Monday 28th October 2013

VW Golf GTI vs BMW M135i vs Mercedes A45 AMG

Three very different ways of going fast for less than 40 grand

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What, and you thought because BMW has taken its M135i back we'd stop talking about it?

Planned as a culmination to our series of M135i versus the world articles, what follows is perhaps a wider ranging story about the state of the modern 'everyday' performance car. By everyday we mean the kind of car you might possibly buy on a company ticket, or one that'll cover all household bases from the school run to the early morning hoon and occasional track day. So at least the option of five doors, vaguely realistic running costs, a boot big enough to carry the shopping and comforts (actual and creature) to keep you sane on the daily grind.

Fast cars for, whisper it, the real world

Not so long ago when the car buying hierarchy was more straightforward and more clearly defined your choice would have been progressively faster and fancier European front-driven hatches leading to, probably, something rear-driven and Bavarian. The alternative to that probably Japanese, turbocharged Imprezas and the like requiring (financial) commitment to run but giant-killing on the right road and in their day.

But the goalposts have moved, and how. Taking our M135i comparisons as a core, 30-ish grand will today buy you a Ford, VW, Audi, BMW, Mercedes, Renaultsport or similar with enough power (200-odd horsepower to 300-plus) to blow supposed performance models of just a decade ago into the weeds. You can have front-driven, rear-driven or four-wheel driven, four-cylinders, six-cylinders, manual gearboxes, autos, dual-clutches and in pretty much any combination you fancy. Active differentials, 'e-diffs' and good-old fashioned mechanical locking diffs, adaptive dampers and specific outputs in the supercar scaring league - all are now available for relatively 'sensible money'.

To specifics though.

Take your pick of tech and fill your boots

For this test we've got a 230hp front-wheel drive Golf GTI with the optional active locking differential and a six-speed manual gearbox. At £27K it's the cheapest here. Option two costs, on paper, nearly £10K more but experience suggests BMW dealers are amenable to haggling and in reality the price difference between the Golf and M135i is narrower than it appears. Unless you're talking performance. Comprehensively hammering the final nail into the Japanese rally rep coffin, meanwhile, is new arrival to this party, AMG. 180hp per litre from a 2.0-litre four would have been for the committed just a few years back but now comes with a Mercedes badge on the front, four driven wheels, a hatchback body and more youthful swagger than we've ever seen before.

Consider this as your homepage; from here you can click to more in-depth assessments of the cars and some conclusions. And for reference here are links to our comparisons between the BMW and other cars we picked out in this vaguely defined up to c. £30-£40K/c. 200hp-300hp bracket.

Enjoy!

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Introduction and comments
Volkswagen Golf GTI Performance
BMW M135i
Mercedes A45 AMG
Verdict

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VW GOLF GTI* Engine:  1,984cc 4-cyl turbo Transmission:  6-speed manual**, FWD Power (hp):  230@4,700rpm Torque (lb ft):  258@1,500-4,400rpm 0-62mph:  6.4sec Top speed:  155mph Weight:  1,351kg MPG:  47.1mpg CO2:  139g/km  Price:  £27,480 *GTI Performance model tested **6-speed dual-clutch optional

BMW M135i Engine:  2,979cc 6-cyl turbo Transmission:  6-speed manual*, RWD Power (hp):  320@5,800rpm Torque (lb ft):  332@1,300-4,500rpm 0-62mph:  5.1 sec (auto 4.9 sec) Top speed:  155mph Weight:  1,500kg MPG:  35.3 (37.7 auto) CO2:  188g/km (175g/km auto)  Price:  £30,525 *8-speed auto optional

MERCEDES A45 AMG Engine:  1,991cc 4-cyl turbo Transmission:  7-speed dual clutch, 4WD Power (hp):  360@6,000rpm Torque (lb ft):  332@2,250-5,000rpm 0-62mph:  4.6 seconds Top speed:  155mph (limited) Weight: 1,555kg MPG:  40.9 CO2:  161g/km Price:  £37,845

All mpg figures NEDC combined, all prices before options

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Further reading...
BMW M135i vs ... the world!
BMW M135i vs Toyota GT86
BMW M135i vs Porsche Cayman 2.7
BMW M135i vs Renaultsport Megane 265
BMW M135i vs Audi S3
BMW M135i vs used Porsche 911 Carrera

Photos: PrimeExposures

[LordFlathead]

I feel sorry for the Golf, it's woefully inadequate when compared to the other two

[lmsrocket]

I smoked an A45 the other day on the m6, 2 or 3 times the a45 was in my mirror, RS3 has more puff higher up the mph.

