Audi RS 3 Competition Limited Edition marks 50 years of 5-cylinder power
Audi’s 5-cylinder engine was always a gloriously different powerplant. Not as mainstream as a straight-6 and not as compact as a four. But it has a character that makes both of those layouts feel a little… well, predictable.
That configuration dates back to 1976, when Audi introduced its first petrol 5-cylinder. Yes, Mercedes-Benz technically beat the folks from Ingolstadt to the idea with a diesel in 1974, but Audi’s version was the first petrol-powered 5-cylinder to be fitted into a production car. It didn’t take long for that engine layout to become the icon that it is today.
It first landed in the Audi 100, then found its purpose in the Sport Quattro, the RS 2, and now, five decades on, it still drives the RS 3. Other than that, it’s largely been assigned to history, especially given the ongoing trend toward electrification and engine downsizing.
This brings us to the RS 3 Competition Limited Edition, built to honour 50 years of the iconic engine. It’s essentially a reworked model of the current RS 3.
Only 750 units will be built, and each will be powered by a 2.5-litre 5-cylinder engine with 294kW and 500Nm, as in the current model. No ECU tweaks whatsoever here. It still takes the RS 3 0-100km/h in 3.8 seconds before hitting the limiter at 290km/h.
The true celebration happens outside, inside and underneath the car. The Competition Limited Edition features a reworked front end, heritage colours at the front and back, matte carbon elements, and 19-inch wheels with 10 cross spokes in Neodymium gold finish. Other features include a matte carbon rear spoiler, mirror caps, side skirts, and a diffuser, as well as darkened headlights. Lucky customers will be able to choose from a range of colour palettes: Daytona Grey, new Glacier matte white, and Malachite green.
Inside, the exclusivity is marked by a colour combination of black, Neodymium gold, and Ginger white, while the door lighting projects ‘RS 3 Competition Limited’. There are also black floor mats, a cover below the headrests and the boot carpet with the same lettering. To remind occupants that they’re inside something special, the centre console has a matte serial number in front of the gear selector.
Then there are contoured RS bucket seats with bolsters in black leather, centres trimmed in Dinamica microfibre and coloured in Neodymium gold. The same hue has been applied to the armrests on the doors and centre console. There are also Ginger White seatbelts.
Now, for the first time, the RS 3 Competition Limited Edition comes with coilover suspension, including a new rear stabiliser for enhanced handling. As you may now know, a torque splitter, standard carbon ceramic brakes are also part of the RS 3’s package.
Two things need naming. First, the price. The standard RS 3 in South Africa isn’t what you’d call affordable, with a starting price of R1,498,200, and this, no doubt, will command a significant premium over that, especially when you consider an honest rand-to-euro conversion at today’s exchange rate. That’s if it comes. Just so you know, the Sportback RS 3 Competition Limited Edition in Germany starts at €100,680, roughly R1.9 million. That, for me, as a petrolhead, makes complete sense. Financially, though, it demands serious justification. Secondly, cars like this tend to appear when a chapter is closing, and we just wish this ‘last’ 5-pot was given more attention.
The RS 3 Competition Limited, even with an expected price tag that will make eyes water, feels like a rather fitting way to celebrate one of the most charismatic engines the modern performance world has ever produced.
