That’s Amore!

18 December 2015 Redazione Your Cars

by Andrea Balti

Photos by Davide Carletti

“That day I entered the dealer with the intention of buying a diesel station wagon: practical, spacious and with a good fuel economy. And then … I came back with a 300 hp S3.” –

Marco is the ultimate example that you can’t control your passions, and his partner in this sporty choice, is his very wife. This story is for all those who find excuses saying they can’t keep their own sports car as entertainment companion because of their life partner, who prefers a boring and ugly minivan. And it is obvious that Marco did not need to hear this thing out twice, when that fateful day, entering the Audi dealer, saw this shiny Blue Sepang S3 Sportback and signed the check that has made possible to park it in the garage that very night.

We know the car very well: 4-cylinder 2.0 TFSI, 300 hp, 380 Nm, Quattro four-wheel drive and 6-speed S-Tronic gearbox. A small torpedo capable of 5.1 seconds for the 0-100 and 250 per hour of top speed, suitable for the everyday life thanks to a sober look that does not attract too much the attention on itself, thing that in an instant can be transformed in teasing and the constant fear of leaving it parked away from your eyes. The alloy wheels with five split spokes, the panoramic sunroof and leather interior with S sports front seats, characterized by those pornographic rhomboid seams, make this car one of the best S3 we’ve ever seen. On the occasion of the Emilia Romagna Motorfest, we had a chat with Marco who has certainly not missed the appointment, showing his new purchase. Look at it, it seems to observe a car which is still brand new, maybe even without the engine: not a speck of dust, not a scratch, you can mirror yourself on the hood and then eat without having to clean the surface on which you would go to lean your hamburger. That’s crazy, just like the precision of Audi in having given to its customers a sporty hatchback (available in 3, 5 or even 4 doors) once again able to face any condition and be squeezed over the limits, without ever giving signs of fading. I still remember when we brought an S3 on track at Paul Ricard last year, and driving it on daily basis for a variety of reasons, I noticed that I did not ever feel the lack of practicality or that of horses under the hood. Traction out of the corners is perfect and grip is always generous, alerting you with a slight understeer when you’re just exaggerating. Then you only need to put it back in the right trajectory and point the next corner and the amazing part is that it is always the same car that can let you accompany your children to school, even providing a roomy luggage space and five comfortable seats. In short, we have said and repeated that, as for the first and the second series before this one, the S3 is a great compromise but manages to do well all that you ask.

What does Marco ask to it? “As soon as I can, I intend to take it to the Nürburgring and face the most dangerous circuit in the world.” – … And to think that if it were not for his wife, he could be at the wheel of a 1.9 TDI…