In recent years, car designers have worked really hard to try to ensure that there is a strong brand identity with every model they produce, with this going well beyond details like badging or styling features such as BMW’s famous Hofmeister kink. The result is often a range of models which look rather like the designer simply styled one car and then used the enlarge and reduce button the photocopier to produce larger and smaller models to full out the range. Whilst this might be good for corporate identity, buyers and indeed the general public have a pretty hard time identifying precisely which model in a range they are looking at, despite protests from the manufacturer who keep telling us how distinct their individual products are. Mercedes are guilty, of this, as are Aston Martin and McLaren, so as Audi headed in this direction as well, you could say that they are in good company. Could you really tell a Q3, from a Q5 or a Q7? No? Thought not! The problem got worse when these similar looking models all got replaced, as in many cases – and this certainly true at Audi – the new model looked almost exactly the same as the old one, despite us all being told that it is “all new”. The car under review here is a definite case in point. This is a second generation Q3, but unless you are a real marque afficionado, telling this apart from a first generation Q3 or at a glance, or the larger Q5 is far from easy. The second generation Q3 arrived in July 2018. This is an important car for its maker, as the market shifts away from hatch and saloon models to crossovers so whilst the first Q3 was not a bad car, as indeed I found out when I sampled one in Italy back in the spring of 2018, there were areas that needed improvement if Audi were to continue their sales in a highly competitive class, quite apart from needing to stuff the car with the latest technology and safety features. So that is pretty much what they did with the second generation model. I got the chance to see how successful they had been when I was given a recently registered model as a service loan car whilst my Maserati was in for service.

The car I received was badged Q3 45 TFSie. These days you have to translate Audi’s model numbering system to decode what you have got, with the numbers representing a range of power output, as opposed to an engine capacity. So a 45 means between 227 and 247 bhp. TFSi means a petrol engine and the e denotes some form of electrical assistance. In this case that means a plug-in hybrid, which was added to the range at the start of 2021, an obvious thing to do, really, as there are tax advantages of PHEV cars that make them attractive even if the cables never get taken out of their wrapping. This car was actually the company car of one of the dealer staff as opposed to a pool car, so I can see why it was a PHEV version. The 45 TFSie comes with a 1.4 litre petrol engine, which when added to the output from the 85KW electric motor combine to give you a quoted total output of 245 bhp. As you would expect, the car starts on battery, so is completely silent and, depending on charge, it will keep going this way for a while before the petrol engine cuts in, which it does pretty seamlessly. Indeed, the transition between the two is all very smooth. Once underway, there is ample acceleration, though this does not really feel like a 245 hp car. But this is quite a heavy car, thanks partly to those batteries. The quoted range for the battery is 31 miles, so if it were fully charged, you could potentially do short journeys without resorting to the petrol engine at all, but when I collected the car it was not, so the petrol engine did cut in and that is what was used most of the time. I only drove from the dealer in Solihull to the Warwick area and back, so cannot provide any meaningful data on fuel economy or battery range. Plug-in hybrid versions have a 7 speed S-tronic automatic gearbox, which comes with wheel-mounted paddles as well as a stubby gear stick. The gearbox can be a little hesitant to react to your right foot, but generally makes smooth and barely perceptible ratio changes. The Q3 is probably not going to appeal to the keen driver. The steering is very light, lacking much in the way of feel and the brakes, whilst effective, were somewhat mushy in operation. Get past these frustrations, though and the Q3 is actually as competent you’d hope on a winding country road. The front wheels turn to exactly where you pointed the steering wheel, the body stays upright rather than rolling when going round corners, and is settled over lumps and bumps in the road. S Line and Black Edition models have firmer suspension than Technik and Sport models, and the Black Edition trim of the test car comes on larger 255/45 R19 tyres which all results in something that is on the hard side. From my limited testing, I thought you could just about live with it, though if you’re really fussed, you can spec softer suspension on the S Line and Black Edition, or pay a bit more for adaptive suspension that can switch between comfort and sporting settings depending on the driver’s desires. The Q3 is a compact size, so it’s no more difficult to drive around town than Audi’s own A3 hatchback, which is only about five inches shorter. In some ways, the Q3 is actually a bit easier to drive around town as being sat higher up than in a hatchback means you have a better view of the road ahead. Visibility is about good as you get on any modern car with a high waistline and thick pillars, but at least there are parking sensors to help when you are reversing. The Q3 has the full complement of the latest electronic safety features, of which I found the Lane Keep Assist to be as annoying as these features tend to be.

Inside, the Q3 manifests the latest Audi thinking on an interior. This is a mix of good and bad. Sadly, in an attempt to appear more contemporary and also, I suspect, to cut costs, the exemplary quality of previous generation Audi models is partly gone. Whilst this Q3 was not as bad in this respect as in the A1 I drove last year, there were plenty of sharp edges and hard plastics for which no amount of ritzy electronics can really compensate and the gloss black plastic inlays are never going to look premium even before the dust and fingerprints show on them. It is quite sad to see Audi clearly throwing away what used to be one of their defining USPs, but apparently the younger generation of buyers like it all this way, or so they say. I am not sure I believe that. There is a flat-bottomed leather wrapped steering wheel which proved pleasant to hold. On the dash, all appears black when the ignition is off, but provide power and the electronics light up. The instrument cluster, which Audi call a Virtual Cockpit, is all digital and it is configurable. The main “dials” are at each end of the display area, with small round units for speed and rev counter and separate vertically stacked ones for fuel level and water temperature right at the far edges of the cluster. The central part can be used to show either a map or trip computer data. The graphics are clear and crisp. The Q3 uses the latest VAG corporate column stalks, but regrettably the lights, which are on the dash now comprises a series of buttons rather than the simple rotary dial of yore. Mounted a little lower in the dash than on some cars, so it looks integrated as opposed to the “added iPad look”, the Q3’s 10.1-inch touchscreen display and the MMI infotainment system it controls generally work well. The screen looks crisp and responds promptly, and navigation through the menus is straightforward. Or you can use voice commands. Features include sat-nav with 3D mapping and speed limit recognition, DAB radio, Bluetooth and various apps. Alternatively, you can connect your phone and use Apple CarPlay or Android Auto. Sadly, the control wheel and buttons in the centre console are no more, but there are at least audio repeaters om the steering wheel boss. There are only a few buttons in the centre of the dash, but thankfully Audi have retained a couple of them to be used for the dual zone climate control system.

