Audi A3 upgrades, generation by generation.

The 8V from 2012 to 2020, mostly Sportbacks, for CarPlay activation on MIB2 cars, reversing cameras and parking sensors. 8P owners come for the Android screen, because the Concert radio has no usable display. 8Y owners mostly want dash cams, front sensors and extended ambient lighting, as CarPlay is already fitted.

No. Activation, cameras and sensors are coded into the factory MMI, so the menus, the Virtual Cockpit and the knob stay exactly as they were. With an Android screen on the 8V the MMI knob and steering-wheel buttons still work the new screen, and the pop-up display is stored with the car so it can go back to standard.

Only for dash cams and amplifiers: we take power from the 12-volt side in the fuse panel and never touch the high-voltage system, and we set the cut-off so parking mode cannot flatten the small 12-volt battery. Screens, cameras and sensors follow the same routes as any other 8V of the same year.

8P — 2003–2012 (three-door, Sportback and cabriolet): Concert, Chorus or Symphony radio in a double-DIN slot, RNS-E navigation optional; Bose on some cars. 8V — 2012–2020 (three-door, Sportback, saloon and cabriolet): MMI radio or MMI navigation with a pop-up screen: MIB1 to 2016, MIB2 from the 2016 facelift with the Audi smartphone interface as an option; Virtual Cockpit optional. 8Y — 2020 on (Sportback and saloon): MMI touch with a 10.1-inch touchscreen (MIB3), Virtual Cockpit standard; Audi smartphone interface on most cars, wireless CarPlay on many. Not sure? Send the reg on WhatsApp and we tell you the generation and the route.

Reversing camera: Camera coded into the MMI on the 8V and 8Y, on the Android screen or RNS-E display on the 8P. CarPlay: Activation on 2016-on 8V cars, a box on early 8V, an Android screen on the 8P; factory on the 8Y. Car radio: 9-inch Android screen in the 8P's double-DIN slot, 10.25-inch in place of the 8V pop-up screen. Ambient lighting: Ambient LED kits on the 8P and 8V, extended ambient lighting on the 8Y. Parking sensors: OEM-style sensors coded into the MMI on the 8V and 8Y, colour-matched sensors on the 8P. Speakers: Plug-in door speakers on every generation; Bose, Bang & Olufsen and Sonos amplifiers stay. Dash cam: Hardwired from the driver's side fuse panel with a low-voltage cut-off and hidden cabling. Subwoofer: DSP amplifier on the factory signal with an under-seat woofer or a slim boot enclosure. Soundproofing: Doors and floor treated with butyl and foam, trim refitted without marks.

Reversing camera: two to three hours. CarPlay: under an hour for activation, two to four hours for a box or a screen. Car radio: two to three hours, usually the same day. Ambient lighting: two to four hours. Most A3 owners wait at the workshop or drop the car in the morning and collect it the same day.

8P: the Concert, Chorus or Symphony radio in a double-DIN slot, RNS-E navigation optional; Bose on some cars stays and we add to it. 8V: the MMI radio or MMI navigation with a pop-up screen: MIB1 to 2016, MIB2 from the 2016 facelift with the Audi smartphone interface as an option; Virtual Cockpit optional stays and we add to it. 8Y: the MMI touch with a 10.1-inch touchscreen (MIB3), Virtual Cockpit standard; Audi smartphone interface on most cars, wireless CarPlay on many stays and we add to it. Steering-wheel buttons, factory amplifiers and cameras are carried over on every route; the only route that changes what you see is an Android screen, and even then the controls are kept.

Send the reg or the year on WhatsApp or the form below and we confirm the generation, the route, the price and the next free slot. Every job carries a one-year warranty on the work, done at our workshop in Rosemount Business Park, Dublin 11, Monday to Saturday.