[simoid]

Woefully inadequate title?

[SonicShadow]

"I feel sorry for the Golf, it's woefully inadequate A45 AMG"

I think you accidentally a word or two there.

Also, are they *really* that different? All I see are 3 German fast hatchbacks.

[Benbay001]

lmsrocket said:

I smoked an A45 the other day on the m6, 2 or 3 times the a45 was in my mirror, RS3 has more puff higher up the mph.

Id suggest he wasnt as keen on speeding as you were.

[KFC]

Comparing a £27k car to a £37k one is completely pointless. Who'd have thought it, the car thats 40% more expensive, is better.

[LordFlathead]

simoid said:

Woefully inadequate title?

I don't know what happened there, perhaps a mod could correct it? I copied and pasted from Word and half of what I posted has disappeared.

[Rawwr]

lmsrocket said:

I smoked an A45 the other day

How on earth did you get it in the Rizla in the first place?

[roboxm3]

The Merc and Beemer may be better cars but the golf pisses all over them under the heading of 'Going fast for under £30k'

[simoid]

SonicShadow said:

"I feel sorry for the Golf, it's woefully inadequate A45 AMG"

I think you accidentally a word or two there.

Also, are they *really* that different? All I see are 3 German fast hatchbacks.

I believe there are variations in driven wheels for a start

[richwig83]

Comparing a M spec and an AMG to a GTI is daft... Golf R would have been a better comparison.

[V8A*ndy]

roboxm3 said:

The Merc and Beemer may be better cars but the golf pisses all over them under the heading of 'Going fast for under £30k'

Problem there is you can get a very hefty discount on the beemer.

[73mark]

KFC said:

Comparing a £27k car to a £37k one is completely pointless. Who'd have thought it, the car thats 40% more expensive, is better.

Shocking you right

[V8A*ndy]

anonymous said:

[redacted]

So we need to change the title to "going fast for under £25k" then

Just shows you how overpriced a GT86 is.

[schaeffs]

OK - so who went and looked at the Verdict first?

[Phil Dicky]

Benbay001 said:

lmsrocket said:

I smoked an A45 the other day on the m6, 2 or 3 times the a45 was in my mirror, RS3 has more puff higher up the mph.

Id suggest he wasnt as keen on speeding as you were.

What he said ^^^^^

[kambites]

V8A*ndy said:

Just shows you how overpriced a GT86 is.

It's not really a competitor, but I'd take a GT86 over any of the above (admitted I haven't driven the Merc), even if it was the same price as them unless I needed the extra practicality. Not everyone equates value with performance.

[green-blood]

Seriously lads this is like coming home from football match and watching match of the day thinking the result will be different.

[loudlashadjuster]

lmsrocket said:

I smoked an A45 the other day on the m6, 2 or 3 times the a45 was in my mirror, RS3 has more puff higher up the mph.

[aarondbs]

I'm a little bewildered! The Golf is a perfectly adequate Hot Hatch, indeed probably on my shopping list for the OH at some stage. If we are reasoning that the BMW is a 30k car then the Golf, is a 24K car with discounts available.

The A45 is a 38k car and, as has been stated aleady, that is at least £11k more if not nearer to £14k. Except for pure entertainment purposes (and I concede I may have answered my own question there) what is the point of the article. Certainly it bears no passing resemblance to a buying decision on might make. In reality one may well have just asked 'what would win a fight, a polar bear or a shark' with all the inherent issues in the asking.

Perhaps my buying 'tactics' and relaities are very different to others.