WITH a spotlight trained on some formidable competition Audi is trying to carve out a niche in the posh SUV market.

The new Q3 compact four-wheel-drive will be taking on the likes of the sophisticated Range Rover Evoque and BMW's X1 - cars packed with status and ability.

Priced from £25,690 to £31,360 the Q3 looks competitive - and within a few weeks a cheaper front wheel drive version will be joining the line up at £24,560.

But this is a fuzzy part of the car market and higher grade versions of the likes of the Kia Sportage and Nissan Qashqai cannot be ignored.

And once the Q3 is dressed up with options such as sat nav, electric seats, high grade sound systems, air suspension and the like, the cost can soar beyond £40,000.

However, Audi is a brand on the up and its reputation alone will grab the attention not only of the mums who crave such vehicles for the school run but also the dads who want something which can perform in all conditions.

The Q3 has some underlying strengths which impress - whatever extras are added.

It is sturdy, neatly styled and the engines - especially the higher powered diesel - are class acts.

Two petrol and two diesels are available, all two-litre and with power outputs ranging from 170ps to 211ps in the quattro all-wheel-drive versions.

The two-wheel-drive Q3 will have a 140ps diesel giving it CO2 emissions of 137g/km and average fuel consumption around 54 to the gallon - spectacular figures for a two tonne car.

Fuel efficiency is very much to the fore in all versions of the Q3 and the quattro models can be fitted with Audi's seven speed S tronic electronic gearbox in place of a six speed manual.

The Q3 S tronic is priced from £28,460 and when fitted with a multi-mode drive selector - a £220 extra - it's in a league of its own.

With four drive programmes available the car can be configured for everything from performance to maximum economy at the touch of a button.

And the eco mode has a trick up its sleeve which allows the car to ‘coast' whenever the accelerator is released.

We have just tried out the set up on both diesel and petrol versions of the Q3 over a gruelling route across the North Yorkshire Moors where it proved to be a sophisticated system.

In regular driving the engine will drop to idling revs as soon as you come off the throttle but encounter a descent - and there were plenty of them - and the drive cuts back in automatically to deliver the necessary engine braking.

Coupled to a stop/start system, which is standard kit, and the fuel consumption figures for such a drive were more than acceptable.

According to the onboard trip computer we managed to average 46mpg in the 177ps diesel, very close to the official 47.9mpg claimed by Audi.

More impressive were the results from the more powerful 211ps petrol engine which returned 42.4 to the gallon over the same 50 mile route - an improvement of almost six mpg over the official figure.

Select the sportier drive mode on either model and the electronics remap the engine, transmission and steering weight to give the Q3 some real bite. It's little surprise the 0 to 60 acceleration time for the petrol version is sub seven seconds and only just above eight for the diesel.

Both versions were fitted with the electronic damper control which delivers an accomplished ride whatever the road conditions. It may be a £680 extra but is a must for the way it transforms the handling.

Inside the Q3 is roomy enough for most family needs and the boot - although there is a fairly high load lip - ranges from 460 to 1,365 litres which is comparable to the X1 but not quite as practical as the Evoque.

The car is available either in SE specification or higher grade S line trim costing £2,750 more but coming with leather upholstery, LED running lights and 18-inch alloys among its extra equipment.

Like Audi's larger Q5 and Q7 models, the Q3 is very much more an SUV with the open road in mind and although its ride height and drive system will allow it to tackle moderately rough terrain it is very much a soft-roader with an upmarket feel.