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First Drive Review: 2025 Audi RS 3 Packs Serious Performance Into a Small Sedan

The 2025 Audi RS 3 keeps its distinctive five-cylinder and focuses its update on more precise cornering, with a torque-splitting rear axle and track-focused options.
Entry690 Date Time4 min MechanicCarCody Team

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The 2025 Audi RS 3 makes its case with a rare combination: a compact-sedan footprint, a distinctive five-cylinder engine, quattro all-wheel drive and a rear-axle torque splitter designed to sharpen cornering. Audi’s update focuses on chassis precision and coordinated controls, not more engine output. Car and Driver’s road test likewise describes the change as adding precision rather than power.

What changed for 2025?

Audi revised the RS 3’s chassis setup and the way its control systems work together, aiming for more precise cornering. The update also brings revised exterior details, available RS bucket seats and new standard tires, according to Audi. The 2.5-liter five-cylinder’s performance figures were not increased as part of this update.

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That distinction matters: this is an effort to make the existing powertrain and all-wheel-drive system feel more composed and responsive through a corner, rather than a headline-grabbing engine upgrade. Car and Driver’s test characterizes the result as greater precision, while highlighting the engine’s sound and the car’s handling balance. Audi’s August 2024 update announcement and Car and Driver’s 2025 road test describe the changes.

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How the RS torque splitter changes cornering

The RS torque splitter can vary how drive torque is distributed between the rear wheels. Audi says this helps the car turn more eagerly while also supporting stability; it is a handling aid within the quattro all-wheel-drive system, not a switch that turns the RS 3 into a rear-wheel-drive car.

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Audi describes the torque splitter working in coordination with electronic stabilization control, brake torque vectoring and adaptive dampers, with their behavior adjusted according to the selected drive mode. In Audi’s words, “The fully variable torque distribution on the rear axle enables not only increased agility but also more stability – an advantage in everyday driving as well as on the racetrack.” This is Audi’s explanation of the system, not an independent measurement of how much faster it makes the car. Audi’s June 2025 explanation of the RS 3’s driving systems provides the technical description and quote.

Why the five-cylinder is central to the car’s character

The RS 3’s 2.5-liter five-cylinder stands out as much for its character as for its performance role. Its distinctive firing sequence gives the engine a sound that helps separate the car from more conventional compact sport sedans. Car and Driver calls out that soundtrack in its road test alongside the revised handling behavior.

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The update does not add engine output, so the appeal is the combination of the familiar five-cylinder character with more carefully tuned chassis responses. Audi’s release emphasizes the RS 3’s sensory character, while Car and Driver’s drive report supplies the independent publication’s impressions of the sound and handling. Audi’s update announcement and Car and Driver’s road test discuss those qualities.

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What the Nürburgring time does—and does not—show

Audi reported a 7:33.123-minute lap of the 20.832-kilometer Nürburgring Nordschleife for the updated RS 3 in 2024, more than seven seconds quicker than the pre-facelift car by Audi’s comparison. The time came from a preproduction car using a specific performance setup: semi-slick tires developed jointly by Pirelli and Audi, ceramic brakes, adaptive dampers and optimized chassis tuning.

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It is therefore not a lap time established for an otherwise standard U.S. customer car. The figure demonstrates what Audi says the revised chassis can do in that record configuration; it does not tell an owner what their own car will achieve on a different tire, surface or setup. Audi’s record announcement describes the setup and result.

Is the 2025 Audi RS 3 practical for everyday driving?

The available evidence supports the RS 3 as a car engineered to combine cornering performance with everyday stability, but it does not establish a universal verdict on ride comfort or suitability for every commute. The torque splitter and coordinated chassis systems are designed to serve both road and track use; buyers should consider the tires, brakes and optional equipment on the individual car, as those choices can affect how well it suits their roads and intended use.

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Audi says the 2025 update includes new standard tires and offers RS bucket seats. Its Nürburgring record setup used semi-slick tires and ceramic brakes, while Car and Driver discusses optional R-compound track tires and packages. These track-oriented choices are not interchangeable with a blanket recommendation for everyday street use. Confirm the exact equipment and intended use with the seller, and verify any replacement tire’s size, clearance, load and speed ratings, season suitability and road-use legality before buying.

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Car and Driver also reported that its test car needed cooling between launch-control runs and later stopped engaging launch control after repeated launches. That is an observation about that publication’s test car under repeated testing, not a universal operating rule or evidence that every RS 3 behaves the same way. Car and Driver’s test report describes its observations; its 2025 RS 3 overview provides additional model context.

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What to check when shopping

  • Model year: Check the year on the vehicle and its documentation. Audi USA’s current 2027 RS 3 page lists 394 hp, 369 lb-ft and a 3.6-second 0–60-mph claim for that later model; those are not verified 2025 specifications and should not be applied to a 2025 car. Audi USA’s 2027 RS 3 page.
  • Equipment: Confirm whether the specific car has RS bucket seats, which tires and brakes are fitted, and whether it includes track-focused options. Do not assume the Nürburgring record setup describes a showroom configuration.
  • Intended use: Decide how much of the car’s appeal is daily-road comfort versus occasional track driving. Tire and brake choices should suit the use, climate and legal requirements where the car will be driven.
  • Availability: For current U.S. listings, Audi provides an RS 3 inventory search. Audi USA RS 3 inventory.

There is not enough consistent, contemporaneous rival-by-rival information here to name a quantitative winner against every competing sport sedan. A useful comparison should account for purchase price and included equipment, engine character, all-wheel-drive behavior, ride and daily usability, track capability, tire and brake options, and running costs—not just a single power or lap-time figure.

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Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.

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