Skip advert
Advertisement
Features

Audi RS3 v Toyota GR Yaris v Mercedes-AMG A45 S – car pictures of the week

In the latest issue of evo, we test three of the most sophisticated hot hatches on sale against each other on road and track – these are our favourite shots

Hot hatchbacks used to offer simple, no frills fun for the masses, but today the genre has evolved dramatically. The most advanced examples of the breed pack the kind of performance and technology you'd expect to find in a supercar from not too long ago. With four-wheel drive, torque vectoring and enormous power, the 0-62mph times begin with a three, in some cases. In issue 332 of evo, we gather three cutting-edge hot hatches – the Audi RS3, Toyota GR Yaris and Mercedes-AMG A45 S – to evaluate just how far the class has come, and find out which is best on road and track. To read the full test, pick up a copy of the magazine in-store or online via the evo shop.

Advertisement - Article continues below

The Audi RS3 is the newest of the three contenders, with a subtle facelift introduced late last year to refine the already impressive 8Y-generation model. A turbocharged five-cylinder engine remains at its heart, generating 394bhp and a spectacular sound as it does so. Key to the current-generation RS3’s talents is its sophisticated four-wheel drive system, which uses a Torque Splitter rear differential. With the ability to send up to 50 per cent of torque rearwards and all of this to a single rear wheel, the RS3 is more exciting and throttle-adjustable than you’d expect of a traditional fast Audi, and this latest model gains tweaks to its chassis electronics to accentuate this further.

The RS3’s closest rival is another German hyperhatch – the A45 S. Like the Audi, the AMG packs some truly spectacular numbers, drawing 415bhp from a 2-litre four-pot engine and reaching 62mph in just 3.9sec. It too has a trick four-wheel drive system with a torque vectoring rear diff, plus a plethora of modes to tune the driving experience to your tastes. It's a formidable hatch that has hints of classic Mitsubishi Evo in the way it drives, but the third car in this test is a genuine, pure-bred Japanese rally icon: the GR Yaris. 

Now in fettled Gen 2 form, the Toyota takes the hot supermini formula to its very extreme, with a bespoke engine, chassis, four-wheel drive system and a serious depth of engineering (the original was a genuine homologation special, after all). This latest model turns out 276bhp from a 1.6-litre turbocharged three pot, which drives both axles through a retuned four-wheel drive system – and in this case, an eight-speed automatic gearbox, new for the Gen 2. The suspension has been stiffened and honed, too, to make the Yaris even more adept at scampering along twisting, gnarly tarmac in all conditions imaginable. 

Three different takes on the ultimate hot hatch, then, and a test split between fabulous Welsh B-roads and the Anglesey circuit to sort them in order. Pick up a copy of evo 332 to find out which comes out on top. 

Skip advert
Advertisement

Recommended

Driving the iconic Renault Sport Clio 172 – car pictures of the week
Renault Sport Clio 172 – front
Features

Driving the iconic Renault Sport Clio 172 – car pictures of the week

In issue 332 of evo, we revisit the brilliant Renault Sport Clio 172 – these are our favourite shots
13 Apr 2025
This Audi RS3 has more power than a £120,000 Porsche 911
Audi RS3 R
News

This Audi RS3 has more power than a £120,000 Porsche 911

German tuning specialist Abt has given Audi’s RS3 a 911 Carrera GTS-rivalling power figure
4 Apr 2025
Used Audi RS3 (8V, 2015 – 2020), review, specs and buying guide for a hyper hatch bargain
Audi RS3 (8V) front
Reviews

Used Audi RS3 (8V, 2015 – 2020), review, specs and buying guide for a hyper hatch bargain

Briefly the most powerful hatch on the planet the Audi RS3 is a great all-rounder with an astonishingly great engine
2 Apr 2025
Audi A1 Quattro review – the supermini that cost more than a Porsche
Audi A1 Quattro – front
In-depth reviews

Audi A1 Quattro review – the supermini that cost more than a Porsche

It made no financial sense for Audi to build it, but the rare, sought-after and highly bespoke A1 Quattro is a remarkable testament to the brand’s amb…
31 Mar 2025
Skip advert
Advertisement

Most Popular

Volkswagen Passat 2025 review – a breath of fresh air next to leaden EVs
Volkswagen Passat front
Reviews

Volkswagen Passat 2025 review – a breath of fresh air next to leaden EVs

Being ‘only’ 1500kg has its advantages. The latest Passat in petrol-only form reminds us ‘normal’ cars can and should be above average
16 Apr 2025
Best German cars – our high-performance favourites from the Fatherland
Best German cars
Best cars

Best German cars – our high-performance favourites from the Fatherland

If you still think Germans don’t have a sense of humour, you haven’t driven their finest performance cars. You’d be grinning from ear to ear
18 Apr 2025
Why the Vauxhall Astra should have been given a different name
Vauxhall Astra GSE
Opinion

Why the Vauxhall Astra should have been given a different name

It’s time to reassess a perennially underrated hatchback, says Porter
17 Apr 2025