The guys from The Fast Lane Car have done some really stupid comparisons over the years and, while they do claim they’re doing it on purposes, sometimes, the get one or two right. At a first glance, the BMW 228i Coupe and the Audi S3 Sedan have nothing in common but there’s more to it than what meets the eye at first.
Both of them have turbocharged 2-liter 4-cylinder petrol engines but the S3 is more of a rival for the M235i instead of the 228i, while the RS3 would go head to head with the M2 if we’re to be completely honest. However, it would appear like the Audi got a little more than it bargained with when pitted against the modest Bimmer.
The specs tell us that the BMW has 245 HP and 350 Nm (258 lb-ft) of torque to play around with, all of it being sent to the rear wheels. At the same time, the Audi has the engine tuned to make 300 HP and 380 Nm (280 lb-ft) of torque in metric units.
Yes, the four-ringed car is more powerful and comes with all-wheel drive. From a standstill it’s also claimed to be faster at 5.1 seconds to 100 km/h (62 mph) while the BMW is rated at 5.7 seconds with the automatic gearbox. Quite a hefty difference, right?
Well, in real life things aren’t nearly as far fetched. As a matter of fact, the guys from TFL found out that if you’re not using launch control on your Audi you will lose quite badly in a drag race, the engine’s turbo lag being extremely noticeable.
The thing is, while drag racing might be subjective, even around their made up track the Bimmer was faster, despite its considerable lower output. All of this was done, and you should remember this, at 1 mile above sea level, where air lacks a bit of oxygen and cars tend to lose some power. If the two would’ve been compared on sea level, the results might’ve been different.
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