Design Audi A1

Design Audi A1

The Audi A1 is the worst nightmare of the MINI, with stylish design, impressive interior and attractive price . There are no signs of compromising Audi quality, either, as the Audi A1 has all the hallmarks that make the Audi A4, Audi A6, Audi A7 and Audi A8 so desirable.

The Audi A1 doesn't sparkle like a MINI, but it is still good fun to drive with lots of grip, accurate steering and excellent body control.

Even basic SE models have quite firm (but not uncomfortable) suspension, but as you move up to Sport and S line, things get stiffer still – so much so that we would find it hard to put up with the ride offered by S line models. It's the same with the Black Edition versions of the Audi A1, comfort is sacrificed for firmer suspension.

Interior Audi A1

Audi recently announced a new S line, the Audi A1 S line Style Edition, which sits below top top-spec Black Edition and has a choice of either an 85bhp 1.2 TFSI or 120bhp 1.4 TFSI, as well as 104bhp 1.6 TDI engines. That said,

The Audi A1 is a very new car, so you would expect an exemplary safety result - and you get one, with a five-star maximum Euro NCAP crash test performance, six airbags and traction and stability control as standard.

As for reliability, the Audi A1 is so new that it is difficult to say how it will perform – but underneath lie tried and tested VW Polo-based mechanicals.