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It’s safe to say the forthcoming Worldwide Harmonized Light Vehicles Test Procedure is giving the Volkswagen Group a lot of headaches. We’ve seen models from the VW core brand, SEAT, and Porsche being affected by the switch from NEDC to WLTP, and now it looks like Audi is having some troubles as well.

Our colleagues at Car Advice got in touch with the automaker’s local division after one of their readers noticed the RS3 was missing from the online configurator. The reason why it’s MIA is because production of the RS3 Sportback and RS3 Sedan has been temporarily stopped for countries with EU homologation.

This decision also affects Australia, but the silver lining is the Four Rings anticipate production will be resumed at the beginning of next year. Audi is confident availability is not much of a problem – at least Down Under – because the existing stock levels are expected to last for several months.

With the Golf GTI ditching the 230-hp version and the Golf R losing 10 horsepower in order to become WLTP-friendly, some people are probably concerned Audi might have to fiddle with the 5-cylinder engine to make it eligible for the new test cycle. It’s too soon to say whether the new regime will have a negative impact on the number of ponies delivered by the 2.5-liter unit, which churns 394 horsepower and 354 pound-feet (480 Newton-meters) of torque.

Outside of the VAG empire, other cars have been impacted by WLTP, with Peugeot having to pause production of the 308 GTi hot hatch while the gasoline-fueled BMW 7 Series models are no longer listed in the German configurator. The electrified 740e and 740Le are still available, though.

As a final note, we checked Audi Deutschland’s configurator where the RS3 Sportback and RS3 Sedan are listed as being sold out for the 2018MY. It means customers can’t configure a new car, but Audi mentions already produced vehicles are waiting at dealers.

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https://www.caradvice.com.au/680235/...n-halted-wltp/

New emissions regulations force German marque to push pause on hyper hatch and sedan, though local arm says current stock should satisfy demand in the interim.

Audi has stopped production of the RS3 Sportback and sedan due to the new Worldwide Harmonised Light Vehicles Test Procedure (WLTP), with the models currently unavailable to order in Australia.

The brand's local arm confirmed the news this week with CarAdvice, after a keen-eyed reader noticed the Sportback (hatch) and sedan versions of Audi's hottest small car were no longer listed on the Australian website.

Shaun Cleary, corporate communications manager for Audi's local division, said:

"The Audi RS3 Sportback and Sedan models are currently unavailable to order in Australia, due to the implementation of the new Worldwide Harmonised Light-Duty Vehicles Test Procedure (WLTP) standards in markets with EU-homologation.We anticipate RS3 production will resume in early 2019. However, we also expect that stock levels of the RS 3 Sportback and Sedan will ensure we are still able to meet demand for several months."

Audi is the latest in a string of European manufacturers to be affected by the new WLTP emissions standards, following parent Volkswagen and fellow VW Group brand Seat, along with Peugeot – the latter halting production of the 308 GTi hot hatch to revise the model's high-output powertrain to comply with the new regulations.

You can read more about the WLTP regulations and their implications on carmakers in Australia here.

Currently, power in the RS3 comes from a 2.5-litre five-cylinder turbo making 294kW of power and 480Nm of torque, sent to the ground via a quattro all-wheel drive system via a seven-speed S tronic dual-clutch transmission.

Audi claims the hyper hatch and sedan can complete the 0-100 dash in just 4.1 seconds, while fuel consumption is rated at 8.3L/100km (sedan) and 8.4L/100km (Sportback).

It will be interesting to see if the WLTP changes force Audi to change the engine's outputs. Stay tuned.