There is a new Audi A1 in the candy store

The yellow one is mine!

Audi has been one busy bee this past few weeks, just two weeks after having revealed a couple of their new offerings at the WesBank Festival of Motoring, some launches followed. For nine months the Q3 and A1 have not been available on the market and are now ready to face consumers of this much loved German brand. I do not use the term “loved” loosely, the numbers don’t lie, because one million cars have been delivered worldwide since 2013.

The all new Audi A1 was launched last week in sunny Gauteng. First impressions, the new A1 is eye-catching, and totally representative of spring with the bright ten colours available on offer. Compared to the older model, the new generation A1 Sportback appears more aggressive, sportier and sexier in design. The noticeably enlarged C pillars and radical change of the shoulder line and now 56mm longer and an additional 94mm wheelbase makes the A1 appear a little bit more grown up as the manufacturer put it.

Audi has also simplified their modeling, they say this is to help customers with their shopping process – standard, advanced or S line. We first got the feel of the 35 TFSI, smooth ride I must say and has the energy to push through the high altitude in Gauteng producing a reasonable 110kW and top speed of 222km/h. The A1 handles sharp cornering well and it did not let us forget about the Ur-Quattro genes it now possesses. Available in three engines 1.0-litre, the 1.5-litre and the more engaging 2.0-litre producing 147kW and 250 Nm which is only available in S line.

The interior is now more spacious making it much more comfortable for everyone in the car. Because we are almost always about the looks, you will be happy to know that the A1 has various seat and upholstery options available and what seems to have drawn attention is the ambient lighting in the cockpit. Audi has now made the digital instrument cluster come standard with every A1 including the base models. With a high-resolution 8.8 – inch MMI touchscreen display, parking has been made easy for our learner drivers and hopefully scratches reduced to a minimal.

The Audi A1 looks ten times better than its predecessor inside and out. It’s bigger which is awesome considering we did not expect this from the design, I mean boot space that carries total luggage capacity of up to 335-litres? That’s every girl’s dream boot closet. For an entry-level vehicle, the Audi A1 has features that would make you want to buy it for sure, will the price make you feel the same way? Well that’s up to your bank balance.