Audi has been producing the entry-level luxury automobile Audi A3 since the year 1996. To date, there are two generations of Audi A3 cars. Both of them are based on Volkswagen’s A Platform. They share this with a lot of different models, including the Audi TT, SEAT Leon, Volkswagen Golf, Skoda Octavia, Caddy, and Touran.
The Audi A3 was first introduced in to the European market in the year 1996. This marked Audi’s return to the lower market segments – an area that they had not penetrated since the Audi 50 met its demise. The Audi A3 was only available at first with a three door hatchback body. This was done to present the car with a sportier image than the Golf. The Audi A3 was the second car in the Audi range to utilize five valves per cylinder; the first was the Audi A4.
The Audi A3 is no longer sold in Europe, but continues to be popular in developing countries around the world.
In the year 2004, the Audi A3 was featured in the video game Need for Speed: Underground 2. The car has also been featured in the movie Transporter 2, wherein the lead actress Amber Valetta drove it.
