The RS3 is fast. Searingly fast. Far too fast than is rightful for a car that occupies the same amount of road space as a Ford Focus

The RS3 is the quick Audi enthusiasts have been praying for since the demise of the Avant RS2 in the mid-1990s. It combines all of those Audi USPs – five-cylinder warble, practicality and grunty performance – that have had us hooked on Ingolstadt's fast fleet since the ur-quattro hit the streets way back in 1980. But how things have changed in those intervening years...

When the quattro was launched, 200bhp from a four-seater coupe was nothing short of sensational, but these days that kind of output is expected from a mid-line turbodiesel executive – so to make a quattro-style impact in 2012 is going to be a tall order. But the Audi RS3, we reckon, might just have what it takes to do just that. Certainly, after a thorough testing over some of Middle England's roughest roads, it had us harking back to childhood memories of Kielder Forest – except without the cold feet and numb nose.

At the heart of the RS3 is the 335bhp in-line five, which when installed under the bonnet of the TT-RS, turned the mildly interesting coupe into something quite special. At the time we drove it, we concluded that Audi could no no worse than rolling this power unit across the rest of its range - pronto. They must have been listening, because here we are a couple of years later, driving a hot three-door A3 tuned to thrust and warble like its two-door kissing cousin.

And we are so glad they made it. The RS3 is fast. Searingly fast. Far too fast than is rightful for a car that occupies the same amount of road space as a Ford Focus. If you're into acceleration figures consider that Audi claims a 0-60mph time of 4.6 seconds and a top speed limited to 155mph. All we'll say on that is 'ha!'... it's, er, quite a bit quicker than that. And easy too, thanks to immense traction from rest and the option of using launch control in Sport mode. This pace is the stuff of legends, but more intriguingly for us is that it's so civilised on the road that you never feel that you're not in control. Just as a fast Audi should be, really.

That grunt is accompanied by a wonderful, if muted, off-beat five-pot thrum that just shouts old-school 'Audi'. And as for power delivery - it's linear and clean all the way to the top of its rev range. In short, it's an absolutely wonderful soundtrack that petrolheads will never tire of.

In terms of drivetrain refinement - the feeling of the gearchange, pedals and steering (which some criticise for its lack of feel, but is accurate and well-weighted), it's pretty much perfect. But the ride and handling set-up are biased too much towards the ultra-smooth roads that Germany is famed for. Stick it on a typical UK B-road and its stiff suspension and un-supple damping doesn't cut the mustard, even if the overall levels of grip are unimpeachable. 

But these dynamic foibles shouldn't put you off what is actually a highly appealing package. For a car that's so quick, the RS3 is incredibly easy to live with. The controls and overall driving appeal - in the real world - are absolutely spot on, and you'll enjoy a car with lasting deep-seated appeal. Keep it to sweeping A-roads and motorways, and then throw in the odd track day, and you'll love the RS3. Try being Loeb down the B660, and you might be disappointed.

But that's not what the RS3 Sportback is all about. And truth be told, neither was the ur-quattro. But both were - and are - brilliant.