Audi Sport has unveiled the RS 3 competition limited, a special edition built to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Audi's five-cylinder engine. Only 750 units will be produced worldwide, split between 585 Sportback and 165 Sedan body styles, with European deliveries beginning in mid-2026.
The five-cylinder engine first appeared in 1976 in the second-generation Audi 100 and has been used in a number of the brand's most celebrated performance cars, including the Audi Sport quattro and every RS 3 since the model launched in 2011. The RS 3 competition limited uses the same 2.5-liter turbocharged inline five-cylinder found in the standard RS 3, producing 400 horsepower and 500 Newton-meters of torque. It accelerates from zero to 100 kilometers per hour in 3.8 seconds and reaches a top speed of 290 kilometers per hour. Audi reduced sound insulation around the firewall so the engine note reaches occupants more directly, making the driving experience louder and more involving than the standard model.
For the first time on an RS 3, the competition limited receives a manually adjustable coilover suspension developed specifically for this edition. It includes stainless steel front shocks and aluminum rear shocks with remote fluid reservoirs for better temperature control. A stiffer rear stabilizer and the existing torque splitter system round out the dynamic package.
On the outside, the car features carbon fiber canards at each front corner, a split front lip, matte carbon mirror caps, side skirts, and a rear spoiler. Nineteen-inch wheels finished in Neodymium gold matte reference the historic Audi Sport quattro from 1984. Three colors are available: Daytona gray, Glacier white matte, and Malachite green, with the green also chosen as a nod to that same quattro heritage car. The matrix LED headlights illuminate in a 1-2-4-5-3 sequence when the car is locked or unlocked, reflecting the engine's firing order.
Inside, RS bucket seats, white-background digital dials, Ginger white seatbelts, and a consecutive serial number specific to each car complete the special edition. The Sportback starts at 108,365 euros in Germany.