VW Golf R v Audi S3 - review & 0-60mph, 1/4-mile and brake comparison!
Motor
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It's time for a VW Golf R vs Audi S3 group test!
As we all know, both the Golf R & S3 are part of VW Group, so as a result, they’re both very similar under the skin - and that's no more evident when you check out the engine stats! They’re both packing 2-litre 4 cylinder engines, although while the Audi can produce 310hp & 400Nm, the Golf R edges it with the ability to put down 320hp & 420Nm!
So on the face of it, you’d expect them to be pretty similar, but will that be the case once Mat gets his hands on them? Will the Golf's slight increase in power be noticeable once he's on track? And even if it is, would he rather find himself sat in the S3's cabin?
You'll have to stay tuned as he walks you through all the key details you need to know, from thoughts on the exterior design through to the boot capacity! Oh, and of course, make sure you stick around for the launch & brake tests!
Chapters
00:00 Intro
00:31 Price
01:11 Exterior Design
02:02 Interior
03:58 Back Seats
04:58 Boot
05:51 Drivetrain & Brakes
06:54 Engines
07:45 Audi S3 - 0-60mph & Brake Test
08:24 Audi S3 - Driving
11:18 Golf R - Driving
13:54 Golf R - 0-60mph & Brake Test
15:16 Verdict
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Kommentarer
Hi Mat here: if I was to give you either of these cars for free which would you take?
Jóhann Ingi
10 dager siden
The Golf R for sure
Todd Stevens
10 dager siden
I'll stick with my Mk7.5 GTI, DSG+DCC for $35K CDN thank you very much.
Manpreet Virk
10 dager siden
Golf
Ivan lee kai wen
10 dager siden
I will take both lol
dug huff
10 dager siden
Golf. That Audi grille???
Can we have a link to your pants?
Golf is max spec-ed top of the line,in that case the Audi has RS3 as top of the line.....
Matt,the Golf is better looking then that ugly ass Audi you presented.
I'd be very surprised if that Golf R was making only 320ps. I had a 2016 S3 and two of my colleagues at the time had mk7 and 7.5 golf R's, when we dyno'd them the R's both made way over 325PS and the S3 made 310PS, all of them were bone stock.
Marc Mawson
18 timer siden
@Steve Cooper That sounds about right, the mk7 Golf R made about that after we did the airbox mods to it, replace the turbo elbow but without tuning it, and that was supposed to be 300PS, when we did the same mods to my S3 it made 333PS, again no tune. We used the same dyno for both, but it was months in between each test and ambient was radically different, so it wasnt a back to back test. Those EA888 engines are amazing things. I am going would be very interested to see what a tuned mk8 R was like vs. an A45s, I know thats the old tuned vs. stock argument, but if you can get the same performance for £10k or so less, now that is interesting.
Steve Cooper
19 timer siden
Archie Hamilton Racing dyno’d it to 339PS
The new Golf actually looks super dull. The MK7 R looks way better. Deary me, what is happening at VW!? Similar to the way bmw have super dulled the new 1 series. Ceed, i30, Focus, Corolla, 1 series, Golf, Leon etc etc. Car design has entered the matrix.
Mat bringing the Diesel Scandal 😢 😿 VW: Are u here to test cars or what
Audi is posher and more dynamic in appearance...VW at same price...prob the S3, then.
WHat is slap movie/scene at 2:57?
Alloy wheels are getting worse
Both of these cars would get stolen within a blink of an eye here in South Africa, and you can even lose your life for one of them
I will go for the Audi S3
no one would choose a/s series over golf R
I thought the redesign was so ugly at first but that Golf R design is growing on me
im in the market for a new car and moving everything into the infotainment + the capacitive steering wheel "buttons" was a dealbreaker for me when it came to the VW.
Would take the R in a hearbeat
Find it really irritating when manufacturers only let you have certain options as part of a wider ‘pack’. Real ripoff by Audi.
It’s difficult to understand how VW could have screwed up the interior so much. Seats look shite. GTI ones are better.
Mat did you just say MGA 45? Is this a new brand of Mercedes performance?
Damn, I may have to upgrade my 2017 GTI for the R...
plz matt make a video about those super sports suvs that beat sports cars and can also drift like drift cars plz matt.....
40k car and bonnet still manual 😂
In Ireland Golf R list price is €62.4K while the S3 is €55.5K. WTF......
Hey, Mat! You should have gotten a kick in the ass, for saying... You know! :D I choose Audi. :)
How on earth did you evade the kick in aRSe for mentioning the Nirburgring? 😂
Wrong wheels you showed on R upgrade they are the GTi 19s.
Vw/audi just not for me.
They didn’t kick him for saying Nurburgring
Hi mat do you review new 308 Peugeot
VAG botched this one. Why make the less premium and cheaper car the better car? I want the Audi dealership experience, interior refinement and better looks but with the same power, brakes, rear diff, and adjustable suspension as the Golf R.
After a couple repairs on the Audi you'll need those plusher seats for your sore bum. I'd still take her though.
Wow the golf seriously has a stick to prop the bonnet up. Wtf all older gen golfs were gas strut maybe even the mark 4. Not a deal breaker but strange. Im sure the 5s onwards were.
VW GOLF MK8 R 🇩🇪🔥👿💪
The previous generations looked sooo much better. Volkswagen, Audi... Why?!
