Compare the2025 Audi S3VS 2025 MINI Cooper Hardtop 4 Door

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 Cooper Hardtop 4 Door doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Audi S3 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 MINI Cooper Hardtop 4 Door doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

Both the S3 and Cooper Hardtop 4 Door 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 Cooper Hardtop 4 Door’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 S3 has all-wheel drive to maximize traction under poor conditions, especially in ice and snow. The Cooper Hardtop 4 Door doesn’t offer all-wheel drive.

The S3’s standard lane departure warning system alerts a temporarily inattentive driver when the vehicle begins to leave its lane. A lane departure warning system costs extra on the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door.

The S3 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 Cooper Hardtop 4 Door’s blind spot costs extra.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the S3 has standard Rear Cross-Traffic Assist and Automatic Brake Activation automatically engages the brakes to help avoid a collision. MINI charges extra for Cross Traffic Warning on the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door.

Both the S3 and the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front and rear side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights and rearview cameras.

The Audi S3 weighs 449 to 460 pounds more than the MINI Cooper Hardtop 4 Door. The NHTSA advises that heavier cars are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts. Crosswinds also affect lighter cars more.

There are over 3 times as many Audi dealers as there are MINI dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the S3’s warranty.

The Audi S3’s engine uses a cast iron block for durability, while the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door’s engines use an aluminum block. Aluminum engine blocks are much more prone to warp and crack at high temperatures than cast iron.

The S3’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder produces 167 more horsepower (328 vs. 161) and 111 lbs.-ft. more torque (295 vs. 184) than the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door’s standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder. The S3’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder produces 127 more horsepower (328 vs. 201) and 74 lbs.-ft. more torque (295 vs. 221) than the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door S’ standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

The S3 has 2.9 gallons more fuel capacity than the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door (14.5 vs. 11.6 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

The S3’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door are solid, not vented.

For better traction, the S3 has larger standard tires than the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door (225/40R18 vs. 215/45R17). The S3’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door (235/35R19 vs. 215/45R17).

The S3’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 40 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door’s standard 45 series tires. The S3’s optional tires have a lower 35 series profile than the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door’s optional 40 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the S3 has standard 18-inch wheels. Smaller 17-inch wheels are standard on the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door. The S3’s optional 19-inch wheels are larger than the 18-inch wheels optional on the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door.

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 Cooper Hardtop 4 Door doesn’t offer run-flat tires.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the S3’s wheelbase is 2.5 inches longer than on the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door (103.6 inches vs. 101.1 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the S3 is 1.8 inches wider in the front and .7 inches wider in the rear than on the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door.

The S3 has 3.6 inches more front shoulder room, 2.9 inches more rear legroom and 3.2 inches more rear shoulder room than the Cooper Hardtop 4 Door.

To make loading and unloading groceries and cargo easier, especially for short adults, the S3 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 Cooper Hardtop 4 Door doesn’t offer a power liftgate.

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 has standard headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The Cooper Hardtop 4 Door 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 Cooper Hardtop 4 Door doesn’t offer extendable visors.

The S3 has a standard center folding armrest for the rear passengers. A center armrest helps make rear passengers more comfortable and it can provide a boundary between children. The Cooper Hardtop 4 Door doesn’t offer a rear seat center armrest.

To keep a safe, consistent following distance, the S3 offers an optional Adaptive Cruise Assist, which alters the speed of the vehicle without driver intervention. This allows the driver to use cruise control more safely without constantly having to disengage it when approaching slower traffic. The Cooper Hardtop 4 Door doesn’t offer an adaptive cruise control.

Compared to the MINI Cooper Hardtop 4 Door, the Audi S3 eliminates the need for separate garage door openers and associated risks of losing, breaking, or having dead batteries with its optional integrated Homelink® universal remote controlled from the rear view mirror.