SECOND COMING

Despite 4WD and circa 300bhp, neither Audi's S3 nor BMW's M235 Gran Coupé has set our world alight so far, but now both have had a refresh. Can either live up to the promise - and the hefty price tag?

- YOUSUF ASHRAF

IMES ARE TOUGH FOR THE AVERAGE enthusiast in 2025. Cheap hot hatches have pretty much died out, affordable sports coupes are no more and everything that's left seems to be getting ludicrously expensive. Flagship hot hatches from Mercedes and Audi run to over £60k, which used to be BMW M3 money. The M3 itself is nearly £90k these days, and if you want a brand new Porsche 911 – even a basic Carrera – no less than £103k will do. Inflation is a factor, of course, but external pressures on manufacturers have booted prices completely out of line with what customers are willing to pay in this turbulent financial time. Prices have reached silly levels, perhaps in the hope that PCPs and lease deals will do the heavy lifting.

Which brings us neatly to BMW’s M235 xDrive Gran Coupé and the Audi S3 Sportback: a pair of compact, four-wheel-drive, circa-300bhp performance cars that have recently been subject to a nip and tuck, and cost not far shy of £50k. Yes, really. For a warmed-up sub-M car and what isn’t even Audi’s hottest hatchback. Neither has set the world alight in their previous forms, the Gran Coupé lacking the poise of the rear-drive 2-series coupe, and the S3 being quick but inert to drive, but both have been updated in key areas to fix that – and justify their very punchy asking prices.