The Audi A3 Sportback E-Tron is the German automakers first plug-in hybrid and comes in three well-equipped trims. The Premium, Premium Plus and Prestige, starting at $37,900. The sporty five-door combines a 1.4-litre turbo four cylinder gas engine with an electric motor and battery pack to sip gas like a fine wine. You ca go 31 miles without ever dipping into your gas tank, plenty of distance for trips around town or going on weekend shopping sprees with all the money you'll no longer be spending on trips to the pump. How efficient is Audi talking? How does 157 miles to the gallon sound? Of course, each owner's exact driving style will make that number vary, but the opportunity to drive a five-passenger vehicle that gets more than 100 miles to the gallon is there waiting for you to come and take a test drive.
The front-wheel drive hatchback has a six-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission which also has a manual mode for drivers who like to get the full driving experience. The E-Tron goes zero to 60 in 7.5 seconds and tops out at 138 miles per hour, justifying the "sport" in Sportback. When cruising along at a more typical, sub-100 mile per hour rate, the luxury of the Audi A3 line come to the fore. A beautiful interior design is hard to overlook, and the subtle differences in the E-Tron compared to the all gasoline A3 models, is barely noticeable. Whether it's limiting fuel consumption or maximizing energy recuperation, there are drive modes to choose from that work well in different driving climates. In D mode, which you can select with the gearshift, the E-Tron has a function that shuts down and separates the motors from the front-wheel drive when the car begins to coast on the highway, which minimizes friction and reduces fuel consumption. When driving a typical vehicle, this is about the time in your trip when you start to think about putting the car into neutral as you feel it engine-brake on long slopes and hills. The A3 E-Tron does it for you. When you select S mode, you're telling the car that it's time to recuperate as much energy as possible.
The E-Tron also has the Audi Drive Select system on board which lets you customize your ride even further. The system incorporates the engine, transmission, steering and shocks allowing the driver to change the vehicles handling and feel all with the push of a button. There are three options to choose from, Comfort, Auto and Dynamic. Comfort mode is just that, it changes the cars settings for a smooth ride over longer trips and also for traveling over rough or uneven surfaces. Perfect for those all-to-often rides through highway construction zones. Auto is the middle choice, with a balanced feeling in the steering, shocks and shifting. Dynamic lets the driver feel more of the road and hug the turns on twisty paths. The Audi Auto Drive select rounds out the design and features of the sleek A3 E-Tron nicely.
