The Audi RS 3 is the high-performance version of Audi’s most affordable U.S. model, the compact A3 sedan. As part of Audi’s RS lineup, the RS 3 competes with other high-powered luxury compacts including the BMW M2, the Cadillac CT4-V Blackwing, and the Mercedes-AMG CLA 45 S.
2025 Audi RS 3 Pricing, Specs, and Release Date
- What’s New for the 2025 Audi RS 3
- Design
- Powertrain
- Interior
- Technology
- Safety
- Pricing and Release Date
- Further Research
What’s New for the 2025 Audi RS 3
The A3 has been with us since the mid 1990s, but the RS 3 didn’t join the party until 2017. It entered its second generation in 2022 and gets a facelift for 2025. Audi also gives the performance sedan new standard features and enhanced performance thanks to new chassis tuning.
Design
Audi’s trademark “Singleframe” grille gets a new rhombus pattern design in the new RS 3, which now sports the Anthracite Gray version of the automaker’s ring badge. New LED headlights add four new signatures for the daytime running lights (DRLs), one of which incorporates a checkered flag pattern exclusive to the RS. The taillights mirror the DRL signatures, and the RS also gets its own rear diffuser with black oval exhaust trim surrounds.
Audi has made three additions to the RS 3’s color palette for 2025: Arkona White, Progressive Red, and Ascari Blue bring the total number of options up to eight. A new 19-inch 10-cross-spoke wheel design is standard. There’s also a matte dark gray finish available as part of the $2,750 Carbon package. These also come wrapped in ultra-high-performance summer tires.
Powertrain
Like the famous Audi Sport Quattro S2 rally car, the 2025 Audi RS 3 is powered by a five-cylinder engine. This one makes 394 horsepower and 369 pound-feet of torque and lets the RS 3 sprint from zero to 60 mph in 3.6 seconds. The top speed is electronically limited to 155 miles per hour, but paying an extra $5,600 for the Dynamic Plus Package unlocks an additional 25 mph, allowing the RS 3 to reach 180 on the track. That was good enough for Audi to set a new Nurburgring record in the compact vehicle class with a time of 7:33.
Updates for 2025 include an RS Torque Splitter, allowing for fully variable torque vectoring between the rear wheels. RS Performance mode, one of the five selectable drive modes, was tweaked for this year to improve cornering performance. The RS 3 also features an RS Sport suspension with dynamic chassis control (DCC).
EPA estimates put fuel economy at 20 mpg city, 29 highway, and 23 combined. The Audi RS 3 requires premium fuel.
Interior
You can get the RS 3 with any interior color as long as it’s black. Black Nappa leather seats, black carpet, black headliner… Audi has even replaced the bright silver interior trim elements with dark gray Vanadium accents for the current model year. A pop of color is available in the form of Express Red or Micrommata Green contrast stitching. If selected, the stitching appears in the honeycomb quilted pattern of the RS-embossed bucket seats and along the padded portions of the center console. Matching accents can be found on the steering wheel and the vents for the tri-zone climate control system.
For 2025, the RS 3 gets a new steering wheel with a sporty flat top and bottom and aluminum paddle shifters. It comes wrapped in perforated leather by default, but a Dinamica—Audi’s version of alcantara—steering wheel cover is also available. An LED interior lighting package is now standard.
Technology
The 2025 RS 3 comes with a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster featuring Audi Virtual Cockpit Plus and a 10.1-inch center infotainment screen running wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. A 15-speaker SONOS 3D premium sound system is newly standard for 2025. A $2,000 Technology package adds navigation, a head-up display, and traffic-sign recognition.
Safety
Adaptive cruise control, lane-keep assist, rear cross-traffic alert, blind-spot warning, and plenty of other advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) come standard on the 2025 RS 3. Further features are available as part of options packages. The Audi RS 3 has not seen complete crash-testing with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) or the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). However, the base A3 sedan earned a 2022 Top Safety Pick+ award from the IIHS, and the 2025 model scored well on most tests, with the exception of a “Poor” rating for seatbelt reminders.
Pricing and Release Date
The 2025 Audi RS 3 is on sale now, starting at $64,695 after the mandatory $1,295 destination fee. There’s just the one trim, but options and packages can easily bring the total up to the mid-$70,000s or higher so that it nearly doubles the price of the A3 on which the RS 3 is based.
