Audi has given its A4 a comprehensive mid-life revamp, with updated styling and new mild hybrid powertrains to help it take on fellow German rivals when it arrives here next year.

UPDATE: The new Audi A4 is now in Singapore — here are the price and spec details!

INGOLSTADT, GERMANY — Audi has announced a major mid-life update of its A4 executive sedan in a bid to help it battle rivals such as the new BMW 3 Series and Mercedes-Benz C-Class. The revamped A4 is expected to arrive in Singapore by the middle of next year, and brings with it refreshed styling, as well as new mild hybrid powertrain variants.

The biggest change styling-wise on the new A4 are the slimmer and more distinctive LED headlights, with top-of-the-line models getting the Matrix LED treatment with fully automatic high beam. Other styling revisions are more subtle, including a slightly redesigned grille with a wider and flatter profile, and a more streamlined side profile with cleaner lines across the side of the car.

Audi has also moved to offer better differentiation for the S line, high performance S4, and rugged Allroad variants, and each of them will have a unique grille design to set them apart. Standard A4s feature horizontal slats, while the S4 gets a honeycomb look, and the Allroad uses chrome vertical stripes to distinguish it from the rest.

Under the bonnet, the A4 gets a choice of three 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol engines with outputs ranging from 150hp to 245hp. All three will come with a 12-volt mild hybrid system, with quoted fuel efficiency figures of between 5.5 to 6.0L/100km. Emissions output for the petrol range from 125 to 138g/km, meaning that they will likely land in VES Band B.

READ MORE: Here’s another way Audi improved the A4’s efficiency

More significantly, the high performance S4 version will become diesel only, following on the trend set by its S5, S6 and S7 stablemates. The S4’s engine will be a 3.0-litre TDI V6 with a 48-volt mild hybrid system, producing a total of 347hp and 700Nm of torque.

ADDENDUM: Audi Singapore has verified that markets outside of Europe will continue to receive the S4 (and other S-badged models) with a 3.0 TFSI turbocharged petrol V6 engine with 354hp and 500Nm of torque. This version of the S4 has a 0-100km/h acceleration time of 4.7 seconds, 0.1 seconds faster than the diesel model.

The interior of the revised A4 has also been reworked slightly, and now features the latest version of Audi’s MMI infotainment system with a 10.1-inch touchscreen. It also gets rid of the rotary controller on the centre console, with the system now operated solely via touchscreen or voice controls.

Other improvements include an optional upgraded adaptive cruise control system which can use inputs from traffic signs, navigation data, and ‘Car-to-X’ information messages to predictively adjust travelling speed as appropriate even if there’s no vehicle visible ahead.

Pricing and specific variants are yet to be confirmed for Singapore, but they are unlikely to vary significantly from the current line-up.