When Audi unveiled its new 2026 Audi Q3, the response was largely positive. It’s modern, handsome, and offers good value. But there was one characteristic of it that folks were overwhelmingly unhappy about: its new one-piece steering wheel stalk.
Change is hard and, most of the time, unwelcome. I get it. Folks chimed in with comments like, “Wow, looks awful,” “That looks horrendous,” and “Just because you can do something doesn’t mean you should.” Many said it’d be unsafe to operate, while even more cried about overengineering. And while the latter is not entirely inaccurate, no one really thought, “Is this really any different than we already have?” The answer to that is no.
Listen, while I don’t like to re-learn a concept I’ve mastered for years, especially when it’s for no good reason, I have to remain open-minded. Otherwise, I couldn’t offer you an honest and unbiased review of a car or any of its components. Now, I was also perplexed about this new stalk and what the whole point of reinviting it was. So, when I was asked to attend the Audi Q3 global media drive, I immediately looked forward to experiencing this controversial little bugger firsthand.
You can watch the video below to get a clear idea of what the new stalk looks like and how it works. But, if you’d prefer to read my words instead of hearing my voice, here ya go: on the right side of the stalk, it’s the Q3’s shifter. That’s it. You only use this side of the stalk to shift into and out of park, much like in a Mercedes-Benz. Pretty simple concept, to be honest.
On the left side of the stalk, you have some headlight controls like high beams and turn signals, as well as your front and rear wiper controls. Now, I know what you’re thinking: the left side of the stalk looks really complicated, but I assure you that’s all there is to it.
To operate the shifter side, simply click the stalk up or down to engage reverse or drive, and perform a half-click up to select neutral. It’s essentially the same concept as in many other cars, including the Porsche 911 GTS I’m driving right now; just the shifter shape and placement are different. When you’re ready to park and exit the car, push the button on the tip of the stalk to engage park, et voilà!
Now, onto the headlight and wiper side. Need to flash your high beams? Pull on the stalk, just as you would on most cars. Want to leave those on for an extended time? Push the stalk away from you, and the high beams will stay on until you pull it back. How about the turn signals? Easy, click up for the right signal and click down for the left signal. So far, so good.
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The only element that requires a bit of extra attention—attention that most buyers need to devote to learning how to use their new cars anyway—is the wiper piece of the stalk. Now, all you really have to do is memorize the buttons, but despite their appearance, most people’s muscle memory will still apply here. To activate one pass of the front wiper, press the button located at the tip of the stalk. To spray the windshield with cleaning fluid, hold that same button down for a couple of seconds. There’s a separate button for the rear wiper, located right next to it, which uses the same commands for the same actions.
That leaves us with just one more function, which is the small click wheel that activates the automatic wiper function and allows you to choose the frequency at which the wipers activate when set to automatic. That’s all!
If you read my 2026 Audi Q3 review, you’ll know that it happened in Scotland. And as it often does in Scotland, it rained—it rained a lot. While that was sucky for some reasons, it was great for others, such as experiencing The Stalk.
Right after setting my seat position and adjusting my mirrors, my left hand reached for the left side of the stalk and set the click wheel to Auto. Then, I set it to a medium speed setting, as I didn’t want it to be annoying and wipe too fast, but I also wanted to get a clear view of the unknown roads I was about to drive on. I did the same for the rear wiper, though in this case, I just had to click the button once to get it to wipe at a steady pace.
And I hate to tell ya, but that’s really all there is to it. I had to adjust the speed of the automatic setting occasionally, especially when driving behind traffic, but that was all. As far as the shifter side, there was really nothing new to learn there.
The most significant change Audi is ushering in here is just the design of the stalk. We’ve been accustomed to traditional, separate stalks in most cars, from Honda Civics to Rolls-Royces; they’re all pretty much the same. Sure, some don’t have a shifter sprouting out of the steering column, but except for that variation, they all look and do the same things.
Audi’s one-piece solution is utterly handsome, and I must say that it pairs exceptionally well with the Q3’s tech-forward cabin. It adds to the overall vibe of sleekness and simplicity. I’d imagine that once someone gets used to seeing the stalk on their steering wheel for some time, they’d probably think the traditional two-stalk setup is weird and ugly.
So yeah, change isn’t fun, and most of the time it’s overrated. But in this case, apart from going from two stalks down to one, nothing’s really changing.
Email the author at jerry@thedrive.com
As deputy editor, Jerry draws on a decade of industry experience and a lifelong passion for motorsports to guide The Drive’s short- and long-term coverage.
