AUDI is giving the RS Q3 high performance SUV a power boost taking its top speed up to almost 170mph and shaving nearly half a second off its 0 to 60 acceleration time.

The new RS Q3 performance has an uprated 2.5-litre turbo engine which now produces 367ps and comes with extra body trim and interior highlights to set it apart.

Priced from £49,175 - some £3,000 more than the standard RS Q3 - the performance model has a 0 to 60 time of 4.4 seconds and a top speed of 167mph.

The regular RS Q3 has performance figures of 4.8 seconds 0 to 60 and its maximum is limited to 155mph.

Changes to the cooling capacity of the radiator and modifications to the fuel pump have enabled Audi's engineers to boost power output from the five-cylinder engine by 27ps and see the newcomer joining the performance versions of RS 6 and RS 7 models.

Despite the power boost official fuel economy remains at 32.8mpg with a CO2 figure of 203g/km.

External tweaks include matt titanium-look trim around the air intakes, on the door mirrors and on the rear spoiler while the performance car also has its own Ascari blue paint job available as an option.

It sits on matt finish 20-inch alloys while inside blue stitching is used in the trim and on the leather sports seats.