Compare the2022 Audi S3VS 2022 Volkswagen Golf R

The S3’s pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Golf R doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

Both the S3 and Golf R 4dr have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The S3 has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The Golf R’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

The Audi S3 has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Golf R doesn’t offer knee airbags.

Both the S3 and the Golf R have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, all wheel drive, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, available blind spot warning systems and rear cross-path warning.

The S3’s corrosion warranty is 5 years and unlimited miles longer than the Golf R’s (12/unlimited vs. 7/100,000).

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2021 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Audi vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Audi 20th in reliability. With 36 more problems per 100 vehicles, Volkswagen is ranked 28th.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Audi vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Audi 10 places higher in reliability than Volkswagen.

The S3’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder produces 15 lbs.-ft. more torque (295 vs. 280) than the Golf R Manual’s standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

On the EPA test cycle the S3 gets better mileage than the Golf R:

The S3 has 1.3 gallons more fuel capacity than the Golf R (14.5 vs. 13.2 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

The Audi S3 comes standard with an automatic transmission, for driver comfort, especially in the city. Automatic costs extra on the Golf R.

Changing a flat tire near traffic can be dangerous and inconvenient. The run-flat tires available on the S3 can be driven up to 50 miles without any air pressure, allowing you to drive to a service station for a repair. The Golf R doesn’t offer run-flat tires.

For better maneuverability, the S3’s turning circle is 2.9 feet tighter than the Golf R’s (36.4 feet vs. 39.3 feet).

The design of the Audi S3 amounts to more than styling. The S3 has an aerodynamic coefficient of drag of .29 Cd. That is significantly lower than the Golf R (.33) and many sports cars. A more efficient exterior helps keep the interior quieter and helps the S3 get better fuel mileage.

A standard locking glovebox (which can’t be accessed with the valet key) keeps your small valuables safer in the S3. The Golf R doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The S3 Prestige has standard headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The Golf R doesn’t offer headlight washers.

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield, the S3 has standard extendable sun visors. The Golf R doesn’t offer extendable visors.

The S3’s optional rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Golf R has an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.