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Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Audi has not confirmed that the RS 3’s five-cylinder engine will end in a couple of years. Its latest official materials point to continued near-term availability: Audi announced a 2026 anniversary edition for Europe, and Audi USA lists a five-cylinder-powered 2027 RS 3. Neither announcement identifies a final production year, so the engine’s eventual future remains unknown.
What Audi has—and has not—announced
Audi’s March 10, 2026 announcement introduces the RS 3 competition limited, a 750-car special edition celebrating 50 years of the company’s five-cylinder engines. Audi says European deliveries are planned to begin in mid-2026. The release describes an anniversary model, not a final RS 3 or a farewell edition. Audi’s announcement does not give an end date for the engine.
There is also a U.S.-market signal beyond that edition: Audi USA’s 2027 RS 3 page lists a 2.5-liter five-cylinder turbo engine rated at 394 HP. That is evidence of a U.S. listing for that model year, not confirmation of sales in every country or of production beyond it.
Those facts do not settle when the five-cylinder will eventually leave the RS 3. Audi’s cited materials do not state a final production date, explain a confirmed regulatory or business reason for ending it, or say what engine a later RS 3 might use.
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What the 2026 anniversary edition tells us
The competition limited marks the five-cylinder’s 50th anniversary with a limited run of 750 examples. Audi specifies 294 kW (400 PS) and 500 Nm for this edition and plans European deliveries from mid-2026. Those figures and timing apply to the announced special edition; they should not be read as a global availability schedule.
A limited run can make a model feel like a send-off, but Audi’s release does not call it one. The anniversary and production cap establish what this edition is—not that it is the last five-cylinder RS 3.
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Where the five-cylinder fits in Audi’s history
Audi dates the engine’s debut to 1976, when it appeared in the second-generation Audi 100. In a December 3, 2025 history, the company said the RS 3’s 2.5 TFSI continues that tradition. Audi identifies the engine internally as EA855 Evo Sport and gives 294 kW (400 PS) and 500 Nm for the RS 3 version described in that history. Audi’s five-cylinder history also gives a 0–100 km/h time of 3.8 seconds for that version; these are Audi-published specifications, not guarantees for every market or model year.
The engine is distinctive in part because of its firing order: 1-2-4-5-3. Audi says the odd cylinder count and sequence contribute to its characteristic sound. Its place in the RS 3 is therefore both mechanical and historical, but that heritage alone cannot establish how long Audi will continue producing it. Audi’s technical overview of the engine discusses the 2021-generation RS 3, rather than a retirement schedule.
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How to read claims about the engine’s future
Claims that the five-cylinder is ending should be judged by their scope and evidence. A forecast about one country or a particular model year is not the same as an Audi announcement that global production will stop.
- Market: The 2026 special edition announcement concerns Europe; the 2027 model listing is from Audi USA. Neither establishes availability in every market.
- Time frame: A listed or announced model year confirms only what Audi has published for that period, not what comes afterward.
- Evidence: Audi’s materials confirm the anniversary edition and the U.S. listing. They do not confirm a final year or a replacement plan.
- Scope: The end of a particular RS 3 version would not, by itself, prove the five-cylinder has ended globally.
For now, the defensible conclusion is limited: Audi has shown the engine continuing in these near-term contexts, while its eventual end date—and the future powertrain of any later RS 3—has not been established in the official sources cited here.
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