From just a glance, it is plainly obvious that the 2013 Audi A3 
and 2013 Volkswagen Golf are related. Both are built on the VW MQB platform, and they’re built will the same purpose in mind. But the two cars wear different badges, and so different approaches were used to make them, and this become ever more clear when you move up the range to the top-end performance versions of the two cars, the 2015 Audi RS3 and the 2016 Volkswagen Golf R. This video will take a look at the two cars in order to determine just how different they really are, including a lap around the track.
There is a substantial price difference, and Audi is good enough to include a big power bump to go along with all of that extra money you’ll be shelling out. There is also a nicer interior and the chance to say that you drive an Audi, although one would hope that the latter isn’t something that Audi is banking on too heavily. You might think that these cars are so similar that the difference in power and price would lead to a predictable conclusion from the comparison, but the result will probably surprise you.
It’s more than a little bit troubling that the VW wins this comparison. The Audi gets a nod for the better interior, subjective though that may be, but for such a huge price difference, Audi has much to answer for with these results. It would be interesting to see if different testers achieved different results, but there is no reason to doubt the impartiality of this test. One positive aspect of the video is the reviewer’s description of the all-wheel-drive system as “like front-wheel-drive with infinite traction,” which is apt.
2015 Audi RS3
Read our full review here.
2016 Volkswagen Golf R
Read our full review here.