Let us all take a moment of silence to soak up the most of what will likely be the very last 5-pot engine of goodness and just smile. Audi knows that this is the case, so they have given the RS3 a new Competition variant, which looks to make the already rabid vehicle much more wild.
The Competition gains a makeover in the looks department, where the fascia now features revised lower intakes for improved airflow cooling and increased downforce, thanks to exposed carbon fiber aero fitments in the form of canards and a lower bumper lip. The side profile also gains carbon fiber on the mirror caps, 19-inch neodymium gold matte alloys, carbon ceramic brakes, and a roof-mounted spoiler.
Some more details that experience a change are the lights being darkened with a cool matrix LED illumination in a 1-2-4-5-3 pattern when unlocking or locking the car. The paint options are equally distinctive. Alongside Daytona Gray and a new matte Glacier White, Audi offers an exclusive Malachite Green-a clear nod to the original Audi Sport Quattro from 1983.
The interior also gains subtle changes and upgrades, which consist of deep RS bucket seats with carbon backs that feature center sections trimmed in neodymium-gold Dinamica microfiber. The stitching, seat belts, and the 12 o'clock steering wheel marker are finished in ginger white.
The digital instrument cluster also adopts white-background gauges, echoing the analog dials of the Audi RS2 Avant from 1994. To remind you that this is the competition, you have a numbered plaque in the center console to show that you're in a limited run special vehicle.
Under the bonnet sits the glorious 2. 5L 5-cylinder turbocharged engine that still produces 295 kW and 500 Nm via the S tronic DCT, which drives all four wheels in Quattro style. The RS3 Competition is claimed to reach 0-100 km/h in 3.8 seconds and is limited to a top speed of just 260 km /h.
More work has gone beneath the skin, where Audi has done away with the firewall between the engine and the cabin, allowing the vicious 5-pot warble to seep through from the bay into the cabin more. The German firm has also gone to greater lengths to attain higher audible peaks by recalibrating the exhausts, allowing the valves to open earlier when engaging the Dynamic RS modes to produce a dramatic sound.
On the ride and suspension side, the RS3 is set to have a factory-developed, model-specific coilover suspension setup. This setup will offer three-way adjustable configurability, allowing one to set high- and low-speed compression, plus rebound. Owners who want to fine-tune the suspension themselves will find a dedicated toolkit and instructions included. They didn't stop there, as this Competition has retuned and installed a thicker, stiffer tubular rear anti-roll bar and increased rear spring rates for more precise and sharper handling.
Since the competition will be a limited run vehicle of just 750 units of the RS3 Competition Limited worldwide with specifically 585 Sportbacks and 165 sedans. Will we see one roaming around in the streets of Mzansi? We shall see.