AUTO EXPRESS: BMW 1 SERIES M COUPE VS RS 3 SPORTBACK
Posted 4th July, 2011 in Miscellaneous | Leave a comment
Auto Express put a pair of heavy-hitters from Audi and BMW up against each other on the drag strip to see who would come out on top. Both cars cost around €50,000 and develop 340 bhp – but go about it in different ways. The RS 3 Sportback uses a 2.5L five cylinder turbo unit, while the 1 Series M coupé is propelled via a twin-turbocharged straight-six 3.0L.
The way the cars transfer that power to the road is also totally different, with the RS 3 relying on its trust quattro AWD system and seven-speed S tronic transmission, and the BMW is a RWD beast that requires the driver to stir the six gears manually.
Which would you choose? The Audi has the practicality of those two extra doors, but weighing in at 1,575 kilograms (to the BMW’s 1,495 kilograms), you’re already carrying the weight of an adult man’s body before you’ve got in the car. And how would you explain that to the police? Think about it.
