Audi Australia says a new plug-in hybrid (PHEV) version of the facelifted A3 is “under consideration” for the Australian market as the premium German auto brand looks to broaden its electrified vehicle range in 2025.
Revealed internationally recently as part of the Audi A3’s mid-life facelift – which is due on sale here in the first half of 2025 – the plug-in hybrid models team a 25.7kWh battery with a 1.5-litre four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine and an 85kW/330Nm electric motor integrated into the transmission.
There have been two tunes announced globally: the Audi A3 40 TFSIe and the A3 45 TFSIe – the former producing 150kW of power and 350Nm of torque, the latter 200kW and 400Nm.
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Those outputs lend the higher-performance A3 45 TFSIe a 0-100km/h acceleration time of 6.3 seconds, Audi says.
However, the bigger headline figure is a claimed electric range of 141km for both variants (WLTP) – a significant improvement on earlier A3 PHEV variants.
Speaking with CarExpert in Sydney last week, Audi Australia product manager Matthew Dale said the upgraded A3 PHEV is a logical fit for the Australian market.
“The PHEV marks a significant step in terms of the electrification of that model platform. That’s under consideration for the Australia market,” he said.
“With PHEVs and EVs in general, the average Australian commute is about 30km to 40km… that’s the beauty of a PHEV like this, because you’re not overextending that range.
“PHEVs are quite intuitive in terms of the user case. They’re a good option for customers who want to dabble in the battery technology without committing to a full EV.”
Across both grades, the 2025 Audi A3 PHEV has a maximum DC charging capacity of 50kW, which Audi claims delivers a 10-80 per cent battery charge in less than 30 minutes. Meanwhile, using its 11kW onboard charger, a full top-up takes about 2.5 hours.
According to Audi Australia product manager Peter Strudwicke, that marks a significant improvement over existing PHEV options in the small car segment.
“The PHEV was available in our previous generation A3, and it was a really good stepping stone in terms of electrification,” he said.
“Even our pre-facelift version of the A3 had a regular hybrid version. However, this is an upgrade with battery capacity and longer range.”
If it does come to Australia, the PHEV variant/s would be offered alongside combustion-powered versions of the facelifted A3.
At the moment, the entry-level Audi A3 TFSI comes with a 1.5-litre turbo-petrol engine with a 48-volt mild-hybrid system for combined outputs of 110kW and 250Nm, delivered to the front wheels via a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission.
An A3 40 TFSI variant has also been offered, powered by a 2.0-litre turbo-petrol engine with 140kW/320Nm outputs, mated to a seven-speed dual-clutch auto and driving all four wheels.
Mr Dale said the PHEV option could bolster an A3 range with greater customer value than before, too.
“For us, A3 is an exciting one. It doesn’t matter if it’s EV or ICE, it’s a segment that’s hotly contested,” he said.
“A3 is a very important model for the Audi brand, and what we’ve done is significantly increase the customer value proposition as part of the facelift as well.
“The facelift will cover A3, S3 and RS3 – we’ve added significant value to that car and we’re confident it will do extremely well.
“Speaking about the life cycle, we don’t know what’s coming after the facelift. If the electrification plan starts to go in that direction that’s where we will start to see some migration.”
Although some suggest the updated A3 marks the beginning of the end for petrol power at Audi – with this current generation said to be the last before Audi’s small car switches to full battery-electric power – it’s possible the PHEV version may delay that shift.
Either way, Audi officials said PHEV technology will take on greater relevance in Australia as the upcoming New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES) takes effect from mid-2025, encouraging carmakers to reduce their CO2 fleet emissions.
“PHEVs will be considered a lot more closely in 2025,” said Audi Australia managing director Jeff Mannering.
“You need to look at what engine portfolio you put into your models – do you add another engine or do you drop one out? It depends on the CO2, the performance and the price you can get it at – and you’ve got to be able to sell volume.”
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