Compare the2023 Audi Q3VS 2023 Toyota Corolla Cross

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics
Recommendations

Safety

© 1999 - 2024Advanta-STAR Automotive Research, all rights reserved. This vehicle comparison and all of the content in it are provided only by license from Advanta-STAR Automotive Research Corporation of America (“Advanta-STAR”). If you are not a legally licensed user of this vehicle comparison, it is against federal law to access it, copy it, forward it, or use it in any manner whatsoever. Any unauthorized use of this vehicle comparison is a violation of U.S. and international law and is punishable criminally and civilly. Removal of this watermark/notification without prior written license and approval received from Advanta-STAR is an agreement, understanding, and/or stipulation by the person(s), entities, agents, attorneys, and any other persons involved in the removal of this watermark/notification (including but not limited to Search Optics, LLC and any and all parent entities, sister entities, and subsidiary entities of Search Optics, LLC and/or any other entity, agent, attorney, and persons related in any manner to Search Optics, LLC) to: 1) an agreed upon amount of liquidated monetary damages of a minimum of $1,250,000.00 US Dollars in favor of Advanta-STAR; 2) the jurisdiction and enforcement of any legal claims associated with this matter asserted by Advanta-STAR in the United States Federal District Court in Portand, Oregon; and 3) service of process of any legal claims asserted by Advanta-STAR associated with this matter may be accomplished by First-Class Postage by the United States Postal Service or comparable service. XPYNN-M34HG 2a06:98c0:3600::103 2024/05/06

The Q3’s pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Corolla Cross doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

Both the Q3 and Corolla Cross have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Q3 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 Corolla Cross’ 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 Q3 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 Corolla Cross doesn’t offer a front passenger side knee airbag.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the Q3. But it costs extra on the Corolla Cross.

The Q3 Premium Plus has a standard Top View Camera System to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Corolla Cross only offers a rear monitor and front and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the sides.

The Q3 has a standard blind spot warning system which uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them. Only the Corolla Cross LE/XLE offers a blind spot warning system.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Q3 has a standard rear cross-path warning system, which uses sensors in the rear bumper to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side, helping the driver avoid collisions. Only the Corolla Cross LE/XLE has a rear cross-path warning system.

Both the Q3 and the Corolla Cross have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems and rearview cameras.

The Audi Q3 weighs 591 to 801 pounds more than the Toyota Corolla Cross. The NHTSA advises that heavier vehicles are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Audi Q3 is safer than the Toyota Corolla Cross:

	Q3	Corolla Cross
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	88	92
Chest Movement	.7 inches	.9 inches
Abdominal Force	95 lbs.	129 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Hip Force	485 lbs.	623 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Warranty

The Q3 comes with a full 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Corolla Cross’ 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 14,000 miles sooner.

The Q3’s corrosion warranty is 7 years longer than the Corolla Cross’ (12 vs. 5 years).

Reliability

The Audi Q3’s engine uses a cast iron block for durability, while the Corolla Cross’ engine uses an aluminum block. Aluminum engine blocks are much more prone to warp and crack at high temperatures than cast iron.

Engine

The Q3’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder produces 59 more horsepower (228 vs. 169) and 107 lbs.-ft. more torque (258 vs. 151) than the Corolla Cross’ 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder.

As tested in Consumer Reports the Audi Q3 is faster than the Toyota Corolla Cross:

	Q3	Corolla Cross
Zero to 30 MPH	3.2 sec	3.6 sec
Zero to 60 MPH	7.8 sec	9.3 sec
45 to 65 MPH Passing	4.9 sec	5.7 sec
Quarter Mile	16.1 sec	17.2 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	91 MPH	85 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

The Q3 has 3.5 gallons more fuel capacity than the Corolla Cross FWD’s standard fuel tank (15.9 vs. 12.4 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups. The Q3 has 2.7 gallons more fuel capacity than the Corolla Cross AWD’s standard fuel tank (15.9 vs. 13.2 gallons).

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the Q3’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Corolla Cross:

	Q3	Corolla Cross
Front Rotors	13.4 inches	12 inches
Rear Rotors	11.8 inches	11.1 inches
Opt Rear Rotors	12.2 inches

The Q3’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the Corolla Cross are solid, not vented.

The Q3 stops shorter than the Corolla Cross:

	Q3	Corolla Cross
60 to 0 MPH	126 feet	128 feet	Consumer Reports
60 to 0 MPH (Wet)	135 feet	140 feet	Consumer Reports

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the Q3 has larger standard tires than the Corolla Cross (235/55R18 vs. 215/65R17). The Q3’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Corolla Cross (255/45R19 vs. 225/55R18).

The Q3’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 55 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Corolla Cross’ standard 65 series tires. The Q3’s optional tires have a lower 40 series profile than the Corolla Cross XLE’s 55 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Q3 has standard 18-inch wheels. Smaller 17-inch wheels are standard on the Corolla Cross. The Q3’s optional 20-inch wheels are larger than the 18-inch wheels on the Corolla Cross XLE.

Suspension and Handling

For superior ride and handling, the Audi Q3 has fully independent front and rear suspensions. An independent suspension allows the wheels to follow the road at the best angle for gripping the pavement, without compromising ride comfort. The Corolla Cross 4x2 has a rear torsion beam axle, with a semi-independent rear suspension.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Q3’s wheelbase is 1.6 inches longer than on the Corolla Cross (105.5 inches vs. 103.9 inches).

Passenger Space

The Q3 has 1 inch more front headroom, 4 inches more front shoulder room, 4.1 inches more rear legroom and 2.7 inches more rear shoulder room than the Corolla Cross.

For enhanced passenger comfort on long trips the Q3’s rear seats recline. The Corolla Cross’ rear seats don’t recline.

Cargo Capacity

A standard locking glovebox keeps your small valuables safer in the Q3. The Corolla Cross doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

To make loading groceries and cargo easier when your hands are full, the Q3’s available liftgate can be opened and closed just by kicking your foot under the back bumper, leaving your hands completely free. The Corolla Cross doesn’t offer a hands-free gesture to open its liftgate, forcing you to put cargo down if your hands are full.

Servicing Ease

The Q3 uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Corolla Cross uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

J.D. Power and Associates surveys of service recipients show that Audi service is better than Toyota. J.D. Power ranks Audi 8th in service department satisfaction (above the industry average). With a 17% lower rating, Toyota is ranked 20th.

Ergonomics

When different drivers share the Q3, the optional memory seats and mirrors make it convenient. Each setting activates different, customized memories for the driver’s seat position and outside mirror angle. The Corolla Cross doesn’t offer a memory system.

The Q3’s rain-sensitive wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically based on the amount of rainfall on the windshield. This allows the driver to concentrate on driving without constantly adjusting the wipers. The Corolla Cross L’s standard fixed intermittent wipers only have one fixed delay setting, so the driver will have to manually switch them between slow and intermittent. The Corolla Cross LE/XLE’s manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

The Q3 has a standard automatic headlight on/off feature. When the ignition is on, the headlights automatically turn on at dusk and off after dawn. The Corolla Cross has an automatic headlight on/off feature standard only on the LE/XLE.

The Q3’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 Corolla Cross offers an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

The Q3 has a standard dual zone air conditioning allows the driver and front passenger to choose two completely different temperatures so people with different temperature preferences won’t have to compromise. This makes both the driver and front passenger as comfortable as possible. Dual zone air conditioning is only available on the Corolla Cross XLE.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Audi Q3 and the Toyota Corolla Cross, based on reliability, safety and performance.