Audi A3 e-tron (2014-2018) - Reliability & safety

Audi has a good general reputation for quality and this is borne out by our Driver Power survey results. Audi has also always shown a strong focus on safety and the A3 excels here, too.

Audi A3 e-tron reliability

The Audi A3 is generally well thought-of by its owners. In our 2017 Driver Power satisfaction survey, the car received an above-average score for reliability, despite 13.6% of owners who responded having at least one problem with their car in the first year of ownership.

As a brand, Audi finished 18th in the survey, out of 27. It should be stressed that this result was strongly influenced by a 24th-place finish for the practicality of its range of cars, although its overall ranking for reliability was 17th – disappointing for a premium brand.

Safety

Less questionable, though, is the A3 e-tron’s safety. It was actually tested individually by Euro NCAP, separately from the conventional A3 and Sportback. It received the maximum five-star rating, with an 82% rating for adult protection and 78% score for child protection. These were marginally below those of the regular A3 hatchback, but this may reflect the changes in Euro NCAP’s scoring regime between the A3’s tests in 2012 and the e-tron’s in 2014.

There’s no doubt the safety advantages of the e-tron’s hi-tech equipment though. Autonomous emergency braking is standard and should lessen the chance of a crash occurring in the first place. Meanwhile, seven airbags are on hand in case the worst happens.