Audi Reveals RS Q3 Concept Using TT RS Engine

Audi has snuck out a new concept late at night, or early in the morning in Germany. The RS Q3 concept borrows the turbocharged, five-cylinder engine from the TT RS and slots it into the diminutive SUV.

The engine is the five-cylinder 2.5l, TFSI with 360hp and 343lb-ft, which is the same engine found in the top spec Audi TT RS Plus. Audi is claiming acceleration 100km/h in 5.2 seconds and a top speed of 265km/h. It is mated to the seven-speed S Tronic dual clutch transmission with all-wheel drive. Audi opted to set the car up to send all of the power to the front wheels in most situations, and when the front wheels slip, power is sent to the rear. If a production version is ever made, hopefully it would at least use a 50:50 bias. 

The CFRP bumper, gaping grill and LED accents give the car an aggressive look.

© photo courtesy of: Audi

On the outside, the RS Q3 has been lowered by 25mm (0.98in) and sports a wider, bigger single frame grill trimmed in aluminum. The lower portion of the bumper has larger air intakes that are separated by carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) components. The headlights have been tinted slightly compared to the stock model and have CFRP components. The headlights are also partially outlined by LEDs. The door mirror housings are made from CFRP with aluminum trim around the windows. The trim around the bottom of the doors and fenders has a slight blue tint to match the car's blue paint. At the rear, it has extremely squinty tail lights and a CFRP lower diffuser that incorporates two chrome exhaust outlets. The wheels are 20 inches with gloss fronts and sandblasted crevices. 

The interior carries on the blue theme with blue, leather seat inserts and blue carbon trim on the dashboard, door inserts and around the shifter. There is also blue stitching around the instrument panel, steering wheel and seats. The seats are the larger units found on the rest of the RS cars. The instrument panels are done in a shiny, faux-chrome that might be the major downside of the interior. Because the car is being shown at the Auto Salon China, the numbers on the tachometer are in Chinese numerals.

Unfortunately, the engine compartment has been designed to mostly hide the actual engine. The engine is framed in carbon fiber with just a few openings for coolant and oil. Even the engine is partially obscured by the carbon fiber. All that you can really see is the five coilpacks for the spark plugs. There is also an aluminum, cold air intake.

The RS Q3 will be on display at Auto China in Beijing starting April 23. It seems like a fun car, and Audi has yet to build even an S version of one of its SUVs. If Audi struck on this idea right now, it would be the only one in the market. Neither BMW nor Mercedes have a small, sporty SUV... yet.