Compare the2024 Audi A3VS 2024 BMW 2 Series Gran Coupe

The A3’s pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The 2 Series Gran Coupe doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Audi A3 are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The BMW 2 Series Gran Coupe doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

Both the A3 and 2 Series Gran Coupe have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The A3 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 2 Series Gran Coupe’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.

Both the A3 and 2 Series Gran Coupe offer rear cross-traffic warning, but the A3 with Rear Cross-Traffic Assist also has Automatic Brake Activation (automatically applies the brakes) to better prevent a collision when backing near traffic. The 2 Series Gran Coupe’s Cross Traffic Warning doesn’t automatically brake.

Both the A3 and the 2 Series Gran Coupe have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, 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, rearview cameras, available all wheel drive, blind spot warning systems and rear parking sensors.

For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, its standard vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, its standard vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its standard headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the A3 its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2022, a rating granted to only 128 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The 2 Series Gran Coupe is only a standard “Top Safety Pick” for 2022.

The Audi A3’s engine uses a cast iron block for durability, while the 2 Series Gran Coupe’s engines use an aluminum block. Aluminum engine blocks are much more prone to warp and crack at high temperatures than cast iron.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the A3 first among small premium cars in their 2023 Initial Quality Study. The 2 Series Gran Coupe was rated third.

As tested in Consumer Reports the Audi A3 is faster than the 228i Gran Coupe:

On the EPA test cycle the A3 gets better mileage than the 2 Series Gran Coupe:

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Audi A3 uses regular unleaded gasoline (premium recommended for maximum performance). The 2 Series Gran Coupe requires premium, which can cost on average about 82.8 cents more per gallon.

The A3 has 1.3 gallons more fuel capacity than the 2 Series Gran Coupe (14.5 vs. 13.2 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Audi A3 higher (7 out of 10) than the BMW 2 Series Gran Coupe (3 to 7). This means the A3 produces up to 24.5 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the 2 Series Gran Coupe every 15,000 miles.

The A3 offers a standard sequential manual gearbox (SMG). With no clutch pedal to worry about and a fully automatic mode, an SMG is much more efficient than a conventional automatic but just as easy to drive. The 2 Series Gran Coupe doesn’t offer an SMG or a conventional manual transmission.

The A3 stops much shorter than the 2 Series Gran Coupe:

For better maneuverability, the A3’s turning circle is 1 foot tighter than the 2 Series Gran Coupe’s (36.4 feet vs. 37.4 feet).

The A3 has .9 inches more rear headroom and .8 inches more rear legroom than the 2 Series Gran Coupe.

To make loading and unloading groceries and cargo easier, especially for short adults, the A3 has a standard power trunk, which opens and closes automatically by pressing a button, or optionally by just kicking your foot under the back bumper, completely leaving your hands free. The 2 Series Gran Coupe doesn’t offer a power trunk, so its trunk has to be closed manually.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) conducts detailed tests on headlights for their range both straight ahead and in curves and to be certain they don’t exceed acceptable amounts of glare to oncoming drivers. The A3’s headlights were rated “Good” by the IIHS, while the 2 Series Gran Coupe’s headlights are rated “Acceptable” to “Marginal.”

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The A3 Prestige has standard headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The 2 Series Gran Coupe doesn’t offer headlight washers.

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield, the A3 has standard extendable sun visors. The 2 Series Gran Coupe doesn’t offer extendable visors.

The A3’s optional Park Assist can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, with the driver only controlling speed with the brake pedal. The 2 Series Gran Coupe doesn’t offer an automated parking system.

Insurance will cost less for the A3 owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the A3 will cost $1145 less than the 2 Series Gran Coupe over a five-year period.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Audi A3 will be $4844 to $11920 less than for the BMW 2 Series Gran Coupe.

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Audi A3 and the BMW 2 Series Gran Coupe, based on reliability, safety and performance.