The Audi A3 is a subcompact executive/small family car (C-segment) manufactured and marketed by the German automaker Audi AG since September 1996, currently in its fourth generation. The first two generations of the Audi A3 were based on the Volkswagen Group A platform, while the third and fourth generations use the Volkswagen Group MQB platform. The original A3 (or Type 8L) was announced back in June 1995, but introduced first in the European market for more than year in September 1996, marking Audi's return to the production of smaller cars following the demise of the Audi 50 in 1978. This was the first Volkswagen Group model to use the 'PQ34' or 'A4' platform, bearing a close resemblance to the contemporary Volkswagen Golf Mk4, which arrived a year later. Within three years, this platform was used for total of seven cars. (Source: Wikipedia.org, CC BY-SA)