Can the Golf R and Megane RS Take on the Porsche Boxster GTS in a Drag Race?

You may think that other cars stand a better chance. For example, the Honda Civic Type R is widely seen as faster and better than all the other FWD cars. But there's no drag race to back this up, as the Megane RS Trophy is fresh off the assembly line.

It's packing 300 horsepower and 400 Nm of torque from its 1.8-liter turbo engine, which coincidently is also the output of the Golf R. However, the Volkswagen model has an obvious advantage in that power from its 2-liter turbo goes to all four wheels via a 7-speed DSG gearbox.

So what about the Porsche? Well, we think the model used is a little unfair. It's the 718 Boxster GTS. So not only does it offer the biggest engine here at 2.5 liters, it's also pushing 365 HP and 430 Nm directly to the rear wheels.

The official specs suggest the PDK-equipped Boxster is faster than the Vdub, but that's not really the case here, as the Golf launches well. Only at much higher speeds does the extra power from that Boxster engine start to play a part. But Mat says the Porsche would have been 0.5s faster over the quarter mile if it had gotten a good start.

So what about the Megane? Well, it doesn't not in the same league as those other two and suggests FWD hatchbacks will never be able to compete against sports cars of similar output.

The Golf R is the most constant performer here, always putting down the same times. It's also almost half the price of the Porsche (€45,000 vs. €84,000). Though you can't hide the extra weight, as shown during the brake test.