Audi Q3

“One of the better parts of the SUV,” said one tester. “It’s not terribly exciting, but steering effort is appropriate, and the Q3 feels agile.” Most testers agreed that the steering does a solid job of letting the driver know the levels of grip, and that the weight, or effort to turn the wheel, is appropriate.

“Good steering and nice balance make it a fun little SUV,” said another tester. “I wouldn’t bring it to the track, but it feels secure and capable.”

Thin windshield pillars, large door-mounted rearview mirrors, and a straightforward view out the back all contribute to the Q3’s good visibility. The new instrument cluster pod (more on that below) sits low and behind the steering wheel, so there’s an unobstructed view out over the hood. While the rear roof pillars are a bit thick, the small rear window on the side improves over-the-shoulder visibility.

We had near-universal praise for the Q3’s front and rear seats. Testers found them comfortable and supportive, and the power adjustments for the driver and front passenger seats made it easy for the occupant to dial in a comfortable position. The seats are flat and lack a “pocket” to sit in. In addition, the bolsters on the backrest and bottom cushion provide support for spirited driving, but they are nowhere near as aggressive as those on sport seats. However, that means they don’t impede entry or exit from the Q3 the way that sport seats on some other Audis do. Most testers, even those of shorter stature, said the bottom cushion feels short and would have liked an extendable section at the front.

The rear seat is very good for a subcompact SUV, with good back and under-leg support and the ability to recline the backrest. The seatback angle felt good to our testers, even in the most upright position.

The rear seatback folds in three parts, in a 40/20/40 split. This makes it easy to carry a long item, such as skis or a home theater soundbar, with two rear-seat passengers. Just flop the middle section down, and the object can slide almost to the front of the cabin. Audi uses a pull strap rather than a lever to lower the seats, and a few testers commented that it’s a little awkward to grab.

We’re really happy Audi didn’t burden the Q3 with the headlight/mirror/locks/seat memory panel that has been on the brand’s other new models. Even though the mirror adjustment is nestled in a narrow crevice near the driver’s left armrest, the controls are refreshingly simple, with the buttons for the external lights placed on the lower left side of the dash, like in past Audi models.

The turbocharged four-cylinder engine is the hard-working, dependable part of the powertrain. It delivers plenty of responsive power for merging into highway traffic or pulling out from a side street. There’s plenty of torque off the line and ample power at any speed on the highway. Plus, the stop/start function works smoothly, with no fuss. If only the transmission were as good.

Like the A5 and Q5 we’ve recently tested, the redesigned Q3 uses a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission (DCT) rather than a torque-converter automatic. Like most DCTs, it works well with an aggressive driving style, with quick up and downshifts. But most drivers don’t live their lives a quarter mile at a time. And it’s in those everyday cases, like creeping forward in the school drop-off line or bumper-to-bumper traffic, where the DCT quirks and annoyances rear their head.

Sometimes the transmission responds abruptly at slow speeds, while at other times it has significant pauses before engaging a gear. The delay is particularly noticeable going from Reverse to Drive when backing out of a driveway or parking space. At other times, the transmission holds onto a higher gear for too long, forcing the driver to press the accelerator pedal hard to make it downshift. “

Overall, it doesn’t feel like a premium powertrain,” summed up one tester.

This goes along with what was said in “Consumer Reports’ Take.” No, we don’t expect it to rival an RSQ8. But the Q3’s materials don’t make a compelling case for choosing it over a CX-50. There’s (thankfully) less of the fingerprint- and scratch-prone piano black plastic than in other recent Audis, but it’s still present. And Audi at least gives the Q3 buyer a sturdier feeling and nicer-looking keyfob than what came with our A5 and Q5. Overall, the interior is nice but far from luxurious or special.

The center of the pad on either side of the steering wheel has controls that can be adjusted just by touch, such as audio volume or the screen in front of the driver. The controls at each corner of the pads are part of the same pad and must be pressed to engage. The only separation between the “buttons” is small raised lines. And because the controls are on a single plane, they can’t easily be operated by feel. Audi announced that the steering wheel in some of its 2026 models will get physical scroll wheels, and we hope they roll out to other models soon.

Below the wheel is the traditional Audi cruise control stalk, which is larger and has fewer settings. For example, there is no longer an “off” setting that is engaged by pushing the lever away from the driver. But the stalk is unlit and hidden, which makes it frustrating to use, especially at night. Sure, with time comes familiarity, but why can’t it at least have some illumination?

When automakers make big changes to key features, they often give the new system a catchy name. Heck, Audi calls its various screens and displays a “digital stage.”

But there’s no Audi-specific lingo to describe the new control pod that sits behind the steering wheel. It incorporates the turn signals, front and rear wipers, high-beam light controls, and gear selector into a single unit. Some elements move on a vertical plane, some on a horizontal plane, some forward and backward, and one incorporates a knurled dial.

