have several optional features and packages. We’d consider adding the $2,750 RS Technology package for the premium Bang & Olufsen audio system that does a good job of overpowering the engine noise when you’d rather listen to music. For those planning to enjoy the RS 3 on a race track (and really, you should) we suggest adding the $5,500 Dynamic Plus package that adds ceramic front brake rotors and increases top speed to 180 mph.

The RS 3 isn’t cheap, but it is priced in line with the last BMW M2, which delivered similar thrills. A new M2 is on the way and will be the RS3’s primary rival, with the Mercedes-AMG CLA 45 in the mix as well. If you don’t plan on at least a few track day sessions, we recommend going with the more affordable Audi S3, which is almost as much fun on public roads, and a lot cheaper.

It’s also key to remember that high-performance cars are more expensive to maintain. The RS 3’s standard Pirelli P Zero tires, for example, cost around $400 each and the optional P Zero Corsas will set you back $500 each. These tires will wear quicker than your typical all-season tire, especially if you drive the RS 3 as it was intended. So plan on regular—and costly—visits to your local tire shop.

Considering how versatile the RS 3 is, between performance, practicality, and comfort, the cost is justified. You’re getting a lot of behind-the-wheel entertainment in a car that you can drive every day. Who says you can’t have it all?