Compare the2025 Honda Civic SiVS 2024 Audi RS 3

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Honda Civic Si have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Audi RS 3 doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Civic Si are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The RS 3 doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

Using vehicle speed sensors and seat sensors, smart airbags in the Civic Si deploy with different levels of force or don’t deploy at all to help better protect passengers of all sizes in different collisions. The Civic Si’s side airbags will shut off if a child is leaning against the door. The RS 3’s side airbags don’t have smart features and will always deploy full force.

With its standard Collision Mitigation Braking System, the Honda Civic Si is better at preventing collisions with pedestrians than the Audi RS 3, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety:

The Civic Si has a standard blind spot warning system that uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them. A system to reveal vehicles in the RS 3’s blind spot costs extra.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Civic Si has standard Rear Cross Traffic Monitor, helping the driver avoid collisions. Audi charges extra for Rear Cross-Traffic Assist on the RS 3.

The Civic Si’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The RS 3 doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the Civic Si and the RS 3 have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front and rear side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems and rearview cameras.

Honda’s powertrain warranty covers the Civic Si 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Audi covers the RS 3. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 5 years or 60,000 miles. Coverage on the RS 3 ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are almost 4 times as many Honda dealers as there are Audi dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Civic Si’s warranty.

To reliably start during all conditions and help handle large electrical loads, the Civic Si has a standard 500-amp battery. The RS 3’s 320-amp battery isn’t as powerful.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Honda vehicles are better in initial quality than Audi vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Honda above average in initial quality. With 61 more problems per 100 vehicles, Audi is rated below average.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Honda vehicles are more reliable than Audi With 69 fewer problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, J.D. Power ranks Honda higher than Audi.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2024 Auto Issue reports that Honda vehicles are more reliable than Audi vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Honda 14 places higher in reliability than Audi.

On the EPA test cycle the Civic Si gets better fuel mileage than the RS 3 (27 city/37 hwy vs. 19 city/29 hwy).

In heavy traffic or at stoplights the Civic Si’s engine automatically turns off when the vehicle is stopped, saving fuel and reducing pollution. The engine is automatically restarted when the driver gets ready to move again. If the conditions warrant or the driver wishes, the system can be manually disabled at any time for the duration of a trip. The RS 3 doesn’t offer an automatic engine start/stop system.

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Honda Civic Si uses regular unleaded gasoline (premium recommended for maximum performance). The RS 3 requires premium, which can cost on average about 84.9 cents more per gallon.

The Civic Si has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The RS 3 doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Honda Civic Si higher (5 out of 10) than the Audi RS 3 (3). This means the Civic Si produces up to 16.5 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the RS 3 every 15,000 miles.

The Civic Si stops much shorter than the RS 3:

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Civic Si’s wheelbase is 4.1 inches longer than on the RS 3 (107.7 inches vs. 103.6 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the Civic Si is 1.7 inches wider in the rear than on the RS 3.

The Civic Si handles at .97 G’s, while the RS 3 pulls only .94 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

For better maneuverability, the Civic Si’s turning circle is 1.3 feet tighter than the RS 3’s (38.1 feet vs. 39.4 feet).

The Honda Civic Si may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 700 pounds less than the Audi RS 3.

Because it has more passenger and cargo room, the EPA rates the Civic Si a Mid-size car, while the RS 3 is rated a Subcompact.

The Civic Si has 9.6 cubic feet more passenger volume than the RS 3 (96.6 vs. 87).

The Civic Si has 1.1 inches more front headroom, 1.1 inches more front legroom, 2.2 inches more front shoulder room, 1 inch more rear headroom, 2.3 inches more rear legroom and 3 inches more rear shoulder room than the RS 3.

The Civic Si has a much larger trunk than the RS 3 (14.1 vs. 8.3 cubic feet).

The Civic Si’s sun-visors swivel front-to-side to block glare from the side windows. The RS 3’s visors are fixed into the windshield header.

Insurance will cost less for the Civic Si owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the Civic Si will cost $6470 less than the RS 3 over a five-year period.

The Civic Si will cost the buyer less in the long run because of its superior resale value. The IntelliChoice estimates that the Civic Si will retain 60.14% of its original price after five years, while the RS 3 only retains 51.36%.

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Honda Civic Si will be $41747 less than for the Audi RS 3.

Consumer Reports® recommends the Honda Civic Si, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The Civic was chosen as a Car and Driver’s “Top Ten” for 2024 and 9 more times in the last 40 years. The RS 3 has never been chosen by Car and Driver in their “10Best” issue.

The Honda Civic outsold the Audi A3/S3/RS 3 by almost 15 to one during 2023.