Despite the financial crisis in Europe, Audi is doing very well. There have been a total of 852,900 car delivered so far this year, with a whopping figure of 119,600 worldwide deliveries for the month of July itself. Locally, 1,070 Audi cars have been delivered this year alone and the German marque is expecting the figures to rise, especially with the launch of its latest compact SUV.

Audi Singapore has finally announced the launch of its long-awaited Q3 - the youngest and probably the most handsome-looking member of the ‘Q’ car family. And what better place to hold the launch event at Marina Bay, home to the newly created Singapore Youth Sailing Academy 2012 - a collaboration between Audi Singapore and Singapore Sailing Federation (SSF).

Aiming to make an impact with the Audi Q3, the brand even went to the extent of organising a drive event in China. Trans China Tour 2011, as what it was called, enabled a couple of local journalists to try out the latest Q car, to which their feedback about the car was 'undemanding' and 'extremely capable'.

Since the start of Audi Q7, the biggest and also the best seller amongst the Q family, Audi started creating smaller and more capable line of Q cars such as the Audi Q5. Now, with the Q3 on board, not only will the car be a suitable one for city roads like the ones in Singapore, it's set to follow the character typical of Q cars – rugged, practical and a healthy and stylish lifestyle.

"Bearing the signature Audi values of design, premium quality, high efficiency and spirited performance in a compact and practical SUV package, we believe that the Audi Q3 is the perfect vehicle for a sophisticated city state like Singapore," said Reinhold Carl, Managing Director of Audi Singapore.

Despite the reduction in it dimensions, the Audi Q3 remains to be instantly identifiable as a Q car, with its coupe-like lines acting as an expression of its sporty character. As a result, as one can possibly predict, the latest compact SUV from Audi targets the younger couples and families, which is also why the brand has launched an augmented reality iPhone application, Audi Q3 SG, as a communication strategy.

Two variants of the Audi Q3 will be available for the Singapore market: the 2.0-litre quattro with 170bhp and the 2.0-litre quattro with 211bhp. Both powerplants are mated to the acclaimed seven-speed S tronic gearbox and will come with quattro permanent all-wheel-drive as standard, which uses a hydraulic multi-plate clutch.

Audi fans can look forward to more exciting models this year, namely the A6 Hybrid, S6, S7 Sportback, S8 as well as the RS4.