What Happens When You Drag Race an RS3 and the Alfa Romeo 4C?

The two brands have very little in common besides sharing the first letter of the alphabet and VW Group once wanting to buy Alfa. The 4C is not that relevant right now, as they only make a few roadster versions a month. However, it's deeply interesting. No other company has made a mid-engined sports car that's so lightweight, so pure. It's not always a good thing, as flaws like the lack of power steering or storage are easy to criticize.

The Audi RS3, meanwhile, is one of the fattest compact hatchbacks ever made, and you notice that immediately when dealing with the ultra-high front tire pressure. These latest models have aluminum construction for the engine, but that only shaved about 30 kilos. At 2.5-liters, the TFSI engine is .75 bigger than the one in the Alfa. Yes, we too are imagining the shape of that water bottle.

The Audi makes more torque too, and boasts the added benefit of all-wheel-drive. However, it's actually the Alfa that has better launches. That's what happens where the engine is right over the rear wheels and there's no unnecessary weight, plus a mild tune.

It should be noted that the two machines also somehow manage to cost about the same. So the lesson here is that if you want a fast car, but a light one, not something with AWD and a big engine. Yes, the RS3 can be modded to be even faster, but so can the Alfa.

Probably the area where it falls short is the gearbox, as Alfa used a dry double-clutch unit. This could be the reason why it loses the rolling race by a nose.