The Audi A1 and A3 ranges are expanding to include new ‘super-frugal’ Cylinder-on-Demand (CoD) petrol models, offering up to 60.1mpg.

At prices from £16,740 on the road (OTR) for the A1, and £20,055 OTR for the A3, the new 1.4-litre TFSI 140PS CoD models cost £850 more than their continuing 1.4 TFSI 122PS equivalents.

Audi says the CoD technology, which has filtered down from its S and RS models, can switch ‘virtually imperceptibly’ between two and four cylinders in as little as 13 milliseconds.

Able to cruise frugally and draw on 140PS when required, the new models are viable alternatives to the 2.0-litre TDI variants.

CoD technology uses information from the throttle pedal sensors and the two-cylinder operation will disengage if the driver brakes.

This reduction in unnecessary mechanical effort enables the new CoD models to rival their TDI counterparts in terms of fuel economy.

They are available to order from this week.