It’s a flashy design that puts the most-used controls at the driver’s fingertips. Aesthetics aside (we aren’t fans of the big swath of piano-black plastic), opinions on the pod are mixed.

It’s great that the new gear selector isn’t some massive appendage hanging off the steering column, but Audi didn’t do anything with the space it gained by moving it off the center console other than add in a few black plastic strakes. Some testers found that the icon indicating the selected gear is obscured by the wheel rim, but it’s also displayed in the gauge cluster. Oddly, both D and S (Drive, Sport) are illuminated regardless of the chosen mode.

The front wiper is controlled by a small dial, making it easy for the driver to use without diverting their eyes from the road. The rear wiper, however, is a thin tab that is pushed in. A hard press sprays the window, and a soft push turns the wiper on. But there’s no display either to identify the wipe mode (intermittent or continuous) or whether the wiper is turned off. A static indicator in the driver information screen would be useful.

Finally, the turn signal block slides on a vertical plane, up for right, down for left. It incorporates the soft press to blink three times and click into place for sustained use. Some drivers found that the effort to disengage the signal slider is much higher than with a stalk.

After a little bit of time, most testers became familiar and comfortable with the pod. But there are flaws that could be addressed: The pod’s placement impedes access to the paddle shifters; testers routinely turned the wipers on when using the turn signals; and it would be useful if the wiper mode were shown in the gauge cluster. It’s also unclear what this design adds or genuinely improves over a more traditional stalk setup.

The estimated EPA combined fuel economy rating for the 2026 Q3 is 25 mpg. Unlike other Audi vehicles that require premium, it runs on regular 87 octane gas. We’ll put our fuel-measuring rig on the Q3 we bought to see how it performs in our tests.

The previous generation Q3 was rated at 23 mpg combined by the EPA, and that’s what we got in our own independent tests, which wasn’t particularly impressive for the category. For reference, the BMW X1 got 28 mpg overall in our tests; the X2, 29 mpg; the Acura ADX, 27 mpg; and the Mercedes-Benz GLA, 27 mpg. So even 25 mpg trails the best nonhybrid models in the class.

We universally like the space Audi provides the driver, the wide steering wheel adjustment range, the padded surfaces where the driver’s right knee rests on the center console, and the pedal placement.

At the same time, every driver found the door armrest too far away, too narrow, and mounted too low on the door panel. Some also said that adjusting the steering wheel would block the gear selector/wiper/turn signal pod.

“While not a standout, it’s not the worst either,” said one tester. Another said, “It’s not the typical firm brake pedal I’m used to from Audi.”

Applying the brakes feels imprecise, with a lot of travel and a very light effort to depress the pedal. Then, right before finally coming to a stop, the brakes grab and jerk the car noticeably. We’ll see whether this translates into any issues in our dry and wet braking evaluations.

The Q3 is the first model with Audi’s new infotainment presentation, and so far, we like it better than the one in our A5, A6, Q5, Q6, etc. It’s boring to look at, but the system is much easier to navigate and responds faster. That’s a trade-off we’re happy to accept.

There are far fewer icons, and the left-rail menu of configurable options has been removed. The choices are now more clearly defined, and the app icons are both larger and easier to target at a quick glance. The white tiles against the dark gray background are easier to identify.

Similarly, the gauge cluster is smaller and has more useful information, such as including a tachometer by default instead of two speed readouts. Still, the bezel around the screen (more piano black!) is almost twice the size of the display itself.

We’ve experienced many new-car, early implementation issues with the system, such as wireless phone connections dropping out, the radio resetting or going silent at random times, and both Android Auto and Apple CarPlay failing to connect or randomly crashing. One tester had to perform a hard reset by holding the power button down in order to unlock the system, a frustrating thing to do while driving, because it also turned off the climate system.

The Q3 comes with a full suite of advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), including automatic emergency braking (AEB) with pedestrian detection, AEB that works at highway speed, blind spot warning, rear cross traffic warning, adaptive cruise control, and lane departure warning (LDW).

We added the Driver Assistance Package, which combines Adaptive Cruise Control and Lane Centering (Audi calls it “Adaptive Cruise Assist”) to maintain a gap to the vehicle ahead while keeping the Q3 centered in its lane. The system also incorporates Lane Keeping Assistance (Audi’s “Active Lane Assist”), which will steer the Q3 away from a lane marker if the LDW is ignored. In addition, the Q3’s Auto Lane Change lets the driver make lane changes using the turn signals without moving the steering wheel.

The LCA system does a good job of keeping the Q3 centered, even through curves, but it makes many small, constant adjustments. We found that the ACC speeds up and slows comfortably as traffic ahead cuts in and out of the lane.