Mercedes Benz is looking to bump the Audi RS3 out of 1st place for a chance at building the most powerful hot hatch on the market.
As our RS3 vs. A45 AMG feature suggested, people seem to prefer the more powerful Audi over the Merc so we’re guessing speed talks. The 5 cylinder 2.5 liter RS3 is good for 362 hp and 465 Nm (342 lb-ft) of torque while the A45 AMG currently produces 355 hp and 450 Nm (331 lb-ft) of torque from its 2.0 liter turbocharged engine. The Audi reaches 62 mph in 4.3 seconds while the A45 is a bit slower at 4.6 seconds.
However, according to Autocar, AMG boss Tobias Moers stated that when the facelifted A45 AMG arrives this autumn, “it will be the most powerful again”.
The number going around is 375 hp, enough to take the crown away from the RS3 as far as flexing muscles goes. This doesn’t mean that the Mercedes will end up being any quicker to 62 mph since the power upgrade is thought to take at least 0.1 seconds of its 4.6 second mark. In order to match the Audi it would have to shave no fewer than 0.3 seconds – which sounds like a very tall order.
It will be interesting to see how Audi will respond to this. Our guess is that they won’t feel any sort of pressure. BMW on the other hand definitely needs a horse in this race since the facelifted M135i xDrive hasn’t gained any more speed despite the 7 hp upgrade.
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