Around the time my predecessors atMotor Trendwere testing the 2004 Audi S4 -- pitting it against the Mercedes-Benz C32 AMG in a head-to-head battle in which the Audi handily triumphed -- I was driving it for another car mag, in a comparison against the Benz as well as the BMW M3. While both the C32 and M3 came with high-output six-cylinder engines, the S4 boasted a rip-roaring, naturally aspirated 4.2-liter, 340-horsepower V-8 - unheard of for the day in a compact luxury sedan, certainly one paired with a six-speed manual and all-wheel drive.
As you can probably surmise, the Audi placed first, in both tests. What can I say -- back then a tidy four-door that could rocket from 0-60 in 5.0 seconds flat, eclipse the quarter mile in 13.4 at 105.1 mph, go from 60-0 in 117 feet, and hug the skidpad at 0.90 g was pretty much going to annihilate every competitor in its path.
TheAudi S3is a 2015 Motor Trend Car of the Year contender - find out in November whether the A3/S3 has what it takes to win.
Fast-forward 11 years and Audi is at it again, though in this go-around the engine has shrunk by more than half. The all-new 2015 S3, the first S-badged A3 to make it stateside, comes with VW Group's tiny but potent 2.0-liter TFSI (turbocharged, direct injection) inline-four, good for 292 horsepower and 280 lb-ft of torque, and paired exclusively to a six-speed S Tronic DCT. And guess what? It's quicker and better in just about every performance measurement than that 3,825-pound V-8-powered S4. At our test venue (the balmy Hyundai Proving Grounds in the Mojave desert), the 3,467-pound S3 launched from 0-60 in 4.7, through the quarter in 13.4 at 102.4, stopped from 60 in 112 feet and, thanks in part to sweet split-spoke 19-inch alloys shod in sticky 235/35 Continentals, pulled max lateral accel of 0.92 g. Not too shabby for a little four-banger.
Speaking of little four-bangers, let's take a look at the S3's most direct competitor, the Mercedes-Benz CLA45 AMG. Similar to the Audi, the Benz sports a turbocharged I-4, all-wheel drive, and a DCT. But two noteworthy differences: AMG cranks its 2.0-liter to the tune of 355 horsepower and 332 lb-ft, and adds a seventh cog to its dual-clutch transmission. So, despite being a bit heavier, at 3,599 pounds, the CLA proved noticeably quicker out at the Mojave dragstrip, where it laid down 0-60 in 4.2 and the quarter in 12.7 at 108.3. Braking from 60 (109 feet) and maximum lateral grip (0.96 g) superseded the S3's stats as well, but by much closer margins.