The upholstery in this version of the Q3 comprises a mix of cloth centres to the seats with an alcantara outer, which I thought was a pleasant alternative to the more ubiquitous leather in cars of this class. Black Edition cars get sports seats with an integrated headrest. Seat adjustment is all manual and there is an under thigh extensible bolster. However tall you are, you should be able to get comfortable in the front of the Q3. There’s generous legroom and there can be really rather a lot of headroom if you lower the height-adjustable seats as far as they’ll go. The seat proved comfortable. It is on the firm side,  perhaps, but was pleasingly supportive. I could well imagine that if you were to spend a long day in them, you should be largely free of aches and pains. The first generation Q3 was criticised for being a bit tight on rear seat space. This second generation car has largely addressed that and indeed the Q3 now has more room than you’ll find in many other cars of this size. On this version you can slide the rear seats forwards and backwards to prioritise passenger legroom or boot space. The front seat backs are hollowed out to provide that bit of extra space, though it has to be noted that there is a large centre console which extends well back, so a middle seat occupant might find the space for their knees a bit tight. There is a drop-down armrest, which includes cup holders in the upper face and there are some useful door pockets as well as stowage recesses between the seat and the door which make up for the lack of seat back map pockets. Impressively, even with the back seats in their most rearward position, there’s more space in the boot than many of the Audi Q3’s alternatives. Fold the back seats down, and there’s easily enough room to carry a bicycle, too. Just be aware that, due to the positioning of the under-floor battery, plug-in hybrid models such as this one don’t have as much cargo capacity as the purely petrol and diesel Q3s, with the quoted capacity being 380 litres as opposed to 530 litres of the regular models. Access is good, with the floor flush with the base of the tailgate and although that tailgate is large and heavy, it has electrically assisted closing. There are small wells at either side of the boot for odds and ends and there is a bit more space under the boot floor. There are asymmetrically split folding rear seat backrests, which will increase the luggage capacity considerably. Inside the passenger compartment, there are plenty of stowage places. These include generously sized door bins, a deepish cubby hole under the centre armrest, two cupholders in the centre console and a deep tray in front of the gearstick for your phone, where you’ll also find two USB charging ports. The glovebox is usefully large and there’s a pocket under the passenger seat for the owner’s manual.

There is a vast and at times slightly bewildering array of Q3 models available, even without considering the closely related Sportback versions. It is probably easiest to consider the trim level first, as this will then determine the available engines. Most of the differences between them are visual and cosmetic. In Sport trim, the Audi Q3 comes with 18-inch alloy wheels, sports seats with cloth upholstery and LED headlights and brake lights. Inside, you also get Audi’s latest MMI infotainment system consisting of two 10-inch displays with satellite navigation and smartphone mirroring built in. You also get dual-zone climate control, rear parking sensors, cruise control and plenty of safety features as standard including automatic emergency braking and lane-departure warning. The Audi Q3 S Line comes with 19-inch alloy wheels, sportier S Line bumpers and lowered sports suspension than the standard Q3. You also get tinted rear windows, leather-trimmed sports seats, brushed aluminium interior trims and some stainless steel pedal trims. Features carried over from the standard Q3 include dual-zone climate control, rear parking sensors and a dual-screen infotainment system with sat nav and smartphone mirroring for Apple and Android phones. You also get automatic emergency braking, lane-departure warning and cruise control as standard. Then there is the Black Edition. This is the trim to choose if you like to look mean and moody. Rubber-band tyres wrap 19-inch alloy wheels, and there are various styling tweaks including S line bumpers and the Black Styling Pack, which adds black highlights to the radiator, window frames door mirrors and side skirts. Inside, there’s a flat-bottomed Sports steering wheel. There are plenty of engines to choose from. Petrol options are a 1.5-litre with 150hp and a 2.0-litre with 190hp or 245hp. They are badged 35 TFSi, 40 TFSi and 45 TFSi, respectively. There’s also a pair of 2.0-litre diesels with 150hp and 200hp, badged 35 TDi and 40 TDi. And if that is not enough then there is the fire-breathing RS Q3. Only the 35 models are available with a manual gearbox, all the rest have a 7 speed automatic. The more powerful cars all have standard quattro all-wheel drive. You can’t have all the available engines with any of the trims, Audi reasoning that people who pay more will want more standard features.

My time with the Q3 was limited, and it may be that if I had been able to spend longer with it, I would have warmed more to the undoubted qualities that it certainly has. But I handed It back feeling somewhat disappointed. The change to trendier but far lower quality looking interiors is unfortunate and it seems to me that Audi are throwing away one of their strongest differentiators, and although this car went well enough, it felt a bit more like an appliance rather than an object you would actively want. The reality is that this is probably perfect for a lot of the target buyers, who simply want a practical family car with a posh badge on it. For them, the latest Q3 probably fits the bill pretty much spot on but for me, it really did not quite hit the target. So this is the second Audi in a row that I’ve not rated, after years of preferring their products over their German rivals. A worrying trend. Let’s see what impression the next one, whichever model it may be, leaves on me.