Driven more sedately, the S3 is a similarly composed cruiser, but be forewarned, the firm ride and short wheelbase transmit an awful lot of impact from rough roads into the cabin, so it may not be to some tastes. Both my wife and I found it a fair trade-off for that buttoned-down feel on the highway, where it is also locked on a steady trajectory.

The S Tronic does a better job of delivering both a relaxed manner for commuting and a high-intensity tune for snaking roads and attacking clear on-ramps. In regular Drive, shifts come earlier and mostly unnoticed, and Sport mode holds the gears and cracks off shifts when you approach the limiter or on hard braking in anticipation of turn-in and corner exit. Paddle shifters are available for taking control, though the Sport mode leaves little to be desired and allows greater concentration on throttle, steering and braking inputs. Throttle, steering and suspension damping can also be set to Comfort, Auto, Dynamic, or mixed and matched in the Individual menu, but the Comfort suspension was a very thin velvet glove over the S3’s titanium-firm damping.  Steering and throttle had noticeable and clearer intensity to them in the Dynamic mode, and Auto was so smooth that it always felt about right for the job.

The slick Audi interior also felt right for this sport compact role, high quality plastic and switchgear, with some genuine aluminum finishers and a thick, flat-bottom steering wheel with contouring on the grips that is just about perfection. It also features a variety of buttons and dials on the spokes to control the audio and info interfaces, making many function a simply swipe or press of your thumb.

Spend some time in an Audi interior, and they begin to feel like an inviting model home: impeccably organized and full of clever touches, but perhaps a touch cold. After sampling several Audis and our long-term A3 last summer, my wife chimed in: “I don’t know what about Audis that make me think like I’m at home whenever I get in.  Give me an S3 and I’m a happy girl. Great handling. Fast enough for my taste.” While the ring vents and sparse passenger dash remain a bit awkward in my eyes, the clear and responsive screen high on the dash are undeniably effective, especially paired with Audi’s handwriting recognition MMI controller. If I had it in the budget, though, I would wish for Audi’s carbon-fibre finish around the shifter – there is just something so right about it in the S4 and S6 that it seems a shame not to offer it here as well.

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