A NEW Audi RS 3 has been announced and the car will be available in both hatchback and saloon body styles.

The third generation of Audi's smallest performance car will be priced from £50,900 and will be on the road before the year is out.

Powered by a 2.5-litre five-cylinder turbo petrol engine boosted to deliver 400ps the car has a 0 to 62mph time of just 3.8 seconds and a top speed of up to 180mph when fitted with an optional dynamic pack.

The new RS 3 has a widened body, an RS sports exhaust system and a cockpit layout inspired by racing cars.

Four trim levels will be available with Carbon, Launch Edition and Vorsprung grades joining the standard RS 3 model.

The top speed for the standard RS 3 is limited to 155mph but Launch Edition and Vorsprung models see that increase to 174mph.

With the RS Dynamic package andceramic brakes, the car can reach a top speed of 180mph.

It makes the Audi RS 3 the bestin its class in terms of acceleration and top speed and the car has a 20Nm increase in torque over the previous RS 3, which is available between 2,250 and 5,600rpm.

All versions are fitted with seven-speed dual-clutch transmissions.

Prices for the RS 3 saloon start from £51,900 and Audi will be releasing full pricing and UK specifications in the coming weeks.

The new Audi RS 3 is the first Audi that comes equipped with a torque splitter to repalce the rear axle differential and the previous multiple disc clutch package with an electronically controlled multiple disc clutch used on each of the drive shafts.

With more dynamic looks than before the RS 3 comes standard-equipped with flat, wedge-shaped LED headlights and LED taillights including dynamic turn signal lights. Matrix LED headlights will feature on Carbon, Lanch Edition and Vorsprung models.

The RS 3 comes with Audi's virtual cockpit which has been updated to display the revs and other information on a 12.3-inch multi-mode display.

The display is available in the new "RS Runway" design. In this case, the values are displayed in the opposite direction in a manner that visually resembles an aeroplane runway - the highest speed in the foreground and the lowest speed in the background.

In addition, the Audi virtual cockpit plus includes displays for g-forces, lap times and acceleration times including those for a quarter-mile and an eighth of amile.

The RS-specific blinking shift indicator in manual transmission mode changes the rpm display fromgreen to yellow to red, blinking in a manner identical to that used in motorsports, to indicate theideal time to change gears.

The car's 10.1-inch touch display includes what is referred to as the "RSMonitor," which displays the coolant, engine, and transmission oil temperatures as well as tirepressures. Also available for the first time for the Audi RS 3 is a head-up display that projects relevant information onto the windshield in the driver's direct line of sight in addition to the shift light indicator.