Last week we published first photos of the upcoming Cabriolet version of the Audi S3… a first droptop for that particular model. The car had been spied testing in Northern climates by spy photographers working that particular beat and now we’ve got shots of the A3 version showing off even more angles of Audi’s new droptop MQB.

As expected and seen on the S3, the Cabriolet bodystyle is changing a bit. It drops its the overall 3-door shape as seen in the last-generation car for a more coupe-like “notchback” configuration. That Audi is adding a sedan to the A3 family made this change more readily approached, though the overall look of the Cabriolet looks more like a smaller take on the A5 rather than the A4 of which we expect the sedan to show more similarity.

Why the change? It is believed Audi intends to take the Cabriolet to the lucrative U.S. marketplace – the largest market for convertibles in the world. That an S3 version is also in the cards suggests quattro will be added to the Cabriolet this time around and that suits America just fine as well.

For Europe at least, expect the A3 Cabriolet to mirror the engine and drivetrain selection seen in the hard top A3 range. Whether or not the American A3 Cabriolet, a new model to that market, will see availability of all American drivetrains remains to be seen.

See more photos of this A3 Cabriolet test mule in our photo galleries linked below and to the right.