Audi S3 runs rings around the Stinger, even if it gets lost in the crowd

2022 Kia Stinger GT2 AWD V6 vs. 2022 Audi S3 Sedan Quattro: Battle of the “S” sports sedans

This week: Audi S3

Price: $55,890 as tested. The Premium Plus Package added adaptive cruise assist and active lane assist with emergency assist and more for $2,800. More noted throughout.

Conventional wisdom: Car and Driver likes that it is “sharply dressed, energetic acceleration, compliant ride,” but not the “snug rear seat, infotainment annoyances, pales next to the VW Golf R.”

Marketer’s pitch: “You just have to see it.”

Reality: You just have find it. (See “Wolf in sheep’s clothing,” below.)

What’s new: As just a quicker version of the A3 — there’s also a third 401-horsepower RS 3 model, gotta try that — the S3 gets the all-new stuff that the redesigned A3 has gotten. To recap, that’s a new engine and hybrid system, bigger dimensions all around, and plenty of interior upgrades that put the joy back into driving.

Driver’s Seat: The reason for the S? The S must be for “stiff,” as in stiff seats. The Fine Nappa leather seats in the S3 (part of the $1,250 Fine Nappa Leather Package) are that much harder than those in the A3. They are for a more athletic breed of driver, a tougher, harder-edge person. They are not so much for Mr. Driver’s Seat.

The cockpit is as gorgeous as any Audi — simple black dashboard, attractive gauges with easy-to-make adjustments, great steering wheel. But those seats would be hard for a long drive.

On the road: The S is also for “stiff,” as in the stiff suspension. From the moment I first moved the S3, I felt as if I were driving a slot car. It loves to slalom and zig and zag, and corners can be a real blast.

This may have been thanks to the $1,950 Black Optic Package, which added 19-inch wheels and more pretty exterior touches, or the S Sport Package, which for $1,100 added sport suspension and red brake calipers.

In either case, the S3 comes only in Quattro all-wheel-drive form.

Up to speed: Say you’ve been out to a local dining establishment, and the service has just been one slow delivery after another. What you thought would be an hourlong meal quickly turned into a two-hour foot-tapping excursion. And don’t say it’s because of COVID-19 staffing levels; when you asked for a table, six servers were gathered around shooting the breeze at the hostess stand.

When you finally get the check and pay, you just want to hightail it home, and maybe get some aggressions out while doing it. The S3 is a great car for that getaway. The 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine will get you to 60 mph in 4.3 seconds, according to C&D, 10% faster than the Stinger. And that’s with just 306 horsepower, a herd almost 20% smaller than the Kia.

The power is there for the whole ride — country roads, getting from 30 to 50 (and higher). The only minor drawback to the S3 was the first split-second pulling from a complete stop — there was just a bit of a lag that I couldn’t seem to overcome. Perhaps Mr. Driver’s Seat is spending too much time in electric cars these days.

Shifty: Like the A3, the S3 gets the cute little shifter toggle — push forward for reverse, pull back for drive, park is on a button. Manual shifting is available via the paddles.

The S3′s 7-speed S-Tronic transmission is much happier in shift mode; automatic spent some time hunting gears when the accelerator is floored.

And when you’re making that restaurant getaway, choose shift mode and leave it in a low gear. The Audi growl through the parking lot will say everything words can’t (at least not without being told not to return to this fine establishment, sir).

Friends and stuff: The rear seat actually has plenty of space for occupants in the corners; legroom, foot room, and headroom are all quite plentiful, not what I expected for the small sedan.

Cargo space is a snug 10.9 cubic feet but the rear seat folds down for an extended cargo area.

Play some tunes: The Bang & Olufsen stereo sound was just delightful. It was a little echoey with the 3D sound activated, but the sound was just brilliant, an A+. (It’s part of the $2,250 Technology Package, which also added MMI Navigation Plus and Virtual Cockpit Plus, which made the gauges so nice.)

Operation is with a pleasant touchscreen, although volume is controlled by an unpleasant slidey-turney thing on the console or an unpleasant slidey button on the steering wheel, both functioning with the consistency of a roulette wheel.

Wolf in sheep’s clothing: In the A3 review a few months back, I mentioned Son-in-Law 1.0 got himself in some hot water by saying my beloved A3 looked like a Jetta.

But I learned how right he was when I exited Wegmans one afternoon and kind of forgot where I’d parked. As it dawned on me roughly where I put the bright red S3, I noticed a sedan of that color in about the right area. I walked and walked, but when I arrived, I realized I had found a … red Jetta.

My car was three rows over there.

So the Audi may not actually have the eye-catching appeal that buyers might hope for.

Keeping warm and cool: Toggles control temperature, fan speed, and location, though the black-on-black can be hard for aging eyes to see.

Fuel economy: I averaged about 28 mpg even though I was tearing around Chester County as if I were being chased.

Where it’s built: Ingolstadt, Germany

How it’s built: Consumer Reports predicts a 3 out of 5 for the A3 reliability.

In the end: The S3 has all the right moves and even the seating space to match the Stinger, and is surprisingly priced the same. And you get the Audi cache, even though it may resemble a Jetta.

Bargain-hunter tip: Try the A3. It’s almost as fast and fun, and more comfortable, and saves $11,000 dollars as tested. Or even as C&D suggested, the Golf R.