The predecessors of these 2 are so much nicer in every way
I feel like you wanted the Audi to be better so u didn’t care as much with the golf
No bonnet lift? My mk4 golf tdi is older than probably 40% of the people that watched this video and has a bonnet lift. What is vw doing?!
S3
Essentially the same running gear slightly differentiated by tuning and couple little bits and different skins imo Wouldnt mind either tbh
Car Wow
5 dager siden
T.h.a.n.k.s f.o.r w.a.t.c.h.i.n.g F.o.r m.o.r.e g.u.i.d.a.n.c.e +1......7.....0....4....4....4...4.....0....9 ...8.....8
Why not compare it with the Audi RS3 instead of a S3?
nolocal.info/post/5_Rfuytk8_2fBxpAaNhntA.html
nolocal.info/post/PGhqbfMDeRLvAoS9_QMmXA.html
You do know there are other car makers than German ones? ;-)
but, there is an rs3 also xD
Disgusting critisism.
I’d better make my mk 7.5 last a while.
The launch on that VW GOLF R is DREAMY!!!
4 hailo
The A3 shape is starting to look a bit dated IMO whereas the Golf just looks like a Golf (i.e. it doesn't really offend anyone). Plus my lawnmower fits into a golf without having to dismantle but I need to take the handles off to fit in an A3. Plus that extra 0.5 seconds to 60 means I can get to the Co-op and back with my beer a full 1 second quicker - and that is important! I do hate the shitty cheap plastic that they are starting to introduce though!!!
S3 is better everyday ans more beautiful
Do you self a favour go watch Rory review on Autotrader channel and just watch how you should do a quality review. Yours are embarrassing and just plain pathetic
So basically the Golf 8 is boring.. It doesn't have the soul of Golf 7 which we South African love it for. Sad day😢😔
The Golf 8 has grown on me 😍🙈
Mat sneak out a smack for say Nurburgring.. Haha
Craxy how trash the golf r interior is. Never selling my mk7.
The Golf R, for sure. Like you said, it may not be as aesthetically pleasing BUT the drive is what its all about. You clearly enjoyed the R alot more. I myself would really like to upgrade from my MK5 Golf GTDI to any R model, rather than an Audi S series.
VW should do a hyper hatch model with a turbo vr6 engine before the petrol era dies. Could you imagine it would smoke the RS3 and the AMG A45.
Mat, you have to stop moaning about that stitching!
I would be interested to see how they perform on the same size wheels. Golf is lighter, more powerful, and has smaller wheels hence the large acceleration difference.
Why has Porsche never made a hot hatch? Maybe a sort-of 911-based thing. I guess a rear-engine might be awkward though. So ... how about a smaller-than-a-Macan thing?
Touch pads are cheeper...😐
Never thought a golf r was better then an s3
Hi Mat, kindly do a review (drag race ) on the Audi Q3 vrs Tiguan both 2ltr
Helen Baylis
Dag siden
Don't follow the crowd. A hatch/car/bicycle is mutch better/cooler
Bad run on the S3.. Best CarWow Runs: Golf R: 3.95 Audi S3: 4.37
Golf R so quick
For me vw is better looking ... i would choose the s3 only in sedan version
The S3 will probably get the power bump and trick bits found on the Golf R when it gets face-lifted in three years. That, or they will only be on the RS3 because VAG wants to better differentiate the S3 from the Golf R this time around.
I'm gonna get that golf r.. that thing is sick!!
Matt NOT Freeeking German Cars. I would rather poke my eyes out with fork than watch this video...PS It's not you Matt,
New Golf is hideous
The Golf is growing on me
The Audi for sure
Stock wheels are ugly
Where are the 1/4 mile times like it says in the title???????
Thumbnail on this video says a lot now.....
Just the way you fuck up the golf lol you made it look shit
That Golf is pulling Lamborghini Diablo Times 0-60!!!!
What was the 1/4 mile time?
I want golf r but manual no not dsg a manual
2:56 lol wtf😂😂
He’s a right drama queen constantly over reacting
As we Germans says: Wer bremst verliert
both hands on the wheel, both braincells paying attention, shut gob and drive
Better
I'd trade some hp for better build quality. These look like toys.
These cars are HUGE!
No such word as”Posher”
Lol No adaptive Suspension... Thats what my cheap Seat from 2015 comes with as Default.🥴😀👍🍌👻
Journalists complain because the shifter paddles are too small or too big, seems they can never be neutral
compare RS3, not S3
As a person who does lighting for a living I absolutely hate overkill on led lighting and I just find all that ambient lighting malarkey inside cars very cheesy, they all look like something out of a badly and cheaply lit Indian restaurant 🍛
Well for the money these things cost I’d buy the Audi just on looks alone
Anyone actually used Carwow to buy a new car?
Steve Cooper
6 dager siden
Nope 🤣
I personally like the looks of the golf more. S3 is not ugly by any means though.
i love how Mat makes a german accent. it's funny.
Are you the boy from Billy Elliot grown up...i wondered what happened to you
You surely just dont like the Golf....lets face fact
Steve Cooper
6 dager siden
He said he preferred the golf in the end 😳 god knows why, yes it’s quicker but everything else is 2nd rate
mechanically the same car just down to what badge and look you prefer
Peter Harrison
6 dager siden
Did you watch the video !?! Not this time !! The golf has more power and a rear differential which the Audi doesn't have.
Mat is energetic like Golf R, see him doing some exercise lol. Get a bike
When is the a45s amg vs golf R coming out