A mysterious Audi S3->ke1303 was recently spotted doing some test runs at the Nurburgring->ke999 and from the looks of things, it just might be the rumored Audi S3 Plus. Why do I have this hypothesis? For one, the new Audi S3 is already out on the market and it seems unlikely that Audi's already developing a new one. It's also not likely to be the Audi RS3->ke3198 because the body doesn't veer too far from, if at all, the look of the new S3.

So with those two cars out of the way, that leaves us with the possibility of a diesel-powered S3, but the sound of that engine isn't very diesel-like. As an educated guess, I would say this is the S3 Plus, a car that's been rumored to be in the works for quite some time now.

The S3 Plus has been touted as Audi's->ke14 response to the emergence of the Mercedes CLA45 AMG. Word has it that Audi is planning to use a modified version of its 2.0-liter, TFSI engine in the S3 Plus with an output of 375 horsepower and 368 pound-feet of torque.

That should make it easy for Audi to package it between the new S3 and the upcoming RS3, giving customers an option to choose from in the event they want a performance version of the S3 without the cost that comes with paying for an RS3.

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